jobswithanimals.co.uk

Head of Professional Engagement and Welfare Policies

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Head of Professional Engagement and Welfare Policies

Application Deadline: 27 April 2026

Department: Veterinary and Welfare

Employment Type: Permanent – Full Time

Location: London

Compensation: £71,750 per year + benefits

Description

Are you passionate about the development of organisational policies and standards that ensure exceptional dog welfare? 
We are looking for a Head of Professional Engagement and Welfare Policies to act as a senior lead for understanding the organisational context for veterinary, behavioural and operational standards and risks. You will be responsible for developing organisational policies and standards of practice to enable appropriate dog welfare across the organisation.  

You will oversee the development and delivery of engagement activities with professional stakeholders and work with the Veterinary and Welfare Director to build and maintain positive relationships and collaborations with professional groups to achieve organisational objectives. 

What does this role do?

In this role, you’ll:
  • lead, develop and coach a team responsible for managing relationships with key professional stakeholder groups, and for defining dog welfare associated procedures and policies for colleagues across the organisation. 
  • be responsible for monitoring the risk of external changes in the veterinary or behaviour world and evaluate their potential impact on the organisation.
  • ensure the collection of relevant data to monitor the application of standards and control of risks, working with operational and research teams as needed to review or analyse data.
  • oversee regular quality assurance on the implementation of standard operating procedures, ways of working, and other policies for the operations directorate.
  • conduct regular horizon scanning to understand new areas of clinical knowledge or research likely to impact the organisation in the future.
  • represent Dogs Trust externally, engaging with the vet and behaviour community to understand factors likely to impact on policies and procedures, including other charities or professional bodies.
  • represent the organisation at sector groups or meetings to ensure organisational influence with stakeholders and the optimisation of dog welfare in external contexts.
  • overseeing application of dog welfare standards into major organisational media projects.

Could this be you?

To be successful in this role, you’ll be qualified as a veterinary surgeon, veterinary nurse or qualified as or working towards CAB standard as a behaviourist. You’ll have significant experience in a clinical environment with an understanding of setting and maintaining standards and procedures. You’ll have a strong understanding in dog welfare legislation and in-depth knowledge of principles of behaviour and application to a rehoming context. You’ll feel confident working effectively across different specialist teams, evaluating and integrating different inputs to formulate clear outcomes.

In addition, you’ll be an excellent written and verbal communicator, with the ability to explain policies and procedures in lay terms, and have difficult conversations related to the subject, internally and externally. You will be a strong people manager, including leading, developing and coaching senior colleagues and enjoy engaging with professional bodies and stakeholders across the veterinary and behaviour sectors.

Interviews are provisionally scheduled for the 5th and 6th May 2026 online via teams.

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