In conjunction with the governments gradual easing of lockdown and updated guidance from the RCVS, we are pleased to be making the following changes:

Winnington Practice

As from Monday 7th June we are delighted to welcome clients back into the consulting rooms. There will be a limit of one client per consult and we will require clients to wear a facecovering both in the waiting room and consulting rooms. Clients can continue to wait outside or in the waiting room if they prefer.

Hollybank Hospital, Sandiway

Unfortunately due to the layout and confines of the entrance and waiting area in our beautiful converted Victorian house, for now we will continue to ask clients to wait outside whilst we treat your pet. We are undertaking renovation of the existing reception desk to enable clients to safely come into the hospital as soon as possible.

At both practice’s the Hollybank Team will continue to wear full PPE to keep themselves and our clients safe.

As we embark on another national lockdown we thought it was a good time to update you onOver the next four weeks we are not booking any new routine vaccinations or surgeries (those already booked will not be cancelled) but otherwise we remain open as normal with our 24 hour emergency care unchanged.  We do request all clients attending an appointment wear a face covering. 

 
Our clinical team continue to provide consultations outside rather than in the practice.  We appreciate this is not always convenient and there are a number of challenges (particularly with regards to communication) when consulting takes place in this manner, but it is designed to keep everyone safe.  We are working on whether we can start to move some appointments inside but this is not straight forward. Hollybank is a lovely old building but it does not lend itself well to one-way systems and social distancing!  As we enter the winter months we have added an outside light for the carpark as well as some gilets to help keep our clinical team toasty!  We hope the addition of a new intercom on the front door is allowing better communication for you with our reception team. 

Another notable addition is that our clinical staff will now all be wearing full PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) both outside when consulting and inside when looking after your pets and interacting with each other.  The advice from the RCVS (Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons) on the use of PPE has changed recently and they are now recommending that we wear it.  Most importantly this will help protect everyone from becoming unwell.  In addition we should be able to keep our full team working as much as possible as it eliminates the ‘in-contact’ isolation risk. 

Finally we want to thank you, our clients, for your support and understanding throughout this year.  We know that things have not always gone as smoothly as we would have liked but we are committed to maintaining our high standard of customer care, despite the restricted world we find ourselves in.  We are so grateful for your patience whilst we fine tune the ‘new normal’ for Hollybank.