SYP celebrates its 75th anniversary and launches a reverse-mentoring initiative

The Society of Young Publishers (SYP) celebrates its 75th anniversary and launches a reverse-mentoring initiative.

The Society of Young Publishers (SYP) is celebrating its 75th anniversary with summer parties across the UK and Ireland, a bumper issue of the society’s InPrint magazine, and a brand-new reverse-mentoring scheme entitled SYP Bridges.

The SYP is made up of seven regional committees (Ireland, London, North, Oxford, Scotland, South West and Wales) and a UK committee responsible for overseeing the overall strategy of the group and producing the InPrint magazine. These teams are made up of dedicated volunteers who give up their spare time to help our members.

The SYP is also highlighting the anniversary year through special digital campaigns, including Alumni spotlights and a #FromTheArchives social media campaign, which aims to shed light on early SYP activities using material curated by the SYP Archivist, Maria Vassilopoulos.

SYP Bridges is a standalone one-time mentorship session pairing up alumni and SYP members to share knowledge and provide an upwards mentoring opportunity. The sessions will last 75-minutes and aim to bring together current and previous generations of SYP membership, to allow both mentee and mentor to learn from one another, and provide an opportunity for reflection on the SYP and its activities, past and present.

SYP Bridge applications for members opens in July through the SYP website: thesyp.org.uk/syp-bridges/

The UK and London branch will be hosting a general 75th Anniversary party on 17 August at The Albany and would be delighted to welcome SYP alumni, partners, industry connections, and any hopefuls or early career professionals, to celebrate the SYP and the people who have made it what it is over the years.

In the run up to this event, the rest of the regional branches will be running 75th celebrations in their own areas, all connected up through shared material and support.

On the SYP’s milestone anniversary, UK Co-Chairs Michaela O’Callaghan and Eleanor Gaffney said:

"Operating as UK Chairs in the SYP’s 75th anniversary has been an absolute pleasure. Reconnecting with SYP alumni has helped to consolidate what we already knew: that it is the relationships built with fellow hopefuls and early-career professionals that makes SYP such an important part of the publishing industry. The fact that SYP offers a range of upskilling opportunities, as either a volunteer or member, and works to demystify the industry and make it more accessible, further displays how much SYP has offered the industry over the years, and how much more it can offer for years to come."

Since its formation in 1949, the SYP has aimed to help those in publishing (or a related field) get INTO and AHEAD in the industry. They aim to share knowledge and insight, and support a culture of community and connection through regular panel events, workshops and networking sessions.

Originally, the SYP was London-based and only open to members under thirty-five who already worked in publishing. Now, the society operates branches in all countries within the UK and Ireland and aims to improve regional diversification and make publishing accessible to those outside of the capital, as well as encouraging inclusive practices across the board. Membership is also open to anyone with less than ten years’ experience in the industry, including students, the unwaged, and those changing careers or re-entering the industry after a break.

An SYP alumna said of the regional opportunities with the SYP, "The SYP was instrumental to me in my early career in publishing, without it I feel I would have struggled to meet my peers in Manchester and across the North more broadly. Those who I met during my time volunteering on the committee had a real influence on me, and have since helped me find jobs, or given me sage advice. Being on the committee also helped me develop my networking, communication and leadership skills in my own time too. I have been recommending the SYP to young and early career publishers ever since!"

In addition to regular events the SYP currently runs a mentorship scheme, a blog, a podcast, a jobs board, and annual conferences in both England and Scotland. They also run regional diversity initiatives such as the Spare Room Projectand the Spare Zoom Project.

If you are an SYP alumna and would like to take part in SYP Bridges or any of the other 75th anniversary activities, please get in touch with the UK Alumni Officer at alumni@thesyp.org.uk.