Putting the CMA changes into practice
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But responding to the CMA isn't only a matter of meeting new requirements. It raises wider questions about how practices communicate value and costs, support informed decisions, build client trust and adapt their businesses as expectations of veterinary care change.
This year's London Vet Show programme offers plenty of opportunities to explore those questions from different perspectives. We've picked out four sessions that take the conversation from future-proofing the practice and talking confidently about money to navigating consent in emergency care and recognising the vital role of reception teams in the client experience.
Looking beyond compliance
The CMA remedies bring some immediate practical requirements for veterinary businesses, but they also sit within wider changes in how clients choose, access and pay for veterinary care. Greater visibility of prices and services may make it easier for owners to compare practices, while technology, changing team roles and new models of care continue to reshape the market.
For practice leaders, that makes the question bigger than how to meet the next compliance deadline. Busy Is Not a Business Model: Is Your Practice Ready for What Comes Next? looks further ahead, asking what practices may need to protect, rethink or redesign as client expectations, affordability, transparency and routes to care continue to change.
Busy Is Not a Business Model: Is Your Practice Ready for What Comes Next?
19 Nov 2026
15:00 - 15:45
Business Lab
Speaker - Dr Gemma Barmby
“Veterinary practices are busy. But being busy does not necessarily mean your business model is strong, sustainable or ready for what comes next. Client expectations and affordability are shifting. Price transparency and comparison are increasing. Team roles are evolving. Technology, automation and new routes to veterinary care are changing how services can be delivered. And let’s not ignore the CMA requirements. Though they may be the most immediate deadline, they are only one part of a much bigger picture.”
Gemma Barmby will encourage participants to explore how well their practice might respond to a series of realistic future scenarios. They will identify the parts of their practice model that are worth protecting, the areas that may need redesigning and the assumptions that need testing before they become expensive problems.
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Making transparency work in the consult room
Greater price transparency isn't simply about publishing a price list. The CMA remedies also introduce requirements around written estimates and itemised bills, bringing renewed focus to how costs are communicated as part of decisions about treatment.
That makes confident conversations about money an increasingly important part of effective client communication. Money matters: Navigating difficult cost conversations with confidence moves the discussion from the requirement for transparency to the reality of the consulting room: how to talk about costs alongside clinical options, avoid making assumptions about what clients can afford and navigate situations where finances constrain choice.
Hot Topic: Money matters: Navigating difficult cost conversations with confidence
20 Nov 2026
14:00 - 15:00
BVA Congress
Chairperson - Rob Williams, President - BVA
Speakers -
Francesca Verney, MA VetMB MRCVS, Founder and Veterinary Surgeon - PetPeople Vets
Cat Henstridge, BVSc MRCVS, CEO - Vet Pursuits, Cat the Vet
“Every clinical option involves 'pros, cons and costs'. Therefore, including reference to expectations about both costs and payment terms is an essential component of informed consent. This session will describe how to do this in a way that is transparent and useful without coming across as defensive or 'only interested in money'.”
Rob Williams, Francesca Verney, Brian Faulkner and Cat Henstridge will explore what elements of costs need to be discussed with clients, which words or terms are most effective, how to avoid assumptions about affordability, and how to cope when owners genuinely can’t afford it.
Making pricing clear and consistent
Greater transparency puts the spotlight not only on how prices are communicated to clients, but on how well they are understood within the practice itself. Being able to explain what veterinary care costs and why requires confidence in pricing, a consistent approach across the team and a clear understanding of the value behind the services being provided.
The Pricing Conversation puts pricing itself under the spotlight, considering what greater transparency means for practices and the teams communicating with clients.
The Pricing Conversation
19 Nov 2026
16:00 - 16:50
Business Theatre
Chairperson - Kate Higgins, BVetMed MRCVS, Owner and Director - Village Vets Formby
Speakers –
Dane Walker - DNA Vetcare Group
Kerrie Hedley – XLVets
Libby Kemkaran-Thompson – Tame Your Brain
Kate Higgins, Dane Walker, Kerrie Hedley and Libby Kemkaran-Thompson will explore some of the questions pricing raises for veterinary practices, including understanding veterinary pricing structures, the importance of transparency, how to set and review prices confidently, creating consistency across the team and communicating the value of veterinary care.
Transparency starts before the consult
Many of the conversations that shape a client's understanding of veterinary care happen outside the consulting room. Reception teams may be answering questions about prices, explaining how the practice works, dealing with concerns and helping clients navigate their options before they ever speak to a clinician.
With the CMA reforms placing greater emphasis on information, transparency and client choice, consistency across the whole practice becomes increasingly important. Reception Matters: Client Experience, Trust, and Whole-Practice Impact considers how better-supported reception teams can help build trust, communicate the value of veterinary care and contribute to a more confident client experience.
Reception Matters: Client Experience, Trust, and Whole-Practice Impact
20 Nov 2026
10:15 - 11:15
Gallery Suite 6
Reception teams are often the first, and most frequent, point of contact for clients. That puts them in a powerful position to build trust, shape experience, and support confident conversations about veterinary care.
“Using fresh BVRA survey insights, this session will explore what receptionists are telling us, where development gaps remain, and how better support and integration can strengthen client care and whole-practice performance.
We’ll also look at why communicating the value of veterinary care matters more than ever in a landscape increasingly shaped by transparency, choice, and changing client expectations.”
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