Publicity assistant

Closing date for applications: Monday 4th August 2025

Salary: £27,000 per annum

Department: Publicity

Reporting to: PR manager

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Hours: Full time

Location: Vauxhall, London (hybrid post probation)

Kick-start your publishing career in this entry-level role, supporting imaginative campaigns and promoting some of the most iconic names in children's books.

Walker Books UK is part of the vibrant international group that includes Candlewick Press, Holiday House, Peachtree and Pixel + Ink in the USA and Walker Books Australia. Renowned for its truly original publishing and outstanding quality, the Walker Books Group is home to a wide range of children's and young adult books.

Award-winning authors and illustrators for the group include Angie Thomas, Sydney Smith, M.T Anderson, Patrick Ness, and Jon Klassen. We are also enormously proud to publish beloved family brands including Lucy Cousin’s Maisy, Michael Rosen’s We're Going on a Bear Hunt, Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram’s Guess How Much I Love You and Martin Handford’s Where’s Wally?

This is an exciting opportunity for a self-motivated individual seeking an entry level role in publicity and children’s publishing, with opportunities to work directly with some of the best children’s authors and illustrators in the industry. The main purpose of the role is to provide crucial administrative support to our busy publicity department, and requires an individual who is highly organised and able to juggle and prioritise multiple tasks. A proven passion for the children's book market is key, and an understanding of basic publicity principles, media and events is desirable.

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Responsibilities

• Co-ordinate and circulate Walker’s PR updates to ensure everybody across the business is aware of PR activity and coverage, including; monitoring press coverage, managing reviews and awards with updates on a central Biblio system, writing a weekly newsletter, and ensuring key press & award activity is represented across all Walker social media channels
• In conjunction with the PR team, co-ordinate submissions including awards for all Walker titles, trade buyers’ guides and festival pitches
• Support the PR team with events logistics including; supporting with the smooth running of launches, attending pitch meetings, assisting with the booking of logistical arrangements (including travel & accommodation), and attending virtual and in-person events as required – this may involve weekends and evenings and travel around the UK
• Oversee and manage the blogger/influencer contacts list, keeping it up to date and organised as well as facilitating the monthly mail-outs of titles to young adult (YA) bloggers, and managing call outs for new YA bloggers to join the list
• Co-ordinate gratis mailings from the warehouse on behalf of the team
• Oversee the PR in-box correspondence, as well as PR shelves & cupboards to make sure they are stocked and kept in good order, with materials & post appropriately handled
• Support PR and marketing with campaign brainstorms, and on occasion, research into the market & competitor activity, as well as drafting press releases
• Adhoc tasks as required including (but not limited to); diary management, meeting minutes, supporting head of publicity with budget work, character costume bookings etc

Please note the above is not an exhaustive list and does not necessarily include all the duties the job holder may have to perform. This job description may be amended to meet changing needs of the business.


Knowledge, skills & experience

To be successful in this role, you will be able to demonstrate evidence of the following skills and/or experience:

• A clear passion and enthusiasm for children’s book publishing, and an interest in media and events is vital for this role
• Experience in juggling and prioritising multiple projects and requests
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with experience in communicating appropriately with a range of people from a variety of backgrounds
• Ability to plan, prioritise and manage a varied workload in order to meet deadlines with exceptional attention to detail
• A strong working knowledge of Microsoft applications
• Highly self-motivated

What we offer

• Hybrid work (at least two days in the office per week) once you have successfully passed probation
• 22 days annual leave per year plus Christmas closure period and bank holidays (with annual leave increasing with length of service up to 27 days)
• Enhanced pension scheme
• Health insurance and health cash plan
• Life assurance
• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
• Access to an Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Plus, other great benefits!

All children deserve to see themselves, their families, and their communities represented in the books they read. As children’s book publishers, it is our goal to ensure that the books and content we publish authentically and joyfully reflect the world around us. As an employer, we are committed to creating and maintaining a supportive working environment where everyone is included, valued, and empowered to do their best and most creative work. As an equal opportunities employer, we welcome candidates from all backgrounds without regard to race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, sex, or any other characteristic protected by law and those not yet protected by law.

​If you have any queries about this role or require any reasonable adjustments for your application or throughout the recruitment process, please let our team know by contacting us.

Please note we reserve the right to close vacancies before the closing date where we have received sufficient applications. We recommend submitting your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

Please state in your application that you found this role through Creative Access.