Publications for Non-Publishers
Reports for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) is a charitable organisation that publishes reports across a wide range of social issues, from climate change to teenage drinking, and we are delighted to be one of their preferred suppliers. Written by academics and specialist researchers, the reports are edited to ensure they are accessible and comprehensible, whether for journalists, civil servants, practitioners or chief executives. While the formula is generally straightforward, the reports can come with a range of maps, tables and graphs, appendices and notes, and designing them can be tricky. It can also at times take sensitive editing to convert the academic style in which they are written to the plain English required by JRF. Our editors must liaise closely with the reports’ authors, getting their approval both of the edited Word document and of each stage of proofs.
The manuscripts arrive at CPM often with only a few days’ warning and in batches of up to six. Luckily, we have a team of specialist copy-editors and freelancers who help us handle whatever we are sent within the allocated timeframe. As the reports’ publication dates often coincide with a conference or event, time is of the essence.
We deliver most JRF reports as bookmarked PDFs for online publication, but we do also organise printing when required. On the digital front, we recently developed JRF’s latest generation of ebooks, adapting their reports to produce reflowable, interactive PDF ebooks optimised for iPad, iPhone and Kindle.
Their serious subject matter makes the reports fascinating to handle, and it is always satisfying to spot coverage of the work in the national media. Recently, a review of Benzie's Vulnerability to heatwaves and drought was featured in the Observer, a piece on the minimum income standard appeared on the BBC News website and A national study of ageing and HIV was discussed on Radio 4.
Scope of the projects:
Full project management; copy-editing with tracked changes for author to check; layout with creation of tables and diagrams; proofreading; preparation of final bookmarked PDF; creation of ebooks.
The Scottish Qualifications Authority produces course materials for its students and tutors. CPM project-managed teaching packs for tutors for three units of the Higher National Diploma (HND) in Childhood Practice and Social Services: Applied Sociology, Applied Psychology and Professional Development & Practice. One of the primary requirements of this project was to make sure we used copy-editors and proofreaders familiar with using Plain English, in accordance with SQA's house style.
Since these packs were published as Word documents they didn’t need to be typeset, but the copy-editor did have to format them correctly in Word. Large documents, with tables, illustrations and PowerPoint files embedded into them, they could become unwieldy, and a high degree of technical skill was required to ensure the final Word document was accurate throughout. We had three weeks in which to prepare each of the titles, which ranged in length between 25,000 and 30,000 words.
Scope of the project:
Project management; on-screen copy-editing; on-screen proofreading; delivery of styled Word files.
East of England 2008 is a commemorative handbook produced by CPM for the East of England Development Agency (EEDA). This 48-page booklet, inspired by the 2008 Olympics and Paralympics Games, was to be distributed at a reception to celebrate the region’s sporting achievements of the region. Branding was therefore at the heart of the design and timing was crucial as under no circumstances could the schedule slip.
EEDA provided us with pictures, captions and a brief to create an attractive publication using a selection of these, while ensuring equal representation of each of East Anglia’s counties. An external designer created the layout, while the text was copy-edited and proofread in-house to guarantee meeting the tight deadline. We commissioned the printing, approved the plotters, and organised the delivery of the finished books to the reception venue.
From the initial briefing meeting with our customer, we successfully delivered the handbooks to them in just 15 working days. With such time sensitivity, there was no margin for error; effective communication at every stage and with every party involved was key to the success of this job.
Scope of the project:
Full project management; commissioning and management of out-of-house designer; copy-editing; proofreading; delivery of print-ready files; outsourcing printing; delivery of printed book.