Representation of Disabled People in UK Children's Books
How to Submit
There will be three parts to the submission process:
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​Publisher Registration: open until 11 December 2024
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Publisher Submission: 1 December 2024 – 31 January 2025
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Option for Book Creators to share information: 1 December 2024 – 14th February 2025
1. Publisher Registration
​​Registration open until 11 December 2024
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Before submitting individual books, we are asking publishers to complete a registration form.
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This form enables us to gather information about you as a publisher without you having to enter it when you submit each book, and ensures we have the right named contact to liaise with about the survey.
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This form will ask for the approximate number of titles you hope to submit (please refer to the eligibility guidelines when making this calculation). Having an indication of how many books are likely to be submitted at this early stage allows us to prepare for and schedule the book review process.
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We would like to receive all publisher registrations by 11 December 2024, but will make exceptions for unavoidable situations.
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You will be asked to share the following:
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Whether submitting as an imprint or publishing house
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Company name
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Key contact name and email
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Number of books published 2024*
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Number of books published in 2024 featuring human, animal and inanimate objects as lead characters*
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How many books you expect to submit for the 2024 survey.*
*When asked for quantities of books, this applies to fiction, non-fiction, picture books and reading scheme titles for 3-11 year olds
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2. Publisher Submission
From 1 December 2024, publishers are invited to submit eligible books for the study. It would be helpful for someone who knows the book well or has worked on it to complete the form.
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You will be asked to share the following:
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Company and key contact name
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Publication details
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Confirmation that book meets eligibility criteria
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Book format
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Any overarching themes
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Fiction and non-fiction categories
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Target age range
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What conditions, impairments or differences are depicted in the book
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Any accessible formats and features
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Any other relevant information
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Confirmation that you have shared the book creators form (see below) with the relevant people​​
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3. Option for Book Creators to share relevant information
As well as inviting all publishers to submit eligible titles, the project will also offer book creators themselves the option to share any experience or research that influenced the book. (By 'book creators', we mean authors, illustrator and, in some cases, translators.)
The steering group felt strongly that it would be hugely helpful to know how lived experience and research influences quality of representation. However, they are only too aware that there’s often an expectation that disabled people share personal medical information when this wouldn't be expected of non-disabled people. By giving book creators the choice to share or not, it’s hoped that the subsequent Reflecting Disability report can start to explore this area, with the acknowledgement that any insights will be anecdotal.
When you submit each book you will be asked to confirm that you have sent the book creator form to the relevant people involved in the book’s creation. The form is about relevant research, not just lived experience. You should not make assumptions or judgements about whether any book creators are disabled or not. This form should be sent to ALL creators.
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The form gives book creators the option to share any experience or research that influenced the book. It is a simple form that allows them to share as much or little information as they choose, or none at all. There is no expectation or obligation for them to do so.
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Please encourage all book creators to return the form, even if they have not shared any additional information (they can do so without having to provide any information that could connect them to an individual book). This means we can ensure that forms have been received and every creator has been able to make this choice themselves.
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Book creators will be asked the following:
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The option:
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to share information about what informed the representation
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not to share any information
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ISBNs of submitted books
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Whether they are an author, illustrator or translator
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If they select to share, there are open ended sections where they can do this.
We will send all registered publishers an optional template email that can be used to share the form with book creators.