Birmingham Publisher, The Emma Press, awarded internship grant to open doors for under-represented talent in publishing
The Emma Press, an independent publisher based in Birmingham, has been named the first recipient of the David Tebbutt Internship Fund – a new initiative from Creative Access and the David Tebbutt Trust to open doors for under-represented talent in publishing.
The internship fund honours the memory of David Tebbutt, former Finance Director at Faber, who passed away in 2011. The Fund is jointly administered by Faber and the Tebbutt family.
The Fund will provide 100% of the cost of an intern’s training bursary or salary based on the Real Living Wage for a 6-month, full-time traineeship once a year for three years. It will also cover all costs relating to the recruitment and training of successful candidates.
The initiative is aimed at small, regional publishers who might not otherwise have the resources to host a trainee. It is specifically designed to support people from backgrounds historically under-represented in publishing – this includes, but is not limited to, Black, Asian and ethnically diverse candidates, disabled, D/deaf and neurodivergent people, and individuals from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
On receiving the funding, Emma Dai’an Wright, founder of The Emma Press, said:
“We feel incredibly honoured to have been awarded this opportunity, and we are so looking forward to working with Creative Access and the David Tebbutt Trust on giving a trainee the best possible start in publishing. We are proud to be hosting this role in the West Midlands, as a small press, and are so pleased that the role will go to someone from an under-represented group in publishing.”
Judith Tebbutt, wife of the late David Tebbutt, and Oliver Tebbutt, his son, as trustees of the David Tebbutt Trust said:
“We are absolutely delighted that the Emma Press has been chosen as the recipient of the first Creative Access/David Tebbutt Trust award. This will give the chosen trainee an exceptional opportunity for what is hoped will be, a successful future career in publishing. David would have been extremely happy.”
Josie Dobrin, founder and executive chair of Creative Access, commented:
“We were absolutely thrilled with the calibre and breadth of applications for the first ever round of the David Tebbutt internship. It was genuinely tough to reach a decision as there are so many excellent small regional publishers who would provide a great training ground for an intern. We are, however, delighted to have awarded the grant to The Emma Press in Birmingham. We are confident they will offer an outstanding learning opportunity for someone from a disadvantaged or marginalised community to enter the publishing industry and help to continue and honour David’s legacy.”
Recruitment for The Emma Press’ publishing intern will be led by Creative Access. The intern will be paid the National Living Wage and join Creative Access’ Springboard programme, receiving training, mentoring and peer support to help them build a sustainable career in publishing.
Applications for the next round of the Fund will be open from the start of January – mid February 2026. For more information and to apply, contact recruit@creativeaccess.org.uk.
Apply to become The Emma Press’ next publishing intern. Applications close: 30/06/25 at 11.59pm
