This year’s Royal College Day – the Annual General Meeting and awards ceremony for the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) – will see a guest speech from Professor Sir David Spiegelhalter OBE, Emeritus Professor of Statistics at the University of Cambridge, and a well-known communicator on risk and data.
Sir David will be giving his talk, titled Communicating evidence and uncertainty in a trustworthy way, during the afternoon session of Royal College Day which takes place on Friday, 3 July 2026 at One Great George Street in Westminster.
RCVS President Professor Tim Parkin FRCVS, who chose Sir David as this year’s speaker, said: “I am delighted to have finally managed to encourage Sir David to speak on my invitation - this is not the first time I have tried! His ability to make statistics relatable is something I have strived to do for my whole career. Understanding how important it is to be really clear about what the message is that you are trying to get across, how to do so without complexity but at the same time ensuring sufficient detail are presented is his real skill.
“As someone who has tried to influence policy making throughout my career, hearing Sir David talk about doing so in a world of uncertainty, has enabled me to better communicate risk to those who are able to take action when provided that information in readily digestible formats.
“I know there will something interesting and entertaining for everyone who attends - it will not be the same as a statistics lecture at veterinary school.”
The day starts at 11am with the Annual General Meeting which is open to all veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses to attend. The AGM includes a formal declaration of RCVS Council election results and appointments, the presentation of the Annual Report and Financial Statements 2025 and a short meeting of RCVS Council to approve the new 2026 Officer Team - President, Vice Presidents and Treasurer.
The awards ceremony starts at 1pm and sees the presentation of this year’s RCVS honours and awards, an address by Professor Parkin as the outgoing RCVS President, the investiture of Tim Hutchinson MRCVS as the new RCVS President and his opening address, as well as Sir David’s speech.
Veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses who wish to attend Royal College Day 2026 can find out more information and sign up on the dedicated event page.