New Plain Numbers workshop for staff and volunteers in the community and voluntary sector

New Plain Numbers workshop for staff and volunteers in the community and voluntary sector

National College of Ireland

10 am - 12.30 pm

23 January 2013

Building on the success of our plain English courses, we now invite staff and volunteers in the community and voluntary sector to enrol for our first Plain Numbers workshop. If you deal with numbers, then this training is for you. It will help you present numbers in a way that is easy for readers to understand. We all have to present information on money, trends, rates, budgets, statistics and so on. This workshop will help you present this information more effectively. It will be of particular interest to accounts staff, HR personnel, administration staff, advisory personnel and researchers.

The workshop will be hosted by Daniel Sellers, Numeracy Consultant and Claire O’Riordan, NALA Plain English Coordinator. It is open to staff and volunteers in the sector who want to present numerical information more clearly.

Book early as places are limited. For more information or to book in for this training, contact Daniel Griffin (01) 412 7929.  

Merry Christmas from NALA

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from everyone at NALA.

Delivering Growth and Jobs - How plain English can increase access to legislation

In anticipation of Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2013, the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation hosted a meeting of the Directors and Experts of Better Regulation (DEBR) in Dublin Castle on 22-23 November 2012. NALA was delighted to accept an invitation from the Department to speak to some 70 delegates from the EU, OECD and Ireland about the value of plain English in improving access to legislation. Our presentation was well received and we hope it will foster greater awareness and usage of plain English. You can download the DEBR Programme here.

NALA congratulates The Houses of the Oireachtas (The Irish Parliament)

NALA congratulates The Houses of the Oireachtas who have just published their Communications Strategy for 2012-2014. In it they have committed to using plain English in their publications. They have also set measures to see how effective they are in their efforts. We did an intensive plain English case study with the Oireachtas in 2011. We are delighted to see that this work has paid off and they continue to use plain English.

Launch of the MSD/NALA Crystal Clear Awards

A new call for entries has been announced for the annual Crystal Clear MSD Health Literacy Awards 2013, which were established to recognise and reward excellence in health literacy in the Irish healthcare sector. The Crystal Clear Awards is a MSD/NALA Health Literacy Initiative. They are open to anyone working in the healthcare sector. Entries can be made online, or by post using the downloadable application form.

They must be received no later than 12 noon on Friday 1 February 2013.

The world's worst typos - in pictures

Enjoy some of the world's worst typos (taken from The Guardian 25 October 2012).

NALA trained 100 people in plain English in October

NALA delivered plain English training to 100 staff and volunteers in the Community and Voluntary Sector in October. The trainees included Communication Officers, HR personnel, Web Content Managers, Accounts Managers and other staff and volunteers.

The trainees came from a total of 19 organisations such as Focus Ireland, the INOU, Pavee Point, AONTAS, the Disability Federation of Ireland, OPEN, Barnados and many more. We are hopeful that these people will become plain English champions in their organisation. An external evaluation of the training is underway. We will get back to you before Christmas with the findings of this evaluation.

What are you doing to celebrate International Plain Language Day?
13 October 2012

NALA challenges you to champion plain English on International Plain Language day. International Plain Language Day 2012 marks the second anniversary of President Obama signing the Plain Language Act into law. This was a very important Act. It means that all federal governement documents for the public have to be written in clear and accessible language. In January, the US Plain Language Regulations Act was enacted. Now regulations must also be written in plain English.

To celebrate International Plain Language Day we challenge you to mail or tweet your friends and colleagues about the day and about this website. If you have any other ideas on how to support plain English usage in Ireland, email Claire O'Riordan at coriordan@nala.ie. Claire is looking forward to hearing from you.

Plain English Training for Website Content

Plain English Training for Website Content 
Metropole Hotel Cork 
Wednesday 17 October

NALA is delighted to announce that it will hold a one-day Plain English writing course, with a particular focus on writing materials for the web and intranets. This course is for people who want to learn about plain English and are involved in preparing information and materials for the web. The course will use a mix of presentation, relevant examples, discussion and exercises on the most common barriers to clear information and the benefits and techniques of plain English. The training will be informal and informative with regular opportunities for questions and answers. By the end of this training, participants should be able to:

• identify what makes material difficult to read and understand;
• describe the main benefits of plain English; and
• apply the plain English techniques to develop a more friendly style and keep their message clear, with particular focus on websites.

The cost for the training is €125 per person or €100 for those working in the charity and voluntary sector. Contact Daniel Griffin on (01) 412 7929 or by email at dgriffin@nala.ie for more information or to request a booking form.

Pensions Ombudsman praises the NALA Plain English Mark

On ‘Morning Ireland’ Wednesday 25 July Pensions Ombudsman Paul Kenny praised NALA’s Plain English Mark. His office was recently awarded our Mark for their new booklet ‘What the Pensions Ombudsman can do for you’. The booklet went through our editing and review process and will help people better understand pensions and improve the pensions’ complaint process. Listen to the this interview here: http://www.rte.ie/news/morningireland/player.html?20120725,3351661,3351661,flash,257

Minister Howlin accepts petition calling for a Plain English Policy for Ireland

NALA welcomes Minister Howlin’s acceptance of a petition by Labour Youth calling for the introduction of a Plain English policy for Ireland. The Minister confirmed his support Saturday 30 June in Kilkenny. He is pictured here with Maureen Bassett, NALA and Deirdre Hosford, Labour Youth.

Examples of NALA plain English edited documents in May and June 2012

Our editing service deals with all kinds of documents, forms and websites. Examples of recently edited documents are:

• The Digital Switchover Leaflet for the Department of Communications Energy and Natural Resources
• The Medical Card and GP Visit Card Application Form for the Department of Health
• The Plain English Summary of the Draft Report on Symphysiotomy by Dr Oonagh Walsh, for the  Department of Health

The Central Bank’s commitment to plain English

On 19 June The Central Bank reported on its review and inspection of how banks and insurance firms are implementing their revised Consumer Protection Code. The review found that most firms are well managed. It also identified areas for further improvement including ‘providing clear, accurate, up to date information to consumers, that is, written in plain English.’

The review identified examples of best practice ‘including the training of staff in communicating clearly and plainly with consumers and the employing of third party experts to review and edit written materials where in-house expertise is not available.’

You can download The Central Bank’s guide for consumers which explains the revised Consumer Protection Code at www.centralbank.ie/consumer/info. 

Health literacy roadshow

Limerick was the most recent stop on the NALA/MSD Ireland health literacy roadshow. On 30 May 22 health professionals attended a health literacy event, two hours of which focused on plain English training. This training, delivered by one of our most senior Plain English Editors was well received as were other similar events this year in Dublin, Cork and Galway.

To learn more about health literacy go to www.healthliteracy.ie.

May plain English training - a great success

On Wednesday 30 May, 22 people attended our one-day training programme on plain English in Dublin. They came from organisations such as the Pensions Ombudsman Office, the Road Safety Authority of Ireland and the Health Service Executive. The training covered why plain English is important and how best to use it. Participants also practised their newly learned plain English editing skills with practical examples and exercises. The feedback from the day was really positive with many wanting more training. Thanks to all the participants. We wish you well sharing your knowledge of plain English with colleagues and friends. If you are interested in plain English training contact Claire O'Riordan on (01) 412 7922 or by email at coriordan@nala.ie.

NALA Plain English Editor Training 2012

NALA seeks to train new Plain English Editors and invites suitably qualified applications
Deadline for applications: 3 April 2012
Training dates: 19 and 20 April and a day in October
NALA is the national leader in plain English editing and training. To meet demand, we are looking for a small number of suitably qualified applicants to participate in our NALA Plain English Editor training programme. The training will be over three days and will require 60 hours out of course assignments.
NALA invites applications for suitably qualified and or experienced people who would like to be NALA Plain English Editors.

Ideal candidates are those who have:

• a qualification in English such as journalism, editing or English language,
• experience of writing a wide range of documents and leaflets for different audiences and purposes,
• strong organisational and time management skills, and
• an understanding of plain English.

All selected trainees will have satisfactorily completed an initial NALA assessment of their competence in written English. Successful completion of our training programme means you can join our NALA Plain English Panel. Currently our editors are self-employed.
Applicants will be selected based on NALA's discretion and will be strongly influenced by the small number of training places available. NALA does not guarantee regular editing jobs to those who successfully complete training. This course is free to those who successfully complete it and become NALA editors.

If you are interested in applying for this programme, call or email Claire O'Riordan, (01) 412 7900 or coriordan@nala.ie

NALA contributes to world's first universal design standard 'Swift 9'

We are delighted to announce that NALA’s Plain English Guidelines are now an integral part of The National Standards Authority of Ireland’s new document ‘SWIFT 9 Universal Design for Energy Suppliers'. This is the world's first universal design document for Energy Suppliers. By following NALA's guidelines in the document, energy suppliers will be writing and speaking with their customers using plain English. Energy Suppliers are already contacting NALA for plain English editing and training. They are particularly interested in getting our plain English Mark for their letters and customer charters as it shows that they are committed to clear, transparent communication with their customers.

Launching the SWIFT 9 document Minister for State Fergus O'Dowd, T.D. said, “SWIFT 9 is the first standard to be developed internationally that embraces good design, guidance and functionality by our energy suppliers, focusing on all end users, ensuring access to information and services. It recognises the customer’s right to be at the centre of services and in time the adoption of Universal Design will lead to a more inclusive and understanding Irish society. Energy suppliers such as Airtricity, Bord Gáis Energy, Electric Ireland, Energia and Flogas are at the forefront of customer service design and provide the foundations on which other customer focused businesses can build.”

The full press release from the SWIFT 9 launch can be found here on the NSAI website

NALA to run open plain English training courses

NALA will be running open plain English training courses over three dates in 2012. These courses are for people from different organisations or for individuals who wish to communicate more clearly. The course will use a mix of presentation, relevant examples, discussion and exercises to introduce participants to the most common barriers to clear information and the basic techniques of plain English. Two of the sessions will deal with clear writing for the web. It also introduces participants to the literacy issue in Ireland. Each course is limited to 16 people, so please book early to secure a place.

Why should I attend the course?
• It will help you get your message across to the one in four adults who have literacy and numeracy difficulties.
• It makes good business sense. Studies have shown that when you use plain English, your reader can better understand your information.
• You will be able to provide more efficient customer service. Clearer information is shown to improve performance, reduce mistakes and lead to fewer complaints and repeated questions.
• Plain Language legislation is being introduced around the world and will soon become standard practice in many institutions and organisations.

Locations and dates
Wednesday 18 April Dublin Plain English Writing for the Web
Wednesday 30 May Dublin Plain English Guidelines
Wednesday 17 October Cork Plain English Writing for the Web

Time 10.00am to 4.30pm

Cost €125 per person (€100 per person for community and voluntary organisations)
For a course outline and other information, please contact Claire O’Riordan at the National Adult Literacy Agency on (01) 412 7922 or at coriordan@nala.ie

Become a group member of NALA and receive a 5% discount on all Plain English Services!

By becoming a group member of NALA you will be contributing to our work to improve adult literacy and you will also benefit from a 5% discount on all Plain English editing and training services. This can lead to substantial savings depending on the size of your organisation and which services you avail of. You can view all the benefits and price structures for members here

NALA wins competitive funding bid for plain English training

Together with 11 partners in the community, voluntary and charitable sector, NALA has won a very competitive funding bid for The Wheel’s Training Links Grant Programme. This funding will be used to provide plain English training to members of the newly formed Plain English Network (PEN).

NALA hopes that this innovative training will enable up to 160 participants to communicate more clearly and effectively by partaking in training that they may not otherwise have been able to afford. The training will enable the participants to gain a greater awareness of literacy issues in Ireland and to recognise and respond effectively to these issues both within their own organisations and in the wider community. NALA would like to thank the members of PEN for their support and assistance with this project.