Emergency crowdfunder launched to help to save Henningham Family Press

An emergency crowdfunding effort is being held in an effort to save the indie publisher Henningham Family Press, run by David and Ping Henningham. 

The cost of living crisis and Brexit, followed by the rejection of their latest Arts Council application, have left the pair seeking donations to save their press, where they hand-make books. 

Ping and David publish literary fiction from a bindery in east London, where they combine hand-binding processes with methods of industrial production. Their books are collected by libraries and museums including the V&A, Tate, National Galleries Scotland and Stanford University. 

They started their press in 2006, with the aim to "put affordable art books in people’s homes". Since 2018, they have been the only press selling hand-made paperbacks in high-street bookshops, and have been nominated for Best Small Press at The British Book Awards, the Goldsmiths Prize, the Walter Scott Prize and other awards.

David and Ping said: "We immediately sought help from business mentors, and made rescue plans for our press that will see us publish more books more regularly and become truly sustainable. But we need people to help us meet £12,000 costs while these plans take effect.

"We’ve set up our website to receive donations. People can also put books in their cart at the same time and contribute more to the fund."