What is a Livery Company?

• Livery Companies were first created by groups of medieval tradesmen who joined together to promote, protect and regulate their trades
• There are 110 livery companies in London, each representing a discrete profession or trade
• The Stationers’ Company is unique for a 600-year-old company in that over 90% of our members are actively involved in our industries
• Charitable giving, to education, in particular, is a very strong element of the work of all livery companies
• Our charitable activities are focused on education that connects young people with our industries 

The History of the Company

In 1403 the Mayor and Aldermen of the City of London approved the formation of a fraternity or Guild of Stationers (booksellers who copied and sold manuscript books and writing materials and limners who decorated and illustrated them). By the early 16th century printers had joined the Stationers' Company and by the mid-century had more or less ousted the manuscript trade. In 1557 the Guild received its Royal Charter and they became a livery company, numbered 47 in precedence.

The Charter gave the Company the right to search for and seize illicit or pirated works. All new titles were entered into series of 'entry books of copies' which became known as the Stationers' Company Registers. Company ordinances of 1562 provided that members had to both obtain from the Wardens a licence to print any work not protected by Royal Grant and enter that licence in the Company’s register. The Stationers’ Register became the written record to which disputes regarding the ownership of copy could be referred. Succeeding copyright legislation confirmed Stationers’ Hall as the place where the right to copy should be entered. Compulsory registration finally terminated in 1923.

 Why join the Stationers’?

• 600 years ago most craftsmen in London were itinerant. However, the manuscript writers and illuminators decided to concentrate their efforts and set up stalls or ‘stations’ around St Paul’s Cathedral. Because of this, they were given the nickname ‘Stationers’ and this was the obvious choice of name for the guild they established in 1403 
• When printing came to England in the late 15th century, the Stationers had the good sense to embrace it and we have continued to adapt to the many changes in the Communications and Content industries ever since
• The technology may have changed from pen and inks to print and online links but the name has always remained the same 
  

 And today?

• Today the Company has nearly 1000 members, the vast majority of whom are senior executives in the complete range of trades within the Communications and Content industries
• Membership is drawn from across the UK and increasingly throughout the world and now includes major companies as well as individual members
• The Company uses Stationers’ Hall for the purpose for which it was built all those years ago: to bring together the major players in our industries so that they can enjoy each other’s company, learn from one another, share ideas and together develop strategies for the future of our industries 
• Activities range from formal dinners, informal lunches, lectures, seminars and intimate round-table sessions to online reports and discussion fora.
• Our objectives are:
  • to encourage a broad balance of membership
  • to deliver industry-relevant events at Stationers' Hall that provide excellent networking opportunities are good value for money and fun
  • to maximise the resources of our charity, the Stationers' Foundation and direct them towards causes connected with our industries
  • to develop our facilities at Stationers' Hall to make them more accessible to the public and improve their functionality for events
  • to play an active part in the work of the Corporation of London
  • to create full transparency in our governance procedures
  • to preserve our archive and make it accessible to a broader public audience

  Charitable Giving

Charitable giving is one of the defining features of a Livery Company and the Stationers’ Company is very proud of its work in education and welfare and the maintenance and enhancement of our Hall.

The demand for the resources of the Foundation is enormous and the income generated from our charitable endowment fund falls well short of our current giving programme and our aspirations for this to grow.

Thanks to the generosity of our members and of our charitable partners, our annual grant-giving now exceeds £350,000 and it is our aim for this to reach £500,000 by the end of this decade.