What We Stand For

Usborne is an independent, family-owned company.

The best thing about being independent is that we get to do things our way. We want to do business in a caring and responsible way, doing our best to balance being profitable with looking after people and planet.

This is what we believe in: 

Creating brilliant books for children of every age, ethnicity and gender

At Usborne, we believe in the power of children’s books. Books open doors to new worlds, allow children to walk in someone else’s footsteps, help them learn new skills, and encourage them to explore new ideas. For this to be effective, all children – including children of every ethnicity, age and gender – must be able to see themselves in our books, as well as seeing people who are different from them, in many ways.

Find out more about what we’re doing to promote diversity at Usborne

Looking after people and planet

At Usborne we take steps to ensure that every single Usborne book is produced responsibly, ethically and safely. We do all we can to trace and evaluate all the materials that go into making our books so that we can make ethical buying decisions, and assess working conditions in the factories where our books are made, to make sure that the people in our supply chain are treated fairly. We look at everything from where our paper comes from, to how any chemicals in our inks might affect the environment, to how to reduce single-use plastics in our products.

Find out more about our safety policies

Making Usborne a happy and healthy place to work

When people come to work with us, they don’t want to leave: staff retention is 93% year on year, and the average length of service is over 9 years. We all think that the best thing about Usborne is the people. Our starting salaries are 10% over industry standard, staff receive an annual bonus based on company profits, those with young children get an allowance to help with childcare costs, everyone gets a one-off bonus after 5 years with the company, and our sabbatical scheme offers 30 days extra paid holiday every 7 years.

Six reasons to work at Usborne

Putting charity at the centre of everything we do

Charity is at the heart of what we do at Usborne. A slice of company profits are given to worthy causes each year, everyone who works at Usborne can take paid leave to do volunteer work, and our staff also pick a Staff Charity of the Year to fundraise for each year, and all proceeds are matched by the company. The Usborne Foundation is a charity founded by the Usborne family which harnesses research, design and technology to create playful media addressing issues from literacy to health.

Find out more about the charities we support, our latest fundraising efforts and The Usborne Foundation.