Level 2 Diploma Veterinary Nursing Assistant

VNASA1 Workplace legislations and infection control

This unit facilitates competence in the essential workplace legislations and the infection control required.

VNASA2 Animal husbandry and enrichment

This unit facilitates practical competence in the essentials of accommodation and providing care in the veterinary environment.

VNASA3 Animal health and welfare

This unit facilitates practical competence in the understanding of health and welfare in companion
animals.

VNASA4 Basic anatomy and physiology

This unit facilitates understanding of the anatomy and physiology of dogs, cats and rabbits.

VNASA5 Patient care

This unit facilitates knowledge and practical competence in the essentials of patient care within a veterinary care environment.

VNASA6 Principles of veterinary nursing assistant support

This unit facilitates an understanding of the essentials of supporting the veterinary staff when caring for patients within a veterinary environment.

You do not need any formal qualifications to study for the Veterinary Nursing Assistant Diploma, but you must:

• Be employed or volunteering in a veterinary practice for the duration of the course. If you wish to undertake a funded apprenticeship, then you must have a contract of employment for a minimum of 30 working hours per 30hours per week. Please contact us to discuss apprenticeship funding.
• Provide a reference from your employer to confirm that you are employed or are volunteering at the practice.
• Have a mentor at practice.
• Be competent in reading and writing.
• Complete a pre-course interview and attend a compulsory induction day.

You will need to attend our training center for one day every twelve weeks, attend live webinar lessons every fortnight and complete study via our E-learning platform. You will progress better when you maintain regular contact with your tutors. We can help you with any learning needs and you’ll have the chance to take part in structured class revision sessions to help you prepare for the written examinations.

Your knowledge and understanding will be assessed by:

• Assignments set by Central Qualifications and marked by our tutors.
• Summative multiple-choice examination set and marked by Central Qualifications. This examination is held at our training center.

Your practical skills will be assessed by:

• An electronic work-based progress log (Central Skills Log)

Course fees are £1,316.77 to be paid when you start the course.

The L2 Veterinary Nursing Assistant Diploma is awarded by Central Qualifications. Their registration fee for the course is £208.

There is a fee of £78.00 for the written paper which is payable when you enter for the exam near the end of your course.

1. Career-focused courses with great employment prospects

We’ll help you get your career off to the best possible start. Our course completion and pass rates are consistently well above 90% and are often 100%. Many of our students also progress onto higher qualifications.

2. Hands-on learning with qualified veterinary nurses

All our courses are taught by qualified veterinary nurses who are experienced tutors and who have current veterinary nursing practice. You’ll benefit from their insight and experience and they’ll support you throughout the course to help you prepare for your future career.

3. Personal support before, during and after your studies

Enrolling on a course with us will bring you new opportunities and challenges. We’re here to help you every step of the way. We can help you with your initial application and give you advice and support on careers, fees, funding and academic study.

4. Quality teaching and examination success

We use a wide range of teaching methods with a strong focus on individual and small-group learning. As a result, our course completion and pass rates are consistently high and are often at 100%.

On completion of the Veterinary Nursing Assistant Diploma you will be able to work as a Veterinary Nurse Assistant. Many students go on to train as veterinary nurses. The L2 Veterinary Nursing Assistant Diploma, along with a L2 qualification in numeracy and literacy (e.g. GCSE Grade A*-C/4-9 or Level 2 Functional Skills)

Celebrating success

When you’ve completed your course with us and gained your qualification, you’ll be invited to a Central Qualifications graduations ceremony.

This wonderful day is held in Westminster’s beautiful Central Hall. It will give you an opportunity to celebrate your success with your family and friends as you receive your certificate and badge of achievement.

Poppy James DipVNA

Poppy James VNA Testimonial

“I've wanted to be a veterinary nurse for as long as I can remember. When I left school there was no question on what I wanted to do next, so I applied to do an Animal Management course at my local college. Days before starting my course I went through a tragic family event and it took all the motivation out of me. For the year I was at college I really struggled but I did manage to finish the course, just scraping a pass grade. That year at college left me feeling deflated and that I wasn’t clever enough to be a veterinary nurse. I lost all my passion and confidence.

After college I started working full-time in a retail job. For the next six years I was working just to make money and was completely unfulfilled in my career. I decided to apply for jobs at the vets in my area. I had a response from a practice and to my amazement, I got the job! At 19 years old I found working in the veterinary environment difficult and completely overwhelming and it brought back the back the fear that I just wasn't clever enough to do the job I always wanted to do. I decided to leave but keep my foot in the door by still working one in four weekends.

For the next couple of years, I worked in an office job but again I had that niggling feeling that I wasn't doing something I loved and by the age of 26 I decided I was not made for the 9 to 5 life! It was time to get motivated and I knew the only job I wanted to do was veterinary nursing. I asked the vets I was working for if I could start working full-time and just like that, I quit my office job and started the VNA course at Abbeydale. The VNA course helped me gain confidence and better understand the role of a veterinary nurse. I no longer felt overwhelmed in the veterinary environment and my confidence came on in leaps and bounds. For the first time I enjoyed being in education and using the knowledge I was gaining in practice. I finished my VNA course with a Distinction! I compare that with the pass I barely made after leaving college the first time and I’m so proud of how far I’ve come. I've now progressed on to the VN diploma at Abbeydale. The VNA course was a great way to iron out all those confidence issues I gained from my previous experiences and it gave me a great insight into what was expected of me as a student.”

Hannah Caton DipVNA

Hannah Caton VNA Testimonial

“When I was young, I always wanted to work with animals but never had the confidence or ever felt I was academic enough. I fell into beauty therapy and after doing this since I was 17 years old, I made the scary decision to change my career and to go for my dream job and work with animals.

I applied for a job as a Veterinary Nursing Assistant and was lucky enough to be successful. I decided to go onto the Veterinary Nursing Assistant Diploma at Abbeydale to gain more confidence and knowledge as an assistant and I can honestly say it was the best path for me. It has helped me gain a real passion for nursing and caring for animals and I could not have done this without the support I had from the lovely tutors at Abbeydale and from the other veterinary nurses I work with. This has led me to set a goal and to continue at Abbeydale and study the Veterinary Nursing Diploma and I hope to become a Registered Veterinary Nurse.”