Veterinary Human Factors Live 2026: collaborating for collective change

There’s something powerful happening in our profession this year, and we don’t want to stay quiet about it any longer.

This is different.

Not because we need another wellbeing campaign.Not because people are not trying hard enough.But because more of us are finally naming the real issue:

Systemic pressure cannot be solved by individual resilience alone.

That is exactly why VetLed and Vet Empowered are collaborating on Veterinary Human Factors Live 2026, an in-person event in Birmingham on Friday 26 June 2026, built around one clear theme:

Collaborating for Collective Change

If you have ever left a hard day thinking, “We can’t keep doing it like this”, this is for you.

And if you are a leader, educator, decision-maker, or culture-shaper with influence on how things are done, this is especially for you.

Because this day is not about coping better inside a system that stays the same.

It’s about changing what needs changing, at the level(s) it needs changing.

Why we’re building this, together

VetLed and Vet Empowered

At Vet Empowered, our lane is sustainable performance, boundaries, and self-leadership in vetmed.

That means we work with the real stuff:

• how you regulate when the day is relentless

• how you hold standards without burning out

• how you communicate clearly under pressure

• how you stop over-responsibility from eating you alive

• how you build confidence that creates behaviour change, not just insight

VetLed’s lane is Veterinary Human Factors: the systems, environments, and ways of working that shape performance, safety, and team wellbeing.

Different lanes, same destination.

Because here’s what we see again and again: you can have brilliant, caring people and still end up with chronic stress, high friction, conflict, and attrition, because we forget the system.

And the time has gone for us to keep blaming this on “individual resilience”.

The emotional hazards of this job are real. The moral stress is real. The cognitive load is real. The relational strain is real.

What we do not yet have, consistently and formally across the profession, is the kind of support structures and system design that match the reality of the work.

So this collaboration is us putting our money where our mouth is.

We could be seen as competitors. Instead, we are choosing to model what we teach.

If we want collective change, we need to start collaborating.

Collective responsibility: not systems OR individuals, but systems AND individuals.

We are all part of the system.

What Veterinary Human Factors Live is, and what it is not

Let’s be clear about what this day is not.

This is not a day of sitting quietly in rows, absorbing information in isolation, and leaving with good intentions and no traction.

Veterinary Human Factors Live 2026 is designed to be genuinely interactive. The goal is not just learning. It’s shared language, shared responsibility, and practical momentum. And no, we won't be putting anyone on the spot and your level of interaction gets to match your comfort.

The simplest way to put it is this:

Expertise is not only on the stage. It’s in the room.

More details on the format will be shared soon, but the essence is conversation, connection, and the kind of learning that actually translates back into Monday morning.

The four lenses: collaboration that actually becomes action

We are exploring collective and collaborative change through four lenses:

1) Change with ourselves

2) Change with our client relationships

3) Change within our teams

4) Change across the profession

There are incredible people doing brilliant work across vet med. We see it. We celebrate it. We learn from it.

We need collective responsibility. We need shared language. We need system-level approaches that spread and hold space for flexibility, and nuance.

And we can learn a huge amount from human medicine and other high-stakes industries about how to design work around real humans, not ideal ones.

These four lenses matter because they connect the personal and the systemic.

They stop change from getting stuck in two common traps:

• it stays so big it becomes overwhelming

• it stays so personal it becomes isolating

This is where “collective change” becomes practical.

Who this event is for

If you’re reading this and thinking, “Is this me?”, here’s a clearer picture.

This day is for you if you are:

• a vet, nurse, VCA, receptionist, manager, or support team member who cares about doing good work without sacrificing yourself

• a practice owner or leader who is tired of holding everything together with sheer willpower

• involved in clinical governance, quality improvement, wellbeing, culture, learning and development, or leadership

• a student or new grad who wants to build a career that is sustainable, not just survivable

• someone who wants evidence-informed approaches, not platitudes

• someone who wants to be part of a profession that is brave enough to look at systems, not just symptoms

• you're looking for a different and more impactful way to invest your CPD budget this year

If you’re looking for a purely clinical lecture day, this may not be the right fit.

But if you want to be part of a room where people are thinking seriously about how we improve the conditions of the work, this is exactly it.

Excitingly, we'll also have a number of guests who are taking part in the discussions, bringing fresh insights and expertise.

What we can tease (for now)

We are not sharing full speaker announcements yet, but we can share the intention and the calibre.

We are bringing together a deliberate mix of expert voices and fresh perspectives. Expect research, practical application, and cross-industry learning. Expect people who are not afraid to name what’s happening, and also not afraid to talk about solutions.

And yes, we have a really exciting keynote. That will be announced shortly.

This is not about hype. It’s about creating a day that feels grounded, hopeful, and useful.

The kind of hope that comes from having a plan, not from pretending it’s fine.

The venue and the feel of the day

The Studio, Birmingham is a brilliant fit for what we’re building.

It’s close to Birmingham New Street Station, easy to get to, and intentionally set up to support connection and conversation. It also has that “spacious but formal” feel that matters when you’re trying to create a room where people can think clearly and speak honestly.

You’ll be properly looked after, too: a two-course lunch, unlimited tea and coffee, and snacks throughout the day.

The intention is that the day feels:

• human

• connective

• evidence-informed

• action-oriented

• and surprisingly energising

Not because the topics are light. But because being in a room where people are taking shared responsibility is a very different experience to feeling like you’re carrying it alone.

This is more than a one-day event

One of the things we’re most excited about is that this is not designed to be a “great day out and then back to normal”.

This is designed as a catalyst.

There will be a run-up. There will be momentum-building. There will be follow-through, so the learning travels back into workplaces and doesn’t just live in a notebook.

Culture change spreads through repetition, shared language, and multiple touchpoints. Not through a single inspirational moment.

More to come on this.

Tickets and key dates

Tickets go on sale 2 February 2026.

If you’re on our mailing list, you’ll get early access 48 hours before general release.

Join the Vet Empowered Mailing List HERE.

Earlybird tickets will be available for the first week.

This is intentionally a more intimate event, so tickets will be limited.

If this day is speaking to you, do not rely on “I’ll sort it later”. Put the date in your diary now and make the decision while you’re here.

The invitation

There’s something quietly powerful happening in our profession next year.

It’s rooted in hope, connection, and the belief that we can achieve more when we come together.

Reconnect.Collaborate.Catalyse change.

Veterinary Human Factors Live 2026

Friday 26 June 2026 | Birmingham | In person

And if you’re reading this as someone who wants to support the profession at a wider level, and you’re curious about sponsoring or collaborating, message us.

We can share the sponsorship guide and talk through what aligned support could look like.

See you in Birmingham.