Management team
Willows is a busy practice with over 50 staff, a vast array of equipment and stock items, thousands of clients, over a thousand referring vets who use our services and, in our new premises, up to 100 in-patients to look after at any given time.
Our management team has the task of keeping the innumerable component parts of the practice running smoothly, so that our staff can concentrate on achieving our goal of providing a caring, top-quality service for our patients, their owners and the referring vets who send us cases.
Malcolm McKee and Peter Renwick are ably assisted in running the practice by Jenny Corrall, the Practice Manager, and a team of other managers in the specific areas of reception, nursing and animal care.
Jenny Corrall
CVPM VN CIPD (Associate Member)
Practice Manager
Jenny qualified as a veterinary nurse in 1982 and worked in both small animal and mixed practices until she left the profession to have her daughter in 1990. Wishing to return to work on a part time basis, she joined a small NHS doctors' surgery in Birmingham as a receptionist and then became interested in the management of the practice. She achieved her membership of the Association of Medical Secretaries and Practice Administrators, and Certificate in Practice Management in 1994. After seeing an advert the following year for a veterinary nurse position at Willows Veterinary Centre in the local paper, she decided to see if she could combine her veterinary nurse experience with a 'little bit of admin'. As the practice grew she became more and more involved with its management and, with a great deal of support from the partners, Jenny gained her Certificate in Practice Management with the Veterinary Practice Management Association in 1999.
Jenny has recently attained her Certificate in Personnel Practice and is an associate member of The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. She believes this will help her to meet the challenges which lie ahead in our rapidly expanding and successful business. Jenny feels very lucky to be within a profession she believes in, doing a job she loves at a centre of excellence.
Rebecca Tomlinson
Client Care Manager
Becky enjoyed a challenging career working within a variety of commercial environments across Europe as an associate member of The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. The time came to have a career re-think, however, as Becky wanted to use her people skills in a slightly different way, continuing to focus on fantastic client care and the development of her team, but within an environment that she also felt would be personally rewarding.
As a result, in May 2011 Becky joined Willows as their new Client Care Manager, and she is keen not only to further strengthen the already existing and familiar reception team but also to oversee the all-important relationship between our highly valued clients and the referring veterinary practices who entrust their patients (and their clients) to our care. Having been a Willows client herself for a number of years, Becky understands the importance of extraordinary client care and is keen to continue to provide the highest standards of service that our pet owning clients are used to. As the practice continues to grow, Becky understands that the personal touch is just as important as ever and, alongside the reception team, she is on hand to speak to and meet with clients as frequently as possible. She is very much looking forward to getting to know and work with all of our clients and referring veterinary contacts to ensure that we are doing all we can to meet and wherever possible to exceed their expectations.
Although Becky has not come from a veterinary background, she is armed with plenty of knowledge obtained through owning her own two rescue dogs that have certainly put her through her paces. Becky is more than willing to acknowledge that she has made every mistake in the book when it comes to being a pet owner! Having grown up with energetic yet obedient Springer Spaniels, Becky took on her first rescue dog (a mongrel) in 2008 and was quickly introduced to what is fondly known as "separation anxiety"! The solution she believed was to introduce another rescue dog for company! Several pairs of curtains, shoes, toilet rolls, phone cables, sofa cushions, skirting boards and an entire sound system later, Becky invested in dog obedience training and has never looked back (although she can on occasion still be seen aquaplaning through the park at high speed attached to the end of two leads!).
Debbie Lynch
RVN MBVNA
Nurse Manager
Debbie became a qualified veterinary nurse in 1979, progressing to become the head nurse in a local small animal practice until 1989 when she left to start a family. After an eleven year break she was head-hunted by one of her previous student nurses, Jenny Tubb, who by that time was the practice manager at Willows.
Debbie enjoyed the challenge of returning to work as a nurse and being presented with the practice's advanced equipment and specialist procedures. After being promoted to Nurse Manager in 2003, Debbie's role developed into more of a supervisory one, although she could still enjoy plenty of hands-on work with the patients.
Debbie has always loved sharing her veterinary knowledge and experience with her nursing colleagues. This interest led Debbie to become actively involved in the application for the practice to become a Registered Training Practice and in 2009 she gained her Assessors qualification. A significant amount of Debbie's time over the last two years has been spent in training student veterinary nurses, and she was delighted when our first two trainees qualified in January of 2010. Debbie strongly believes that being a training centre of excellence will provide both the practice and the profession with a continuing stream of nurses who are committed to the highest levels of patient and client care.
Debbie insists her nurses never forget 'basic nursing skills' which she believes are as vital as all the high-tech monitoring equipment that is available in the practice. All her qualified and student nurses know that it is essential for their patients to have a structured care plan, with plenty of TLC to add to the holistic approach which Debbie firmly believes is essential to produce an optimal outcome, both for the pets under our care and for their owners.
She will continue to devote her time to ensuring that the pets of our valued clients will continue to receive the best veterinary nursing care that is available.
Amy Bowcott
RVN DipAVN(Surgical)
Assistant Nurse Manager (Surgical)
Amy started her nursing career immediately after leaving school by undertaking NVQ'S 1 & 2 in animal care at a veterinary surgery in Tamworth. After gaining this qualification, Amy moved to a larger veterinary hospital in Sutton Coldfield where she gained her pre-veterinary nursing qualification and went on to attain NVQ'S 2 & 3 in veterinary nursing, then qualifying as a veterinary nurse. Amy joined Willows in 2001 and gained the Diploma In Advanced Surgical Nursing in 2006. She has a particular interest in surgical nursing and takes pride in treating every patient as if it were her own pet. Amy believes that continuing education is very important, and she loves learning new information which can contribute to the high levels of nursing care that Willows' patients receive. Amy also enjoys training other nurses in the practice, and has also lectured at the British Veterinary Nursing Association and British Small Animal Association national UK congresses.
Amy looks forward to coming to work every day and enjoys every minute of her job at Willows - she feels very passionate about the work of the surgical suite and ensures that the standards in this area, for which she is responsible, are always exceptional. In 2010 Amy was nominated for Veterinary Nurse of the year which she was thrilled about.
In her spare time Amy enjoys walking with her two cross breed dogs 'Sidney' and 'Frankie'.
Claire Lynch
RVN MBVNA A1
Assistant Nurse Manager (Non-Surgical)
Since leaving school, Claire felt very passionate about making her career one where she could work with animals. She completed two diplomas in animal care at Warwickshire College and this journey opened Claire's eyes to some amazing careers with animals, ranging from opportunities in safari parks to others in farms and pet shops. However, it was towards the end of her college years that Claire discovered her niche, when she helped out in a local veterinary practice. It was at that point she was hooked! To be able to make a difference to these animals' lives and have the chance to develop a career in the veterinary world became her dream.
Claire knew this dream wasn't going to be easy to fulfil, but with persistence she obtained a veterinary nurse training position in a mixed veterinary practice in Warwickshire. She worked there for four years and qualified as a Registered Veterinary Nurse in 2005. Wanting to follow the gold standards that she was taught at college, Claire applied for a position at Willows and has never looked back since she started working here!
The importance of good training and support whilst studying to become a nurse is a subject very close to Claire's heart, and in 2008 she was offered the chance to become an A1 assessor for Willows, to guide our student veterinary nurses through their study. Claire has found this to be a very rewarding role, and she is very proud of her students and what a great asset they are to the practice.
On moving into the Willows fantastic new premises in 2009, Claire was promoted to Assistant Nurse Manager (non-surgical). Claire is very dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of care for all our patients and looks forward to seeing their happy little faces when she comes into work first thing every morning!
Claire is currently studying towards her qualification for the Institute of Leadership and Management. Following this, she is very much looking forward to starting work towards her next goal - the Advanced Nursing Diploma. Claire believes that Willows is definitely a great place to fulfil her dream and pursue a career in veterinary nursing to the highest levels!
David Hindley
Animal Care Manager
David answered his animal care calling back in 1999 when he attended Solihull College and studied for his National Diploma in Applied Science and Animal Management. After gaining valuable practical and academic experience he decided to pursue a career in the veterinary world.
In 2002 David applied for a position of animal care assistant at Willows Veterinary Centre and Referral Service. David saw this as a fantastic opportunity to gain valuable experience in animal care and work alongside general practice clinicians and specialist vets in a progressive small animal practice
David's knowledge and ability have gone from strength to strength and he has become an extremely valued member of staff. Due to his level of commitment to the practice, his colleagues and, most importantly, the patients in his care, David was promoted to Animal Care Manager in 2007. David's main aim is to provide the best levels of care to our patients by supporting the animal care assistants in his team and seeing that their knowledge, development and commitment are maintained to the highest of standards at all times.
Sally-Anne Holder
Administration and Accounts Office Manager
Sally has previously worked in a diverse array of office environments within industries ranging from automotive and haulage through to co-ordinating events for a live entertainment agency. Over the years she has acquired considerable experience in both administration and accounts and when she joined Willows in June 2008 it was to assist the practice manager with the bookkeeping. However, as the practice grew and then relocated to our current premises, Sally’s role also developed and so did the need for a larger administration facility. Sally now manages a team of four full time office assistants, dealing with the practice accounts, keeping on top of our not insignificant insurance claim process and providing general administration support for the whole practice.
In 2010 Sally achieved her level 3 Award in Effective Management with the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM). Historically not that keen on formal qualifications and study, Sally now feels that to manage a team of any size effectively, ‘life skills’ should go hand in hand with proven and recognised training.
On a personal note, Peppa a black Labrador Retriever from the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association became a much loved member of Sally’s family last summer. Peppa required specialist surgery for a congenital defect, which although successful, excluded her from being eligible for the training process.
