Plain English Campaign

Plain English Campaign is an independent, self-funding pressure group based in the United Kingdom. Since its humble beginnings it has grown to become the biggest plain language group in the world. With over 40 full-time staff it has had incredible success in persuading many organisations in the UK and abroad to communicate with the public in plain language.

It takes up the grievances of people who have been baffled by the bureaucratic language, small print and legalese of official information and promotes the use of plain language by presenting awards, hosting international conferences and funding research projects.

The Campaign is able to fund its activities by offering a variety of commercial services such as editing and training. It also allows its seal of approval, the Crystal Mark, to be printed on those documents which it finds have been made as clear as possible. This mark now appears on over 15000 documents worldwide and is the only internationally recognised mark of its kind.

It now acts as a consultant for many large organisations in the UK as well as for many others abroad. These include IBM in the USA, the United Nations in Switzerland and Italy, Microsoft in Australia, AMP Assurance in New Zealand, Momentum Assurance in South Africa, Hoechst in Germany, and PricewaterhouseCoopers in Russia.

The Campaign was founded by Chrissie Maher, despite her being semi-literate until her mid-teens. Chrissie’s campaign began in 1971 when she founded the UK’s first ‘community newspaper’ ~ ‘The Tuebrook Bugle’. The formation of this newspaper gave her the chance to write articles demanding that organisations start using plain English. In 1974 Chrissie went on to found ‘The Liverpool News’ ~ the UK’s first newspaper for adults with reading difficulties. She was also an original member of the UK’s National Consumer Council before officially founding Plain English Campaign at a demonstration in London in 1979.

In recognition of her efforts Chrissie was awarded an OBE from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1994. In 1995 she was awarded an honorary MA degree from Manchester University and in 1997 she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Open University.

As Tom McArthur, editor of the Oxford Companion to the English Language explained, ‘In all the history of the language, there has never been such a powerful grass-roots movement to influence it as the Plain English Campaign, and Chrissie is the one who got it going.’

Quotes about Plain English Campaign

• 'The Plain English Campaign has played a major role in improving the way public bodies communicate with citizens. However, there is still plenty of room for improvement - not least from politicians - so the campaign's work is far from over.' - Tony Blair MP, former Prime Minister
• 'All politicians are guilty of slipping into jargon - and all of us deserve scrutiny from the Plain English Campaign. Complicated sets of initials, official jargon, bureaucracies that over-complicate things to boost their own self-importance - all of these things help to build barriers between government and people. When important information is being provided by officials or government departments, that is especially serious. So I congratulate the Campaign on all it has achieved to date, and wish it well.' - David Cameron MP, leader of the Conservative Party
• 'I believe that the use of plain English is at times an overlooked yet essential issue for the improvement of communication between companies and the public. The hard work of the Plain English Campaign to draw attention to this significant issue has been paramount in the improving English standards in our society.' - Sir Menzies Campbell MP, leader of the Liberal Democrats
• 'Even the most complicated policies and decisions can be explained in a clear and simple way. People in public life sometimes forget this golden rule, but the Plain English Campaign has been quick to remind us of the importance of straightforward language. Keep up the good work.' - Jack McConnell MSP, Former First Minister of Scotland
• 'As a great believer in straight talking whenever possible - even, occasionally in politics itself - I very much welcome the relaunch of the Plain English Campaign website. The English language is without doubt one of our most cherished national and international resources. It is functional and fulfilling in equal measure. We need to keep it that way in the political discourse of our national life.' - Charles Kennedy MP, former leader of the Liberal Democrats
• 'We need to ensure that official documents - from Social Security forms to White Papers - are useful and comprehensible. The Plain English Campaign has a splendid track record in nudging us all towards making this happen.' - Sir John Major, former Prime Minister
• The Civil Service and public administration generally have made great strides in the use of plain English in recent years. Jargon and 'officialese', while far from extinct, are dying out. I would like to see them banished forever. Plain English must be the aim of all who work in government.' - Baroness Thatcher, former Prime Minister
• 'We're pleased to win the International Plain English Award. We believe all the information we give to customers should be easy to understand, so we work hard to translate financial jargon into simple terms. Our goal is to write from the customer's point of view.' - Kris Neal, Vice President of Marketing Communications at NationsBank Corporation
• 'Bad English is always a sign, as Orwell suggested, of insincerity or sloppy thought. But it can be fought, with the aid of constant ridicule. And this is happening. I think Orwell would have been cheered by the condition of our common culture because of the sheer quantity of this necessary ridicule. From the Plain English Campaign to Pseuds' Corner in Private Eye, from the mockery of Gordon Brown's 'endogenous growth theory' to the attacks on Sir Richard Scott's double negatives, this remains a country passionately committed to plain speech and instinctive in its hostility to overblown English. We fully support the efforts of Plain English Campaign to help organisations around the world communicate clearly with each other and, above all, with the public.' - Colette Flesch, Director-General, European Commission of Brussels
• 'It (Plain English Campaign) is the best thing to have come our way from England since parliamentary democracy and leavened bread' - Professor Sukanta Chaudhuri, Jadavpur University, India
• 'NatWest is committed to using clear language. Using plain English is not just a good intention. It is a business necessity. We are working more closely with Plain English Campaign. We do not see them as a supplier to be dealt with at arm's length. We see the Campaign as a partner, to be involved from the beginning to the end of a project.' - Lord Alexander of Weedon QC, Chairman, NatWest Group
• 'We are proud to be a corporate member of Plain English Campaign. We believe in plain English and use it in all our customer contracts.' - Richard Grimes, Rank Xerox (UK) Limited

Further reading

• Plain English Campaign FAQs
• Office of Investor Education and Assistance U.S. Securities and Exchange, A Plain English Handbook(pdf) August 1998
  

External links

• Plain English Campaign