Meet the team

I am a born and bred Yorkshire man – though hail from the down-to-earth outskirts of Barnsley rather than the more picturesque parts of the county! I have always had an interest in surgery (especially orthopaedics), so spent four years in a busy city-centre small animal practice in West Yorkshire before moving down to help develop the small animal side of Larkmead, in 1998, where I continue to pursue small animal clinical work

Lynne is a Practice Director at Drove Veterinary Hospital. She holds a RCVS Certificate in Small Animal Internal Medicine (2007) and Advanced Practitioner and is qualified in Acupuncture

Tony Kemmish essentially lives and breathes cows. Principal of an expanding mid Devon mixed practice he spends his life immersed in the day to day intricacies of dairy farming. He qualified from Glasgow Vet School in 2002 and headed home to the West Country and St Boniface Vets. After 5 years as an assistant he took over the practice in 2007. Tony holds the general practitioners certificate in Dairy cattle practice and the Diploma in Bovine Reproduction. He is passionate about herd fertility and its fundamental link with nutrition. One of his long term aims is to promote efficient and profitable production through educating farmers about the cost of disease - particularly poor fertility and mastitis. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his wife and young family and their small herd of South Devon cows.

Following graduation from the Royal Veterinary College in 2011, I worked in 100% equine practice in the north east and was always interested in the 'business side' of practice. I joined the XLVets team in January 2015 as XLVets Equine Business Manager in a maternity cover role, which was a great opportunity to try non-clinical work. I now oversee the operational running of XLVets as Chief Operating Officer.  During the last few years of transitioning from clinical practice to a business role I've undertaken the University of Liverpool Certificate in Veterinary Business Management and an MBA. I undertook some research for my MBA dissertation into the barriers and enablers to female vets becoming business owners. I feel very privileged to be continuing that important research to increase the representation of all veterinary women in leadership roles across the profession. Outside of work, I can be found walking my two chocolate labradors 'Rolo' and 'Buttons' in beautiful Northumberland, baking, doing yoga or taking on yet another DIY project!

My role involves developing the XLVets IT infrastructure to enable effective and efficient communication between member practices. I provide IT support and development services to XLVets and try to ensure everything runs as smoothly as possible! I spend most of my time working from home but attend weekly meetings with the team at the XLVets office in Dalston. In my spare time I enjoy playing football, cycling and walking in the Lake District.

I joined the XLVets family in February 2018 as Business Intelligence Manager and I'm based in the XLVets Office in Newcastle. My role is to support the Operations team, the board and the membership by producing actionable intelligence about the operations of the business. I have a cocker spaniel called Buddy and I like to walk, cook and eat.

Based in Newcastle, I joined the team in 2019. A self confessed geek, I manage the XLVets IT department, provide IT support to our members and I look after our Audio/Video capability on both live and virtual events. When I'm not working, I enjoy spending BBQ's, Cooking, Flying, and going for walks with my partner Sarah and our two French Bulldogs Bella and Frankie. A true northerner, I love to grab a bargain and enjoy travelling and making the most of AirBNB deals or getaways.

I am based at the office in Newcastle having joined XLVets in May 2019 as Membership Support Executive. Please feel free to talk to me about a range of meetings (including the AGM, national meetings, team meetings and regional meetings), our VetSkills courses and about any support you may require to get the most out of your membership with XLVets. In my spare time I enjoy walking my King Charles Cavalier (who has a rather unusual name of Leuluai, he is named after one of my favourite Rugby players). I am a sport enthusiast who can usually be found watching Leeds Rhinos or Leeds United.

Originally from Nottingham, I moved to the North East to complete my BSc in Marketing with honours in Marketing Communications at Newcastle upon Tyne University. Having grown attached to the city, I have lived here ever since. I have spent the previous 11 years working at the PDSA, working with veterinary practices throughout the UK to provide a charitable service or to promote pet health campaigns.

Based in the Newcastle office, I joined the team in January 2020 as Marketing Communications Executive. I have a degree in Fashion Communication from Northumbria University which has allowed me to develop my passion for design and branding. In my role at XLVets, I focus on our relationship with veterinary students, marketing our members vacancies, communications to our members and lots of design work. Outside of work, I am easily found at local gigs, restaurants or dog walking in my local park.