The new school will aim to widen access to veterinary medicine.

Joint school aims to support a modern profession

Keele University and Harper Adams University will open a joint veterinary school, taking their first cohort of students in 2020.

After nearly a year of planning, both university governing bodies endorsed the proposal yesterday (15 May).

The new vet school will offer a five-year programme, leading to a Bachelor degree in Veterinary Medicine and Surgery. Training will be delivered on both university campuses in partnership with local clinical providers and the industry.

Accreditation will be sought from the RCVS so that graduates can register and practice as vets when their degrees are awarded.

The new school will aim to widen access to veterinary medicine, by reaching out to those who may not have traditionally considered a career as a vet. It also aims to support the UK’s agricultural sector as it faces a period of major change when the UK leaves the EU.

Dr David Llewellyn, vice-chancellor of Harper Adams, said: “Harper Adams has a successful history of working with the agri-food industry, and our teaching and research specialisms in agriculture and animal sciences will complement Keele’s established track-record in the fields of life sciences and medicine. 

“We are excited by the prospect of jointly creating a new Veterinary School and look forward to continuing our work with Keele on this initiative.”

Professor Jonathan Wastling, pro-vice-chancellor and executive dean of natural sciences at Keele University, added:

“We have been working extremely closely with the industry from day one and will focus our attention on developing a Veterinary School which produces highly-skilled and adaptable graduates, who are well equipped to deal with the challenging and rapidly changing landscape of the modern veterinary profession.”