The Booksellers Association of the United Kingdom & Ireland Limited


BA Advisory Council

The BA's membership is represented by an Advisory Council of booksellers, who discuss and advise the BA on policy issues that affect all BA members. It meets at least three times a year and aims to reflect the demographic balance of the membership. Council Members usually serve no more than two three-year terms. The BA Officers (BA President and Vice Presidents) also sit on the BA Divisional and BA Group Boards.

Find out more about the structure of the BA in The BA and How It Works, a document that has been put together to give a brief overview of the structure of the BA, all of our committees and special interest groups, regional and national representative groups and online networks.

Responsibilities of the Advisory Council
 
  • - Above all, to advise the BA Divisional Board as to how to help members of all types and sizes to prosper in the business of bookselling, especially in strategic matters. 
 
  • - To consider relevant reports from the BA Advisory Groups, BA Working Groups and Committees, outside committees and BA Branches, especially when strategic or policy matters might be 
  •    involved. 
 
  • - To set up as necessary Working Groups for temporary issues and Advisory Groups for ongoing issues.

To always bear in mind that communication with members should be two way: not only do members need to hear from the Association; they also need to know that the Association will give them      a voice. Even when it is not possible for the BA to have a unanimous view on a matter affecting members differently, views should be expressed by the BA on behalf of all members.  

The Composition of the Advisory Council
The Advisory Council consists of the Officers and not fewer than ten and not usually more than twenty members, nominated with regard to geography, size of business, type of business and the BA Group’s Inclusiveness policy.

Members of the Council would not normally serve more than two three-year consecutive terms.

The Role of a Council Member
We are proud to have an inclusive membership. The BA, and therefore its Council, represents many types of different businesses, large, small, academic, general, specialist, traditional, non-traditional, retail and wholesale, covering the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Members of the Council bring to the role their own business experience and insights which inform their views , and are tasked with making the best policy decisions on behalf of the membership as a whole, not primarily according to what might be best for a Council member’s own business.  

Each Council member should:
  - dedicate sufficient time to scrutinising the Council briefing papers that are circulated by email well ahead of the meetings;
  •   - be prepared to take part in discussions both during Council meetings and, on occasion, by email;
  •   - be ready to provide guidance on new initiatives and help the Council focus on key issues;
  •   - be committed to the BA and the book trade;
  •   - be willing to devote the necessary time and effort to effectively carry out their duties as a Council member;
  •   - be prepared to demonstrate strategic vision;
  •   - have good, independent judgement and a willingness to speak their mind;
  •   - have an ability to think creatively;
  •   - have the ability to work effectively as a member of a team;
  •   - possess Nolan’s seven principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
  •  
The Council representatives are listed below and are happy to hear from any BA members. If you want a particular issue brought to the notice of a Council meeting, do email Meryl Halls [email protected], Managing Director of the Booksellers Association, who would be happy to hear from you.

 

BA Officers

Debbie James

President
Kibworth Books
Debbie opened Kibworth Books in 2009 after a career in music as an orchestral percussionist. In 2016, the bookshop doubled in size into a second floor and in February 2022, Debbie and her team moved into a space three times as big again. She has since re-opened the old shop as a second bookshop, specialising in rare and collectable books.

Debbie’s key areas of interest in the book industry are wellbeing and sustainable bookselling and as such, she is a keen supporter of the BA’s group coaching project and is the BA Sustainability Champion.

 

Mairi Oliver

Vice President
Lighthouse – Edinburgh’s Radical Bookshop
Mairi runs Lighthouse: Edinburgh's Radical Bookshop, which won Scottish Bookshop of the Year 2019 at the Nibbies. She has been in the book trade over a decade; having worked as a bookseller at Constant Reader in Sydney and Topping & Company Booksellers in St Andrews, she opened Lighthouse as a queer, feminist, anti-racist community bookshop in 2017.

Lighthouse, which is a reincarnation of the radical Word Power Bookshop that first opened in 1994, continues to host and organise Edinburgh's annual Book Fringe and Radical Book Fair.

 

Will Smith

Vice President
Sam Read, Grasmere
Will is a freelance writer, academic and bookseller who has worked at Grasmere’s Sam Read Bookseller since 2012. He previously worked at Blackwell’s Nottingham Portland and Ottakar’s in Bury St. Edmunds. 

Will became co-owner of Sam Read in 2023.

He has written on prize culture and place in literature and lectured in publishing, North American literature and Canadian studies at a number of British universities. He holds a PhD in Canadian Literature from the University of Nottingham.

Will currently reviews books for The Bookseller, Cumbria Life and BBC Radio Cumbria.

 

BA Advisory Council Members

Carolynn Bain (2025-2031)

Afrori Books, Brighton
If Carolynn had to put who she is in any kind of order she is first a Christian, black woman.  She is also a mother, a bookseller, an activist, a mentor, a lyricist and a wife.  She went to Uni in her 40s earning a 1st in Event Management, and worked around Europe at everything from Glastonbury to world leaders’ summits.

Her life has been a battle against racism and the need to educate about white privilege. In 2020 she decided it was time to change the world. She opened an online bookshop that created a one stop-shop for books by black authors.
In 2021, following a very successful crowdfund, she opened a bricks and mortar shop in the heart of Brighton. She did this in the firm belief that what we read changes who we are and how we think.

Afrori Books now has the biggest selection of books by black authors in the UK, giving a platform to over 4000 black authors through the shop and social media channels. She is passionate about books and change.

The Mission plan is simple: *Support black authors. *Create diverse bookshelves. *Be a voice for justice.
 

Dawn Behan (2024-2030)

Woodbine Books, Kilcullen, Co Kildare
Dawn opened Woodbine Books in 2016, having previously worked as a software developer.  She believes that bookshops should be a social hub within their communities.  She has tried to create this in Kilcullen by running a creative writing group, book clubs for adults and children, and regular events throughout the year.  She loves the sense of accomplishment that comes from finding the perfect book for a reader.




 

Ashley Bruce (2021-2027)

TG Jones, Swindon
Since Ashley studied English at university, her whole career has been dedicated to bookselling. She started at WHSmith in 2007, working in the Children’s Books team where she eventually became the buyer for Preschool and Licensed Books. After 10 years in Children’s Books, she moved over to join the Adult Books team, first in Fiction before eventually becoming Buying Manager for Adult Books, a remit covering the High Street and Online proposition for Adult Fiction, Non-Fiction, as well as the Richard and Judy Book Club. From Summer 2025, She has been excited to be leading the Adult Books buying team for TGJones.
 
She shares her love for books with her children and she is passionate about encouraging others to understand the importance and benefits of reading. “I’m a firm believer that there is a book out there for everybody, whether you are a confident reader or not. If you haven’t yet discovered a love of books, that’s where we as Booksellers are here to help you find the book that will start this journey!”
 

Angie Crawford (2024-2030)

Waterstones
Angie is part of the non-fiction buying team at Waterstones. She has worked as a bookseller for 25 years at Dillons, Waterstones and Ottakar’s in a variety of roles including children’s buying and Scottish buying. She is passionate about making reading accessible to everyone through curating beautiful bookshops and author events in local communities.
 

Caoilfhionn Fay (2024-2030)

Eason, Ireland

Caoilfhionn has worked in bookselling for over fifteen years, across various roles in Eason and Dubray, having started out as a Christmas temp in Eason, O’Connell Street, Dublin.  She is currently the Books Senior Buyer at Eason,  before which she was Dubray’s Books Category Manager, contributing hugely to the growth of the business over nine years. She loves being surrounded by books all day and can’t imagine working in any other industry. Her favourite part of the job is curating interesting collections of books, enabling customers to discover that one book they didn’t even know they needed.

 

Jake Franklin (2023-2029)

National Theatre Bookshop






 

Meera Ghanshamdas (2023-2029)

Round Table Books, Brixton
Meera Ghanshamdas is co-Director of Round Table Books CIC, a Community Interest Company, based in Brixton and that specialises in championing books about experiences currently under-represented in the book industry.  She is actively working to make the industry a more inclusive space. Meera was born in Hong Kong and lived in the Philippines, South Africa and India before settling in London.
 

Polly Jaffé (2024-2030)

Jaffé & Neale, Chipping Norton
Polly started her bookselling career with Sherratt & Hughes in Notting Hill Gate, which later became part of Waterstones.  She became an independent bookseller in 2001Jaffé & Neale was named Independent Bookshop of the Year in 2007.
 
For Polly, running a bookshop is understanding how to survive and thrive on the high street imagination, creativity, excellent customer service and a good dose of grit are all essential.  Polly tries to demonstrate that value isn’t just about saving a few pennies. Jaffé & Neale is delighted to be at the centre of its community.  Polly is proud to be a Trustee of her local Lido (which means she has a beautiful pool to swim in too). 

Dan Johns (2019-2025)

Padstow Bookseller
Dan has been around bookselling his whole life, as part of Mabecron Books, a family business incorporating three shops,: Falmouth Bookseller, St Ives Bookseller and Padstow Bookseller, the last of which Dan manages.



 

Eirian James (2025-2031)

Palas Print Bookshop, Caernarfon







 

Tracy Kenny (2023-2029)

Ketts Books, Wymondham
In 2013 Tracy Kenny co-founded Kett's Books, an independent community bookshop in Wymondham in Norfolk. The not-for-profit bookshop offers volunteering opportunities to a diverse mix of people across generations, who grow and pass the benefit on to their customers, building a strong and vibrant community. Tracy previously worked in brand storytelling, as well as in culture development and customer experience at Aviva.

Ketts moved to significantly bigger premises in 2023.
 

Darran McLaughlin (2026-2032)

Bookhaus, Bristol







 

Sally Pattle (2026-2032)

Far From the Madding Crowd, Linlithgow







 

Sue Porter (2025-2031)

Linghams, Heswall
Sue has been in the book trade for 10 years and has taken Linghams bookshop, in Heswall, Wirral from strength to strength. Linghams specialises in events for both children and adults. 
 
Sue had previously managed a team of fraud investigators for the local authority.


 

Helen Tambyn Saville (2026-2032)

Wonderland Bookshop, Retford
Helen is the owner and manager of Wonderland Bookshop, an independent children's bookshop in Retford, North Nottinghamshire, complete with an upside-down tea-party hanging from the ceiling, Originally a secondhand children's bookshop, Helen took over the business in November 2019 when it was destined for closure after just a few months of trade. Since then, the shop has transformed into a buzzing high street business, aiming to inspire and enthuse children and young people into a world of books. Helen is passionate about ensuring that every child and young person should have access to books and opportunities, and has developed a strong outreach programme working with schools to increase book accessibility, and offer author visits. Helen was awarded an MA in Children's Literature in 2025, with her dissertation on comics and graphic novels awarded a distinction. Wonderland was recognised as Children's Bookseller of the Year in the 2025 British Book Awards. She is a member of the World Book Day Strategic Advisory Group and is a member of the BA Children's Group!

 

Helen Stanton (2026-2032)

Forum Books, Corbridge, Alnwick, Whitley Bay
Helen Stanton owns and runs three independent bookshops in the North East of England - FORUM Books, Corbridge / the bound, Whitley Bay / The Accidental Bookshop, Alnwick. Additionally ‘permanent pop-up’ – The Book Room – at The Biscuit Factory in Newcastle. Her bookselling career began with Hatchards then Waterstones, from there moving into publishing, taking up sales & marketing roles at Headline, Canongate and Birlinn in Edinburgh. Being seriously addicted to bookshops and running her own independent bookshops is the dream - what a time to be a bookseller!

 

Deborah Texeira (2026-2032)

Kenilworth Books
Deborah joined the Kenilworth Bookshop team in 2023. She has been a primary teacher for the last 21 years in both State and Independent Schools in Richmond and Acton in London, Nottingham, Birmingham, Kenilworth, and Rugby. She has been the Assistant Headteacher for Early Years in two schools where she has also had responsibility for Reading for Pleasure throughout the school. This is where her love of children’s literature has grown. In her most recent school, she has organised many author and illustrator visits for the pupils and staff. These have included Kate Greenaway Medal winner Jackie Morris and former Children’s Laureates Cressida Cowell and Chris Riddell. Deborah also has first-hand experience of transforming a school library from a disused, unloved space to the beating heart of the school. With exciting choices for the children, the library has changed the reading habits of many the children. Deborah is also Vice Chair of the Waterstones Children’s Laureate Steering Group. In this role Deborah elects the new incoming Laureates and helps to guide them through their term in office. She has also been part of many Book Trust reading panels such as their well-known Time to Read campaign where every Reception aged child in the UK receives a free book to take home. Deborah has also given CPD lectures to teachers about Reading for Pleasure and has co-written an article about organising Author visits for the Times Educational Supplement. Deborah also is part of the Booksellers Association Children’s Booksellers Group. She recently spoke at the London Book Fair 2026 about the Libraries and Bookshops working together for the National Year of Reading. Thanks so much!

 

Nicole Vanderbilt (2026-2032)

Bookshop.org
Helen Stanton owns and runs three independent bookshops in the North East of England - FORUM Books, Corbridge / the bound, Whitley Bay / The Accidental Bookshop, Alnwick. Additionally ‘permanent pop-up’ – The Book Room – at The Biscuit Factory in Newcastle. Her bookselling career began with Hatchards then Waterstones, from there moving into publishing, taking up sales & marketing roles at Headline, Canongate and Birlinn in Edinburgh. Being seriously addicted to bookshops and running her own independent bookshops is the dream - what a time to be a bookseller! Nicole Vanderbilt, UK Managing Director for Bookshop.org, has been with the site since its launch in the UK in November 2020. The site has generated more than £5 million for the over 650 indie bookshops on the platform. Nicole has over 25 years of experience in the consumer internet industry, most recently as VP, International at Etsy where she helped almost one million small, creative businesses sell over $1.5bn online annually via Etsy's platform.

 

Nigel Wyman

co-opted by the BA Council
Gardners
Nigel has been in the trade for over 13 years, and he is passionate about supporting the book trade and contributing wherever he can. He state’s it’s pleasure and a privilege to have been nominated and accepted on the council in 2014 and to continue serving today as a co-opted member.  He is amazed at how much work the BA put in t support the wider community.