Always on
This project successfully funded on 28th March 2026, you can still support them with a donation.
Help sustain The People’s Letters
London, Greater London, United Kingdom
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Aim
Help sustain a cooperative, worker-led bookshop!
Who we are
The People’s Letters (TPL) is a cooperative bookshop and event space born out of a labour dispute. It was founded by the former unionised staff of The Scarlett Letters. When our workplace closed, we came together to create something different: a collectively run bookshop rooted in solidarity, political education, and care. We prioritise radical literature, marginalised voices, and movements for liberation.
TPL is worker-owned and cooperatively organised, with decisions made collectively by those who sustain the space.
Our partnership with Release: The Harm Reduction hub
We share our space with Release, the UK’s oldest drug charity, who anchor the shop with a harm reduction hub to provide non-judgmental support, legal advice, and vital resources to communities often criminalised, excluded or underserved. Together and with everyone who visits the space, we are creating a community living room, where people can hang out and discover radical literature as well as access support, rest and connect without stigma.
What we do
The People’s Letters is a space where literature and activism coexist.
During the day, visitors can:
- Browse new and second-hand book and zines, prints, and art from independent artists, for adult and younger audiences
- Access harm reduction resources and legal information
- Rest, read, and connect
- Enjoy free snacks and hot drinks
- Spend time in a welcoming, low-pressure space
In the evenings, we host:
- Book launches and readings
- Workshops, talks, and political education events
- Community gatherings and discussions
- Fundraisers and movement-led events
Our programme centres sex workers, migrants, queer and trans communities, working-class people and communities often pushed to the margins.
Why we need your support
As a cooperative space committed to accessibility and care, your support helps us remain sustainable.
Contributions go toward our core costs:
- Rent, utilities, and insurance
- Paying workers fairly and sustaining cooperative labour
- Accessibility improvements and maintenance (seating, signage, step access)
Every contribution helps keep TPL open, welcoming and accountable to the communities it serves. By supporting us, you are helping build a space that strengthens community, fosters political engagement and creates a home for radical thought and care.
Why it matters
This is more than a bookshop. It’s a public-facing site of solidarity, mutual aid and resistance. TPL is a public-facing site of solidarity, mutual aid, and resistance. In a city where truly accessible, non-commercial spaces are disappearing, we offer a place rooted in dignity, care, and collective power.
Transparency:
Our annual operating costs are approximately £120,000 per year. Donations and book sales help cover the real costs of running a worker-owned, community-focused space without compromising our values.
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made