The 2025 Awards categories. Which one(s) will you enter?!

You’ve got plenty to choose from

All 13 categories are open again for the 2025 Plain Language Awards. So there’s plenty of choice for plain language champions with the good stuff to share! Here’s a quick rundown of the categories.

---

Small but mighty — quick and easy to enter

Nothing is more powerful than a ‘before and after’ to highlight what plain language can do for people. So dazzle the judges with an unwieldy sentence, document, or webpage that you’ve transformed or turned into reading bliss for busy people.

These categories are the quickest and easiest to enter — but ‘oh so powerful’ with their content.

Best Plain Language Sentence Transformation

Best Plain Language Turnaround

---

Show us your docs! Annual reports, legal docs, and anything in between

Everyone reads your documents. You get results. People do the things they need to do easily. That’s because you create fit-for-purpose content that people can easily find and understand. Let everyone see this beauty — to see that it’s possible. Yes, even the legal stuff!

You’ll find categories to suit any document type.

Best Plain Language Document — Public Sector

Best Plain Language Document — Private Sector

Best Plain Language Annual Report

Best Plain Language Legal Document

---

Websites that don’t make people work

Worked wonders on a website that doesn’t make people work to find and understand info? If so, you’re the uncelebrated hero. Let us celebrate you!

Government organisation or private business, big or small — here are two categories to suit.

Best Plain Language Website — Public Sector

Best Plain Language Website — Private Sector

---

Technical communicators represent!

You’re the wrangler of complexity, the maker of clarity, the bringer of ‘aha!’ — the technical communicator. Thank goodness we have you!

Show the judges your best work — how you turn the technical and tricky into clear content.

Best Plain Language Technical Communicator

---

The premier category — for organisations and people championing plain language at work

If you, your team, or your organisation are leading the charge with championing a plain language culture at work, these are the categories for you.

You might be convincing your leadership team to adopt a plain language initiative, running workshops, or creating plain language projects. Or your organisation might be successfully embracing a plain language ethos that meets business and client needs.

Here are your categories.

Plain Language Champion — Best Organisation

Plain Language Champion — Best Individual or Team

---

The good, the bad, and the ugly — nominate a communication that stands out

Give a shout out to a document or website that was easy to read. Or call out one that strained your brain.

Even better, encourage people who may not know plain language is a thing to nominate. We all know when something is frustrating, unintelligible, or confusing! Likewise, when we find information easy to absorb and use.

The People’s Choice category is the only category open all year and has two awards.

Best Plain Language Communication

Worst Brainstrain Communication

---