ACCESSIBILITY
Writing an accessible
consultation document
It is best practice to use your department’s
template or the Cabinet Office template
when writing a consultation document.
You should check with
your departmental consultation co-ordinator whether your department
has a particular house style.
A clearly written and
legible consultation document benefits everyone. In particular,
people who have very little time to read the document, people with
visual impairments, people with a learning disability or literacy
difficulty or those whose first language isn’t English. Moreover
if the text is easy to read, you will hold your readers’ concentration
for longer.
A persistent criticism of government
departments is that they appear too detached. In consultation documents
it is important to adopt a user-friendly and accessible tone of
voice. This refers to the language, vocabulary, structure, syntax
and viewpoint of the writer. For guidance on writing in plain English
go to: www.plainenglish.co.uk
When writing a consultation
document, remember to:
- be concise; people are deterred by long documents
- use short sentences with the minimum punctuation necessary
- write in language which will be understood by the intended
audience, avoiding overly technical language for a general audience
- avoid jargon
- only abbreviate words in tables; otherwise spell out in full.
However note that some organisations are only known by an abbreviation,
for example IBM, BT
- avoid acronyms, where they are unavoidable, include a glossary
of terms
- number paragraphs so that the respondent can refer to specific
paragraphs in their reply
- avoid brackets for qualifying text within sentences; use a
new sentence instead
- provide a brief outline of the background to the policy in
the consultation and give web references where more detail can
be found
It is important to avoid
language that confirms stereotypes. Many organisations provide guidance
on acceptable terminology to use to describe people:
Legible print increases access to
documents for people with a visual impairment. It includes type
face size, the arrangement of text on the page, minimal underling
and colour contrast. However this will not make your document accessible
to all people with visual impairments. For guidance on writing for
people with a visual impairment refer to the See it Right pack at:
www.rnib.org.uk
The document should be
available in different formats on request.
When you put your consultation
document on the web ensure that you make it available in different
document formats. Remember that respondents may not have the latest
equipment. Consider your use of large colourful diagrams which may
take a long time to download or may not be clear if printed in black
and white. Consider putting the executive summary separately for
espondents to download first, to decide whether they need to download
the larger document.
The main alternative formats
for documents are: Braille, floppy disks, audio tapes and large
print. The internet is increasingly useful as a format for deaf
people and blind and partially sighted people. Of particular relevance
are text to speech readers, screen magnification and flexibility
to print. Other formats that could be considered include signed
and subtitled videos, radio, and advertisements.
If a leaflet summarising
the consultation document is being published, it should be available
from the outset in a range of formats – one format is unlikely
to suit everyone.
The Disability Discrimination
Act 1995 requires government departments, as service providers,
to take reasonable steps to ensure that all printed material and
marketing material are accessible for disabled people.
Pilot written
consultation documents
Before publishing a consultation
document it is worth finding out:
- if the draft is clearly written
- if the key proposals are transparent and can be found quickly
- whether the questions are clear and come across as intended
- if the document complies fully with the code of practice on
consultation
Test a draft consultation
document:
- with colleagues who are not familiar with the policy area
- with potential responders to the document. A draft could be
shown to members of an advisory panel or people who attended an
earlier discussion forum
- with equality groups for advice of the use of language, the
presentation of the document, whether further questions on diversity
could be included and if the proposed means for responding are
appropriate
- with your departmental consultation co-ordinator
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Introduction
Template