Producing your survey in Plain Language or Easy to Read
Last updated
Last updated
Using Plain Language and Easy to Read makes information more accessible for everyone. It presents content in a way that is simple and easy to understand.
To be inclusive, we recommend that you plan for one single survey in Easy to Read or in Plain Language for everyone.
Converting a text in Plain Language or Easy to Read requires the support of trained professionals, who will also test with people with intellectual disabilities that the content is easy to understand.
This section provides further details on how to proceed, resources about Plain Language and Easy to Read and contacts of professional organisations.
Writing in Plain Language or Easy to Read makes information more accessible for everyone as it presents content in a simple and clear way, with a language that is concise and easy to understand. Plain Language and Easy to Read are two recommended ways of ensuring this.
Plain Language is a direct style of writing in a clear and concise way. It is useful to help everyone read and understand information quickly and easily. The goal of Plain Language is to make sure the audience can understand the information the first time they read or hear it. It assumes that people can read at a reasonable level.
Easy to Read is an accessible and alternative form of communication. It uses short sentences together with an image or picture. It uses simple, everyday words, focuses on key information, explains hard words, has clear sections and headings with images to support each point and uses large text size.
Easy to Read is useful for everyone and is inclusive of:
People with intellectual disabilities or people who have a learning difficulty
People who don’t have the time and want to access information quickly
People who are not responding to the survey in their native language
People who have difficulty reading such as people with dyslexia or dyspraxia
People who are reading about a topic for the first time
Children and young people
Older people
Plain Language and Easy to Read both use short sentences. They avoid complicated words, jargon or acronyms that are not spelled out. It is beneficial for all survey respondents, because:
It keeps your survey focused, as you need to choose which information is most important for people to understand, or which questions are most important for your survey.
It reduces risks of errors through unclear questions, by focusing on one idea at a time
It improves clarity and reduces the time people spend to understand survey questions
Easy to Read and Plain Language are not direct translations of one another. They are different versions of information with specific audiences in mind. So content is structured and prioritized accordingly (Center for Inclusive Design).
A survey targeting people with intellectual disabilities should be available in Easy to Read.
A survey targeting a wider audience including people with intellectual disabilities should be available either in Easy to Read, or in Plain Language.
The most inclusive approach is to plan for one Easy to Read survey, as it will be accessible to the widest range of people and provide comparable data across all respondents
Alternately, having your survey in Plain Language is a must. Plain Language should be your baseline style for all information based material, as it is direct and to the point. Do not plan a survey in complex wording and another in Plain Language. Your survey results will not be comparable.
Do not run a survey in Plain Language and another one in Easy to Read. This means that you will use different text content, which will reduce comparability of your data between respondents who chose Easy to Read and others who chose Plain Language. It also means that respondents choosing the Easy to Read mode automatically receive a different set of questions, which is not inclusive.
A possible alternative is to plan for a shorter and longer version of your survey. You can start your survey with the most important questions and ask mid-way if people wish to continue. Those willing to stop would get the submit button. Those agreeing to continue would receive additional questions. This is not discriminatory as anyone can choose the time they dedicate.
An inclusive approach recommends involving the target audience throughout the process of creating a survey. This means testers with intellectual disabilities can check if your content is clear and usable. Clearly communicated information is also more inclusive and useful to your wider audience.
Try to write from the beginning in plain, everyday language yourself. Or brief the main writer of the survey to do so. See for example tips to write in Plain Language in the list of resources below.
Get support from experts in Plain Language and/or Easy to Read to convert or confirm that your language is indeed easy to read and understand. We strongly recommend working with organisations who consult people with intellectual disabilities in the process. For Easy to Read, they will also produce images at the same time.
Review the questions in detail once converted into Plain Language/ Easy to Read to check this does not alter the meaning and way you want to use the data
If the survey is being translated into another language, check the final version with a person with an intellectual disability who speaks that language. Plain language sometimes gets lost in translation.
Do not attempt to illustrate your text yourself if you are not trained in Easy to Read. Contact an organisation who has expertise in producing Easy to Read documents. The best way to choose the right pictures for a survey is to ask people with intellectual disabilities. Below we provide contact information of organisations providing such services.
Using pictures can be helpful for people to understand questions and multiple choice options. The pictures must relate to the specific survey question and help reinforce its meaning. Images of people (either illustrations or photos) are easier to understand than symbols.
If possible, negotiate with the providers of images to get the copyright of images, in case you want to reuse these for future surveys using the exact same questions.
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Many countries have a law that requires public services to make their services and information about their services accessible, including in Easy to Read (for example the ). The European Union has developed standards for making information easy to read and understand. The United Nations more recently adopted a resolution on easy to read communications.
You can also choose to produce an Easy to Read survey and disclose images as an option. is the only tool that allows you to upload images and choose whether to activate the Easy to Read mode or not. The content of the text should remain the same to allow comparability.
When the has consulted self-advocates they have learned that for long surveys, it is helpful to include an introductory video for each section of the survey.
Use definitions in plain language for complex words. allows for additional information such as definitions of words or guidance to appear when a word has focus.
, Centre for Inclusive Design
A list of , produced by Inclusion Europe
, Inclusion Europe
A great example of an Easy to Read resource: the produced by and are guidelines in Easy to Read about how to consult, engage and include people with intellectual disabilities. They include a .
, produced by the Web Editor Hub
, a comprehensive guide to producing easy read documents, produced by , a Learning Disability Rights Charity
produced a list of words and their Plain Language definitions in different European languages:
provide a range of services and resources and can help create bespoke accessible information in Easy Read and video formats for organisations all over the world
is an Organization of People with Disabilities representing people with learning disabilities in New Zealand. Their provides services to produce documents in EasyRead formats. Contact email:
Many of's member organisations produce Easy to Read language in their respective languages. A .
is an information design service that produces easy to understand information, developed by Learning Disability Service. The website includes a, and an which is a large library of free images.
provides a range of accessibility testing services, including Easy Read adaptations
provides Easy to Read and Graphic design services. Contact:
The provides services for Plain Language in English
, Inclusion Europe. See .
Resolution by the United Nations on
