What's plain English?

Plain English is good, clear writing which communicates as simply and effectively as possible. But it is not a childish or simplistic form of English.

Plain English focuses on the message. It uses only as many words as necessary and avoids jargon, unnecessary technical expressions and complex language. In other words, plain English is the opposite of gobbledegook and long-winded, confusing communication.

Plain English documents are always written for the people who will be reading and using them, using words they will know. This means that a document can use technical or specialised terms and still be plain English. For example, an article in a medical journal may use specialised language that doctors will understand. But an article on the same topic written for a popular magazine will use terms familiar to the general public.

Even complex concepts can be explained in plain English. Many legal documents, such as contracts and legislation, have been rewritten in plain English and are still legally accurate.

The reader comes first

One of the most important principles of plain English is that documents are developed and written from the reader's viewpoint. This means that you may need to rethink the structure and purpose of your documents. What does the reader need to know? How much do they understand about the subject? What's the best way to organise ideas so that they make sense to the reader? Is your document really necessary, or would another method of communication work better?

The test of success is not just that a document reads well, but whether it communicates to your reader. And the only way to really know whether you're getting your message across is to talk with the type of people who will be reading your document.

More than words

Plain English is about more than just words. Design is also very important. The clearest writing will still be difficult to understand if the layout is messy or confusing, if the print is small or hard to read, or if it is printed in a colour which doesn't stand out against the background.

Plain English is everywhere

Many people have heard about plain English insurance policies and government reports. But plain English covers much more than "official" documents.

Organisations need to use plain English for all their communications with stakeholders -- the public, other organisations, contractors and their own staff.

Documents which should be presented in plain English include: forms of all kinds, including applications for government payments, loan and credit card applications, taxation forms and hospital admission forms documents explaining government policies and laws, such as copyright law, Equal Employment Opportunity legislation, and occupational health and safety legislation insurance policies and renewal forms brochures, leaflets and booklets letters from banks, government departments and other organisations bills, such as phone and gas bills instructions for using products such as electrical appliances information for patients about drugs and medicines legal documents including legislation, contracts and leases corporate rule books and policy guidelines tenders and specifications internal documents such as training materials, memos, procedures and quality assurance manuals annual and other reports newsletters notices and signs airline and public transport timetables.

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