Introducing our free guide to writing Easy Read Welsh
By Julie Jones
If you want to write Easy Read documents in Welsh, we can help. We’ve created a simple guide to get you started.
You can read and download our updated guide here: Guide to writing and translating Easy Read Welsh
About our free guide
We have been creating Easy Read Welsh for almost 20 years and over the last 2 years, have done a lot of work to improve it as much as possible.
We have worked alongside Welsh translators, people with a learning disability and expert partners, to review, test and update our guidelines. These were first produced in partnership with Mencap Cymru in 2012.
This work has helped us make sure it reflects current best practice and supports organisations across Wales to create better, more accessible information.
We want to make sure that people with a learning disability can read important information in Welsh if they choose to. Things like health, financial, voting and housing information that make a real difference to their everyday lives.
We hope that you will find our guidance useful and we would love to hear from you about what you think of it.
There is plenty of guidance available for writing Easy Read in English. While many of the core principles apply across languages, Welsh has its own important differences that need careful thought and expertise.
Our guide will help you navigate and deal with some of these important differences, when you are preparing Easy Read Welsh information.
In this blog we will look at:
- Why Easy Read Welsh is important
- How we developed the updated guide
- How the guide can help you.
Why Easy Read Welsh is important
Easy Read is a format of accessible information, designed for and with people with a learning disability.
You can read our What is Easy Read? page to learn more.
We create Easy Read and other types of accessible information to make sure everyone can access the information they need.
Accessible information doesn’t just help people get equal access to services and make informed decisions. It protects rights, independence and dignity.
Imagine needing to ask someone else to explain your medical appointment letter, housing information, or financial documents because they were not written in a way you could understand.
The main aim of accessible information is to reduce barriers to understanding. This is why considering someone’s first or preferred language is so important.
A person’s preferred language is often what is most familiar to them, making reading and understanding much easier.
Even people who are confident in a second language may return to their first language to understand complex information.
Wales is a bilingual nation with two official languages – Welsh and English. If people want to live their lives through the medium of Welsh, that is their right according to the law. This means accessible information should also be accessible in Welsh.
How we developed the guide
We wanted the guide to be practical, accurate, and based on real experience. To do this:
- We used our 2012 guide as a basis.
- We worked with our experienced Easy Read Welsh translators.
- We got expert input from the Welsh Language Commissioner’s office.
- We talked to Welsh speaking people with a learning disability.
- We included up to date Easy Read standards and guidelines.
It was important to us that this was not just a technical update. It was shaped by lived experience and expert knowledge working together.
How the guide can help you
We looked in detail at the differences in English and Welsh in areas like:
- punctuation
- numbers
- mutations
- syntax
The guide considers the unique nature of the Welsh language, and will help you deal with challenges like:
- Differences in regional dialects across Wales.
- Words that are difficult in Welsh, but simple in English.
- Words that are easy in English, but more complex in Welsh.
- Language choices that affect clarity and understanding.
Now, over to you!
If you have used our guidelines and found them helpful, we would love to hear from you.
Whether they had everything you needed or if something was missing, please let us know.
Your feedback can help us to continue making Easy Read in English and Welsh better for people with a learning disability across Wales.
You can email us at [email protected]
A big thank you – Diolch yn fawr iawn!
As we mentioned, we are extremely grateful to everyone who took part and shared their views, experience, and expert knowledge.
We would like to thank Eluned Jones for writing this guide, and Manon Davies and Eleri James at the Welsh Language Commissioner’s office for their support and input.
‘We were very pleased to be invited to contribute to this important work. It was beneficial to pause and think about which elements of the language may make texts unnecessarily complicated for people who use Easy Read. We have learnt so much through the process and look forward to continuing to learn as users give valuable feedback on Welsh Easy Read Documents.’ Manon Davies and Eleri James, Welsh Language Commissioner’s office
“Ensuring that everyone has access to the information they need in Welsh is at the heart of everything I do as Commissioner. I’m a firm believer that all documents drafted in Welsh should strive to use plain and accessible language, regardless of what the subject matter is and who the target audience may be. When creating publications for people with learning disabilities, using clear, concise and correct Welsh is, of course, even more important. I am delighted that my office has been able to contribute to creating these vital guidelines that will support writers and translators to produce easy read documents in Welsh. Efa Gruffudd Jones, Welsh Language Commissioner
If your organisation produces documents in Welsh, this guide will help you create information that is clearer, more inclusive, and more accessible for everyone.
Writing accessible Welsh should be part of good communication. We hope this guide gives you the confidence to do this well.
Read and download the guide:
English 
Welsh