Small presses from across the United Kingdom and Ireland are continuing to thrive with resilient growth in the face of rising costs and drops in funding, with smart author and reader relationships, niche genre offerings and award-winning books.
The British Book Awards 2026 Small Press of the Year, sponsored by TJ Books, celebrates the independent presses dedicated to delivering books which reach beyond the traditional literary landscape.
There are 63 small presses listed across nine different regions and countries, including 12 in London, 10 in North England, eight in Scotland, seven in both Wales and South-West England, six in the Island of Ireland, five in East England and four in the Midlands and South-East England respectively.
The presses, all with a turnover of less than £5m, will compete to win their region or country first before contending for the overall prize, when The British Book Awards ceremony returns to Grosvenor House London on Monday 11th May 2026. The overall Small Press winner will also vie to be crowned Independent Publisher of the Year.
Philip Jones, editor of The Bookseller and chair of the judges for The British Book Awards, said: “I was delighted that we had the largest ever number of entries for this important award recognising publishing at this level, leading to a record number of finalists across the UK and Ireland, with a number represented for the first time. Sure, life is tough for the small presses, with sales and funding equally elusive. But their spirit, their instinctive understanding of what readers truly want, their smart author management, and campaigns designed to exploit niches and gaps in the market often lead to remarkable success. Many of these businesses are growing, many are winning notable awards, and all of them are delighting readers — my congratulations to them all.”
Andy Watts, Managing Director of TJ Books, said: “We’re delighted to sponsor Small Press of the Year for the first time as part of our renewed commitment to championing independent publishing. The record number of entries and finalists across the UK and Ireland is a brilliant reflection of the ambition, creativity and resilience of small presses — even in a challenging trading environment. Congratulations to all the finalists, and to every small press making such a vital contribution to readers and to the wider industry.”
Last year’s overall winner Sweet Cherry, based in Leicester, is looking to reclaim the prestigious award, returning as a finalist again this year. Driven by a mission to make reading accessible and enjoyable for all children, the Sweet Cherry team impressed with its academic and commercial publishing range, bumper sales year and new Easy Classics series which adapts classic books for young readers.
Meanwhile, all of last year’s regional and country winners are finalists again this year (including Sweet Cherry), with Harpenden’s VERVE Books (East England), Cork’s Banshee Press (Island of Ireland), Bloomsbury’s Bedford Square Publishers (London), Hebden Bridge’s Bluemoose Books and Liverpool’s Dead Ink Books (North England), Edinburgh’s 404 Ink (Scotland), Isle of Wight’s Author In Me (South-East England) Bath’s From You to Me (South-West England) and Bridgend’s Seren Books (Wales) all competing to win the crown two years in a row.
Prize-winning small presses make up this year’s list of finalists, including And Other Stories (London), which celebrated its 25th anniversary by publishing the International Booker Prize-winning Heart Lamp by Banu Mushtaq (translated by Deepa Bhasthi), a collection of short stories capturing the everyday lives of women and girls in Muslim communities in southern India. Other publishers also saw their books and authors break through into the mainstream, with Weatherglass Books’ (London) Lucy Apps selected by The Observer as one of the eight best debut novelists to look out for in 2026.
Small presses fuelled by passion and specialisms remain popular, including Palewell Press (London), which publishes books and pamphlets to support human rights, wellbeing and environmental sustainability; Charco Press (Scotland), the Edinburgh-based publisher focused on uncovering the best of contemporary Latin American literature; and Comma Press (North England), a not-for-profit publisher specialising in short fiction.
This year saw the highest number of small press entries to date, with 17 more finalists than last year. A handful of innovating small presses make their debut as finalists in 2026, with Hackney’s Flying Eye Books (London), Truro’s Hungry Tomato (South-West England), Dublin’s Townhouse Publishing (Island of Ireland) and Cardiff’s Little Hibba (Wales) all nominated to win their region for the first time.
The regional and country winners of the Small Press of the Year Award will be announced on Wednesday 11th March, whilst the overall winner will be revealed during The British Book Awards ceremony at Grosvenor House London on Monday 11th May 2026.
East England
Dedalus | Sawtry
Scorpius Books | Essex
SRL Publishing | Hertfordshire
UEA Publishing Project | Norwich
Verve Books | Harpenden
London
Arachne Press | Forest Hill
Aurora Metro Books | Richmond
Bedford Square Publishers | Bloomsbury
British Library Publishing | Camden
Flying Eye Books | Hackney
Jacaranda Books | Temple
Muswell Press | Islington
Out-Spoken Press | Enfield
Palewell Press | Richmond upon Thames
Saqi Books | Westminster
Scallywag Press | Pimlico
Weatherglass Books | Southgate
North England
And Other Stories | Sheffield
Big Thinking Publishing | Preston
Bluemoose Books | Hebden Bridge
Carcanet Press | Manchester
Comma Press | Manchester
Curious King | Manchester
Dead Ink Books | Liverpool
Fly on the Wall Press | Manchester
Fox & Ink Books | Preston
Saraband | Salford
Midlands
Bad Betty Press | Nottingham
Sweet Cherry | Leicester
Otter-Barry Books | Herefordshire
The Emma Press | Birmingham
Scotland
404 Ink | Edinburgh
Birlinn | Edinburgh
Charco Press | Edinburgh
Leamington Books | Edinburgh
Little Door Books | Highlands of Scotland
Rymour Books | Perth
Scottish Mountaineering Press | Inverness
Tippermuir Books | Perth
South-East England
Author In Me | Wycombe
Duckworth Books | Surrey
Guppy Books | Oxford
Hashtag Press | Kent
South-West England
Books on the Hill Press | St Albans
From You To Me | Bath
Hungry Tomato | Truro
Mabecron Books | Saltash
Peirene Press | Bath
Persephone Books | Bath
Really Decent Books | Bath
Wales
Broken Sleep Books | Anglesey
Firefly Press | Caerphilly
Little Hibba | Cardiff
Lucent Dreaming | Cardiff
Parthian | Cardigan
Rily Publications | Caerphilly
Seren Books | Bridgend
Island of Ireland
Banshee Press | Cork
Bullaun Press | Sligo
Little Island Books | Dublin
Mercier Press | Cork
The Irish Pages Press | Belfast
Townhouse Publishing | Dublin
