Lots of #MilTwitter chat about plain English today. Here are some resources I find helpful:

1. @GDSTeam have put together this guide for http://GOV.UK  which has some great tips for planning online content. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/content-design/writing-for-gov-uk #PlainEnglish

2. For writing clearly, use an online tool like grammarly or, my favourite, the Hemingway app ( https://hemingwayapp.com/ ) to check your text to see how easy it is to read and understand. Make sure it’s unclass before you copy and paste... security is not a dirty word.

3. Another shout out to @GDSTeam - check out “W” on this A-Z for words and phrases to avoid. Includes “in order to” “streamlining” “liaising” and “deliver”. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/style-guide/a-to-z-of-gov-uk-style

4. It’s not strictly plain English but you should be doing all these things if you’re running a government (including military) social media account to make everything you do accessible. https://gcs.civilservice.gov.uk/guidance/digital-communication/planning-creating-and-publishing-accessible-social-media-campaigns/

And finally - remember that (for various reasons) the average reading age in the UK is 9 years old. Adjust what you are saying accordingly, for both external and internal audiences.