Quality Used Children’s Books: 9 Places UK Parents Buy Them

Most UK parents who buy used children’s books rely on a mix of two or three sources: a big online second-hand seller for specific titles, plus local options such as charity shops, Vinted or Facebook Marketplace for bundles. The online sellers give consistency; the local routes give the lowest prices.

This list reflects how families tend to shop in practice rather than a single “best” pick. It covers nine places, from national sellers to the Little Free Library at the end of the street, with a note on where each one lets you down.

1. World of Books

Often the first place parents check when a child asks for a specific book. The children’s range is wide, listings carry a condition grade, and ordering is quick. It suits families who want reliable, everyday reading copies. On the downside, the photo on the listing may not be the cover you get, which can annoy children who like their series to match.

2. AwesomeBooks

Parents who want cheap used copies, free UK delivery and a charity angle tend to like this one. For every book bought, another is donated to someone in need, and the company has worked with the National Literacy Trust and the Children’s Book Project. Orders go out within 24 hours. Worth knowing: stock of a specific edition varies, so check the ISBN and edition, and treat the listing’s condition description as what you will receive.

3. Vinted

Plenty of parents now sell outgrown books here alongside clothes, often grouped as “age 3 to 5 bundle” or a full set of a series. You can message the seller and ask for extra photos. The limitation is that a buyer protection fee and postage are added, so it rarely makes sense for a single paperback.

4. Facebook Marketplace

Popular for local pick-ups. Search your area for “children’s books” or a favourite author and you will usually find bags of picture books or early readers being cleared out. Good for stocking a bedroom shelf quickly. Limitation: no protection on cash sales, and listings disappear fast, so act quickly and check books at the door.

5. Charity shops

Barnardo’s, British Heart Foundation and Oxfam shops are a regular stop for many families, especially with children in tow who can pick their own book. It is a cheap way to let them choose, and a small spend means nobody minds if the pick is a dud. Limitation: you cannot plan around it, as the children’s shelf changes week to week.

6. NCT nearly-new sales

Local NCT sales are best known for prams and baby clothes, but books for babies and toddlers are common. Parents of under-threes often come away with a stack of board books for very little, alongside the clothes and kit they came for. Limitation: they run only a few times a year in each area, and toddler books can be heavily used.

7. Little Free Libraries

Small book-swap boxes outside homes, churches and community centres. Take a book, leave a book in return. They cost nothing, children love checking them on the walk home, and they are a tidy way to pass on books your family has outgrown. Limitation: what you find is entirely random, and condition depends on whoever left it.

8. eBay

Good for completing a series or buying a job lot of a reading scheme in one go. Sellers who post clear photos of the actual books, spines and all, are the ones to buy from. Search by series name as well as author. Limitation: grading is inconsistent between sellers, and postage on heavier bundles can add up.

9. The Works

Not a second-hand option at all, but worth including here because it sells new children’s books cheaply, often in multi-buy bundles. If a used copy is hard to find or in poor shape, a new budget copy is a sensible fallback, particularly for gifts. Limitation: the range leans towards whatever is in the current promotion.

Tips from parents who buy used

• Keep a list of the next books in each series your child reads, with ISBNs, so you can check online or in a shop quickly.
• Buy board books in person if possible, so you can check for chewing and stickiness.
• Ask Vinted and eBay sellers for photos of the inside pages before buying.

Pick one online seller you trust for specific requests, and one local route for cheap bundles. Between the two, most families can keep a growing reader supplied without paying full price for every book.