ARK VETS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Bethan Johnson RVN Deputy Nurse
- Deputy Nurse
Bethan joined the Ark team in September 2017, as one of our receptionists. She has since completed her official nurse training and is now a Registered Veterinary Nurse.
Bethan enjoys all aspects of nursing but particularly caring for inpatients when they are feeling unwell and following surgery. She likes the challenges faced each day within practice and is constantly developing new skills.
Her time outside of work is spent with her horse, Ruby, and rescue cat, Ozark. She also enjoys countryside walks with her husband and their dog, Bram.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Bethany Gregory Receptionist
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Cindy Kent Receptionist
Cindy joined the Ark team in June 2003. She is one of the few remaining original members of staff, working with us for just over 16 years. You will usually find her covering the reception desk at our busy Killamarsh branch.
She came to us having previously worked in the office admin and customer service sectors, and wanting a complete change of pace and industry.
Cindy's favourite parts of her role are welcoming new clients and pets to the practice, and already knowing many of our existing clients by name - as she has lived in Killamarsh all of her life. She also enjoys having extra responsibilities such as stock ordering for the Killamarsh site.
Her time at home is spent caring for Mo the tortoise and Messi the cat, as well as socialising with friends and family. She enjoys going swimming on a regular basis, and travelling to sunny destinations - especially the various Greek islands.
Job Titles:
- NCert ( AnBeh ) Senior Nurse
- Senior Nurse
Claire joined the Ark team in 2002. She first started out on reception, but quickly discovered that she much preferred the nursing element of the job after gaining some experience as an auxiliary nurse. She completed her veterinary nurse training with us and qualified as an RVN in December 2015.
She is a clinical coach, which means that she is able to oversee nursing students and sign off their practical on-the-job training.
Her favourite place to be is theatre, where she enjoys monitoring anaesthetics and providing care to animals during recovery. She loves running behaviour and weight clinics, providing advice for owners who may be struggling at home with their pet's behavioural problems or weight issues. She also gained her nursing certificate in animal behaviour in 2020.
Claire has two little cats called Bert and Ernie who take up most of her time outside of work. She likes to relax by watching the latest blockbuster at the cinema, catching up on a good box set or streaming PlayStation games on YouTube.
Beth graduated from the University of Bristol in 2019 and recently joined the Ark team in 2022.
She likes all aspects of veterinary practice but especially enjoys surgery and ophthalmology. Her favourite part of the job is the variety of cases and getting to interact with both pets and their owners on a daily basis.
During her spare time Beth enjoys playing tennis, travelling, and walking Scooby - her rescue German Shepherd, in the Peak District.
Dawn graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2016. Originally from Cambridge, she moved north to settle in Sheffield and joined Ark in 2017, after seeing practice at the surgery as an EMS student on placement.
She enjoys the variety that general practice brings, and has a particular interest in dermatology, soft tissue surgery and pathology. Dawn can often be found in our extensive in-house laboratory (which is her favourite place to be) peering down the microscope to assess blood and urine samples, or to take a closer look at species of parasite.
Outside of work, she enjoys walking, swimming, reading, and anything sci-fi related.
Ian graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 2004. He became a practice partner in October 2009 after working at Ark for 18 months, and has since taken over sole ownership of the business.
He has a special interest in the care of exotic pets, wildlife and zoo collections. He completed a European certificate in exotic animal practice and a PgC in exotic animal studies, in order to keep up to date with modern treatment developments and current best practice. This enables him to treat lots of weird and wonderful creatures - from reptiles and amphibians, to marmoset monkeys and meerkats. Ian not only deals with first opinion exotic cases but accepts referrals from other veterinary practices throughout the UK.
In 2018, he was recognised nationally and nominated for his dedication to working with exotics in veterinary practice.
During his free time, Ian enjoys all outdoor sports, going to the gym, cooking and DIY. Alongside looking after his collection of poultry and two energetic Border Terriers - Leaf and Twiggy.
Jenny graduated from Liverpool University in 2010. After working in practices around various parts of Yorkshire and London, she was very happy to return home to Sheffield. She joined the Ark team in November 2017.
She enjoys all aspects of veterinary practice and is especially passionate about anything feline. Jenny says that the most rewarding aspect of her job is making a difference to her patients' health - she loves to see our inpatients feeling better and being able to return home to their families.
Her most recent surgical training has allowed her to undertake our keyhole (laparoscopy) procedures, which she is finding extremely interesting.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Elisha Jones Receptionist
Job Titles:
- Ellie Ashford RVN Veterinary Nurse
- RVN Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Job Titles:
- Hannah Graham RVN Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Hannah joined the Ark team as a permanent member of staff in 2019, after completing a college placement with us in practice. She has always wanted to work with animals and couldn't see herself doing any other job.
Her time is currently split between helping the nursing team and covering the reception desk, which helps her to learn different aspects of working in a veterinary practice. She is now enrolled with college and is studying her second year of veterinary nursing.
Job Titles:
- Hannah Taylor RVN Veterinary Nurse
- RVN Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Hetty joined the Ark team in January 2020 after previously working in a small animal practice for four years. She qualified as an RVN in 2017 whilst studying at the College of Animal Welfare, and is still very much in love with nursing. She enjoys all aspects of her job, but particularly likes surgical nursing and theatre work. She has a keen interest in wildlife and exotics, and is currently working towards completing her certificate in nursing exotic species.
She is also a clinical coach, which means that she is able to oversee nursing students and sign off their practical on-the-job training.
She has three dogs at home, two Jack Russell Terriers - Jimmy and Teddy, and a rescue Dachshund cross called Reggie, in addition to four budgies. In her spare time, Hetty enjoys adventuring and going for long walks with her boys and spending quality time with family.
Job Titles:
- Holly Dickinson RVN Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Holly joined the Ark team as a final year SVN in 2020, successfully qualifying as an RVN in May 2021.
She really enjoys providing gold standard inpatient care, monitoring anaesthetics and all aspects of ECC work. With a keen interest in emergency cases, Holly is currently studying towards her BSAVA merit award in emergency, critical care and anaesthesia.
Holly is also a Fear Free professional, having completed both the small animal and avian species certificates.
Outside of work, she loves socialising with friends or spending time with her ever growing fur (and wool) family, and you will often find her out in the fields exercising her pet sheep, Doris and Ethel. Holly also has five dogs - Lillian, Edward, Martha-May, Jeremy, and Pip, as well as two horses - Jack Flash and Lucky La La.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Jade Boden Senior Receptionist
- Senior Receptionist
Jade joined the Ark team as a receptionist in December 2021, seeking a new challenge after working within the banking industry for many years. You will usually find her covering one of our busy reception desks but she also has additional responsibilities at the practice, such as allocating financial information.
Her favourite part of the role is providing gold standard customer service and getting to assist our clients on a daily basis, but another huge perk of the job is having puppy snuggles whenever possible.
Jade's spare time is spent at home with her husband. She enjoys travelling abroad, socialising and meeting friends for drinks, and watching a good film or boxset series.
Job Titles:
- Jasmine Eyre RVN Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Jasmine joined the Ark team in January 2016, as one of our receptionists. She gained a distinction in animal management and began her nurse training in September 2017. She is currently studying her second year.
She has always had a desire to work with animals from a very young age, having had previous work experience in canine hydrotherapy centres and as a volunteer for the Chesterfield RSPCA.
Jasmine's favourite part of her role is assisting in theatre - where she gets to help with anaesthetics and patient monitoring. She also loves caring for our inpatients following surgery, and for any sick or injured pets that are admitted for treatment.
Her spare time is spent looking after her three guinea pigs and Ernie the cat. She also likes to read and study at home, as well as watching films and meeting up with friends.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Joanne Handby Receptionist
Job Titles:
- Practice Manager
- CertNCS ( VPM ) Practice Manager
After previously working in both independent and corporate practices around South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, Lisa joined Ark in August 2018, covering both branches in Dronfield and Killamarsh.
With a background in administration, managerial duties and nursing - having already qualified as an ANA and C-SQP, she is currently studying towards an advanced certificate in veterinary practice management.
The job role of practice manager is quite varied and challenging, and this means that her responsibilities include staff management and recruitment, financial reporting, client relations, marketing, and maintenance of premises and equipment. Lisa says that the most rewarding aspect of her job is ensuring that daily operations run as smoothly as possible at each site.
Her interests outside of work include travelling, taking drum lessons, getting creative with digital art, and retail therapy.
Job Titles:
- Michelle Billard RVN Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Michelle joined the Ark team in June 2012. She started her nursing career at the age of 17 in a mixed animal practice, before moving on to work in a small animal surgery caring for companion animals.
She is a clinical coach, which means that she is able to oversee nursing students and sign off their practical on-the-job training.
Her main interests include teaching students and wound management. Michelle is also very keen on running our diabetic and geriatric nurse clinics - she has a real soft spot for 'golden oldies' and can often be found making a big fuss of our patients to help them feel at ease.
Outside of work, Michelle enjoys reading, going out for long walks or spending quality time with her family - as well as Sam the dog and Florence the cat.
Job Titles:
- NCert ( Anaesth ) Senior Nurse
- Senior Nurse
Philippa joined the Ark team in November 2017. She first worked in practice as a receptionist at another small animal surgery, and then went on to begin her veterinary nurse training - before qualifying as an RVN in August 2018. Philippa is now Senior Nurse at our Dronfield branch, which involves overseeing the nursing team and clinical standards. She is also a clinical coach, which means that she is able to mentor nursing students and sign off their practical on-the-job training.
Philippa loves all things anaesthesia, and has completed a nurse certificate in anaesthesia. One of her favourite aspects of being an RVN is monitoring anaesthetics for all different types of procedures. She also loves nursing medical inpatients and seeing them go home after recovering.
At home, she has a cheeky Jack Russell Terrier called Charlie, who she loves taking for scenic walks - and openly admits to having a huge soft spot for all Jack Russell Terriers who visit the practice.
Job Titles:
- CertVNECC Veterinary Nurse
- Veterinary Nurse
Rachael joined the Ark team in July 2021, coming to us from a small animal practice where she worked for over three years.
She enjoys the wide variety that general practice brings, from inpatient care to anaesthesia, laboratory work and radiography.
As well as her daily clinical duties, Rachael is passionate about quality of life and welfare. She is also one of our certified Fear Free Professionals, and enjoys working to reduce patient stress in the clinical environment, as well as promoting happy and healthy lives at home.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Rosie Kellett Receptionist
Rosie joined Ark in winter 2021, having previously worked in retail, logistics and business administration. Some of her current responsibilities include supporting the clinical and administrative teams, covering the reception desks at either practice site, and implementing clerical changes as part of the daily running of the surgery. She prefers work days when it is busy and bustling.
She originally studied Psychology at Sheffield Hallam University, but would like to expand her knowledge further by studying pet bereavement and end of life care.
In her free time, Rosie loves creating art, reading comic books and cooking new recipes.
Ruth originally came to Ark in 2019 to complete her student nursing placement, during her third year at Harper Adams University. She then joined the team permanently as an RVN in 2021.
She enjoys all aspects of her job, particularly nurse consultations and getting to interact with both pets and their owners on a daily basis. With a keen interest in exotic species, she hopes to have her own collection of exotic animals in the near future - especially chameleons and geckos. Ruth is currently studying towards her advanced programme exotic certificates in avian, reptile and amphibian, small mammal, wildlife and zoo animals.
Outside of work, Ruth enjoys going for countryside walks (as she has a not-so-secret obsession with cows and loves to fuss them whenever she gets a chance), and spending quality time with her family and Flynn, her very energetic and curious Labradoodle.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Sally Barton Receptionist
Sally joined the Ark team in March 2014, after working at Sheffield Hallam University for a number of years in their logistics department. You will usually find her covering the desk at our busy Dronfield practice, underneath a mountain of pet insurance paperwork. She is the second of our two staff members who share the task of submitting our client's pet claims, and she really enjoys the extra responsibility.
Her favourite part of the role is chatting to our clients on a daily basis, and cuddling any puppies or kittens that come in for their first health checks.
Sally has a huge love for rescue animals and strays. She has a very caring nature and most recently, she adopted a little cat who was brought to us after being found wandering the streets alone.
Sam joined Ark in July 2021, after working as a medical secretary for over a decade. She covers the reception desk at our Dronfield practice as well as our Killamarsh site, and enjoys the variety of animals that she sees at both locations - finding the exotic pets especially interesting.
Sam has a particular love of Dachshunds, she is currently housekeeper and slave to one at home. Rosie is a sausage-shaped, death defying bundle of fun and certainly keeps her family on their toes.
Job Titles:
- Receptionist
- Yvonne Roberts Receptionist
Yvonne joined the Ark team in July 2019. She wanted a complete career change after previously working in various administration and retail roles.
You will usually find her covering the desk at our busy Killamarsh surgery, where she likes meeting and chatting to our clients. She also loves having puppy cuddles at every given opportunity.
During her spare time, Yvonne enjoys watching football with a glass or two of wine, and taking her much loved Cockapoo, Pep, for long scenic walks.