The Usborne family is an actual family: a dad, Peter Usborne, and two kids, Nicola Usborne and Martin Usborne.

We are deeply saddened to share that our beloved founder and chairman, Peter Usborne CBE, passed away in March 2023. Peter was an exceptional publisher, leader and a lovely man. He will be greatly missed by his family, friends and everyone at Usborne. We will be updating this page in due course to reflect this sad news.

Usborne's founder, Peter Usborne, revolutionized the world of publishing for children by pioneering engaging, innovative, illustrated books, which combined popular subject matter with unrivalled quality in editorial and production.

Fifty years on, Peter still believes that parenthood has been the greatest privilege of his life, and that publishing children’s books has been an extension of that. Now in his eighties, Peter continues to look forward to coming to work every morning, and his roles as publisher and parent are still intertwined. Peter is now chairman of Usborne, alongside his daughter Nicola Usborne, who is Managing Director.

Peter went into children’s publishing when he found out he and his wife were expecting Nicola – and Nicola was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by Usborne books, and conversations about publishing. Nicola has worked in children’s publishing for over 25 years, in the US and in the UK, and started working with Usborne in 2017.  She has also been a BAFTA-winning film producer.

The Usborne Family (Picture Copyright © 2018 Martin Usborne)

The Usborne staff

We think of the Usborne staff as being like a family. Many of the people who work at Usborne have been with us for years (some since the company was founded) and people tend to stay for a long time.

We love books: that’s why we write and design almost all Usborne books ourselves. There are over 30 writers and 50+ designers on the team at Usborne. Not many other publishers do this, because it’s very hard work and takes a really long time to get right. But we think it’s worth it, because it means you can trust the quality, accuracy – and care – that goes into everything we make. Like the children we make books for, our writers and designers are a curious bunch, armed with scissors and glue, brimming with questions and obsessed with the small details. Our motto is, quite simply, ‘Do it Better’.

We only publish books for children, so we come at the world from a kid’s point of view: all our books are written in their language and designed for their curious eyes. We aim to make irresistible books, written in an infectious, enthusiastic and interesting way. We love facts and drawing and stories and finding out more about our favourite things, just like kids do. We work with subject-area experts but it’s our writers – experts in communicating with children – who write the books. We don’t patronise and we are never, ever boring. That’s why children from babies to young adults love our books – and so do their grown-ups.

The people who share our books

We understand the power of children’s books and want people to be able to find them wherever they are. We think of everyone who sells or lends our books as part of our extended family.

Usborne books are available to buy in bookshops, museums, galleries, supermarkets, toy shops garden centres, farm shops, nursery shops, department stores and more – basically anywhere that you might be able to buy things for children. You can buy our books online, on your high street, from a shopping mall, and you can borrow them from libraries.

In the UK and Europe, you can also buy Usborne books in your community, or online, from an Independent Usborne Partner. Partners share Usborne books in schools, baby groups, activity classes and other local events or via social media. All of our Independent Usborne Partners are independent and self-employed.

In the USA, Usborne books are sold by a company called EDC who run a network called PaperPie. In the United States, these independent sellers are called Independent Brand Partners.  They sell Usborne books – as well as books from other publishers - in their communities and online. 

In Canada, Usborne Books at Home Canada is run by a company called Riverwood Publishing. They too have a network of independent Consultants who sell Usborne books locally and via their own websites and social media.

Peter Usborne receiving his CBE for Services to Literature (photo credit: Martin Usborne).

The children who read our books

The huge, global family of kids who are growing up discovering the world through Usborne books are at the heart of everything we do.

Children have a lot of questions, and every single question is a good one. We believe in encouraging kids to investigate and discover the answers for themselves – expanding their minds and growing their confidence along the way. Sparking children's curiosity is what we exist to do.

During the decades that we've been making books for children, our family has grown: Usborne books are now read (and loved, and re-read) by children all over the world. They are passed down through families, from one sibling to another and now even through generations.

One reason why our books are loved by children everywhere is because we anticipate, answer and encourage curious questions in a way that children love, and parents trust. Creating a global community of curious kids is really important to all of us at Usborne.

So we're glad that you've found us, and hope that you'll want to become part of the Usborne family.