Modern Slavery Statement

01Scope of this statement

Helpora Ltd is below the £36m turnover threshold at which a statement is mandatory under section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. We publish one voluntarily because our supply chain includes printing, distribution and a worldwide network of contributors, where the risks are real and worth stating.

02Our business and supply chain

We commission and publish reference titles, build and operate content portals, and license reference data. Our supply chain consists of UK and European printers and paper merchants, book distributors and wholesalers, hosting and software providers, and individual contractors — editors, indexers, translators, researchers and engineers — engaged directly in their own countries.

03Where the risk sits

• Print and paper. Manufacturing and raw material supply, including pulp sourcing beyond our direct suppliers.
• Distribution and warehousing. Agency and seasonal labour.
• Contributor network. Individuals engaged in jurisdictions with weaker labour protection, and the risk of unpaid work or unclear terms.

04What we do about it

• Print and distribution suppliers are asked to confirm their own modern slavery position and, where they publish one, to provide their statement before we place an order.
• Every contributor is engaged on a written agreement stating the rate, the scope and the payment terms before work starts. We do not ask for unpaid trial work or speculative labour.
• Invoices from individual contributors are paid within 14 days.
• We do not use unpaid internships.
• Concerns can be raised to any director without going through a line manager, and we will not penalise anyone for raising one.

05Training

Everyone who places an order with a printer, distributor or contributor is briefed on what modern slavery looks like in publishing supply chains and what to escalate.

06Measuring effectiveness

We track the proportion of print and distribution spend covered by a supplier confirmation, contributor invoices paid within terms, and the number of concerns raised and how each was resolved. We report these to the board annually.

07Approval

This statement was approved by the board of Helpora Ltd and will be reviewed and republished annually.