The Publishers Association is the trade organisation serving book, journal and electronic publishers in the United Kingdom, established in 1896. Its mission is to strengthen the trading environment for UK publishers by providing a strong voice for the industry in government, in society and with other stakeholders in the UK, Europe and internationally. It seeks to provide a forum for the exchange of non‑competitive information between publishers and offer support and guidance to the industry through technological and other changes.
Governance
The PA’s board, known as the PA Council, consists of representatives elected from the membership, together with the chairs of the Consumer Publishers Council, the Academic Publishing Council and the Educational Publishers Council; and the chief executive. It meets approximately six times a year. A member of Council may serve up to two three-year terms. The current President of the Publishers Association is Peter Phillips, Chief Executive of Cambridge University Press. The senior management team includes
Membership of the Publishers Association is open to bona fide publishers that carry onthe business of publishing in the UK and satisfy the membership criteria. There are two categories of membership:
Membership for UK publishers with a turnover greater than £2.5 million
SME membership for UK publishers with a turnover of less than £2.5 million
Divisions
The Consumer Publishers Council determines PA policy on consumer market matters, and acts on specific issues with the aim of expanding the market and increasing efficiency. Other trade groups include the Children’s Book Group and Religious Book Group.
The Academic Publishers Council provides a forum for higher education, scholarly and reference publishers, representing publishers, conducting market research and running a number of events.
The Educational Publishers Council provides a voice for school, college and vocational publishers. It campaigns for better funding for learning resources and represents the industry in the development of the market, as well as running seminars and compiling market statistics.
