A LOCAL dyslexia campaigner has been acknowledged and awarded by the UK Government.

BOTH Press publishing manager, Dr Alistair Sims from Clevedon, was named by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as the UK's 1998th recipient of The Points of Light Award. The award recognises outstanding individual volunteers, charity leaders, or community champions.

Clevedon's Books On The Hill was established by the BOTH Press publishing house to fund and produce larger font books for dyslexic readers. The enterprise was launched to fill a gap in the market for dyslexia-friendly fiction for adults.

Dr Alistair Sims, founder, and manager of Books On The Hill and BOTH Press, said: "BOTH Press has had many heart-warming responses about how the books have impacted the lives of adult readers with an easier, more understandable, and enjoyable leisure read. 

"Many individuals who have told us their stories do not want to be mentioned due to fear of stigma about their struggle to read. For years we have had customers tell us of relatives who love stories and would love to read but have endured a lifetime of being called stupid. 

"It is brilliant that many children's books now come in dyslexic-friendly formats. But that is a recent development, and hundreds of thousands of adults have never had the opportunity to read for leisure with all its benefits. 

"More than anything, we want to give people a choice, but we want to usher in a commercial attitude change to how people understand and approach dyslexia. We hope recognition from the UK Government's Points of Life helps speed up that process."

This year, BOTH Press publishing house was nominated as a South-West England regional finalist for the Small Press of the Year category at the British Book Awards.

The overall Small Press winner will compete to be crowned Independent Publisher of the Year in an the awards ceremony on May 15, 2023. 

They have also been longlisted for the British Science Fiction Association Limited (BSFA) short fiction award with Six Lights Off Green Scar by Gareth Powell, the first time any adult dyslexic-friendly fiction has been nominated for a major prize. 

BOTH Press have released ten books in a dyslexia-friendly format. They hope that award success will encourage other book publishers to follow in their footsteps.