In less than four years, The Heath Bookshop has transformed Birmingham’s passion for the written word. Having only opened its doors in September 2022, the King’s Heath store launched its own music and literature festival in 2024 and was crowned the ‘Independent Bookshop of the Year’ in 2025. Can it do it all again in 2026?
The Heath Bookshop is one of 76 finalists for The British Book Awards’ ‘Independent Bookshop of the Year’—which also includes Worcester’s Script Haven, Stafford’s That Little Bookshop and Broadway’s Blandford Books in the Midlands. With bookshops from all over the UK, The Heath Bookshop faces fierce competition.
“The most gratifying thing about the 2026 Independent Bookshop of the Year is not just the record number of submissions, but the Grade-A quality of each and every one of them,” said Tom Tivnan, deputy editor, The Bookseller. “We all know the current travails of the High Street in general, but indies across the UK and Ireland are meeting the difficulties with grit, innovation and community spirit.
“What impresses is how these shops are nimbly and proactively moving into areas that tap into local needs, such as launching festivals, fundraisers, wellness groups and supporting local schools. All this on top of the core mission of spreading the joy of books, which indies arguably do better and with more passion than any other sector.”
What sets The Heath Bookshop apart from the rest?
Last year, The Heath Bookshop was singled out for turning the store “into a thriving community hub… with the confidence to take big swings.” The Heath has not only nailed the “nitty-gritty of customer service and stock curation” but successfully launched its own festival, which not many other bookshops can say they’ve done.
The Heath Bookshop Literature and Music Festival galvanises the local neighbourhood, teaming up with other local independent businesses like children’s bookshop How Brave is the Wren and music pub the Hare and Hounds, to showcase a mix of local talent and established artists in Kings Heath.
This April, expect the biannual festival to feature everything from a radical new dance adaptation of Max Porter’s award-winning novel, ‘Grief Is The Thing With Feathers’, to the festival’s first-ever Open Mic Competition, and a DJ set from former The Smiths drummer, Mike Joyce, and an ‘in conversation’ chat about his memoir, ‘The Drums’.
When will the ‘Independent Bookshop of the Year’ be decided?
This year’s nominations cover nine different regions and countries across the UK and Ireland. Regional and country winners will be announced on Tuesday, March 10, while an overall winner will later be revealed during The British Book Awards ceremony at Grosvenor House London on Monday, May 11.