Plain Language Awards

Celebrate the stories of our clearest business communicators

Announcing our 2022 Plain Language Awards finalists!

Congratulations! The following entries are finalists in this year’s Plain Language Awards

A huge round of applause goes to everyone who entered the 2022 Plain Language Awards. And particularly to our finalists!

See our finalists in the list below. You’ll notice that not every category has finalists. We can only say that any announcement would let the cat out of the bag!

For some categories we’ve also published the names of entries that had been shortlisted — we’d love to recognise the hard work that went into those entries too. Well done to everyone who made it to the shortlist and beyond!

We celebrated our finalists and winners at a cyber ceremony on Thursday, 27 October.

View the winners


Plain Language Champion — Best Organisation

  • Finalist: AA Insurance
  • Finalist: National Capital Limited

Plain Language Champion — Best Individual or Team

  • Finalist: Phil Belcher, Medical Assurance Society (MAS)
  • Finalist: Plain Language, Health Literacy and Engagement Team, enliven Victoria
  • Finalist: Communications and Creative Team, thinkstep-anz
  • Shortlist: SPACE team, Telstra

Best Plain Language Document — Public Sector

  • Finalist: Hawke’s Bay Regional Council — The future of our coastline
  • Finalist: Health Quality & Safety Commission — Let’s plan for your next health care visit
  • Finalist: WorkSafe — How We Do Duty Holder Reviews
  • Shortlist: Dunedin Community Builders — Be the Change: Funding and Equity
  • Shortlist: New Zealand Police — National Intelligence Operating Model

Best Plain Language Document — Private Sector

  • Finalist: thinkstep-anz — A Life Cycle Assessment of New Zealand Mussels and Oysters
  • Highly Commended: Forsyth Barr / Summer KiwiSaver Scheme — Introduction to Investing for New Zealanders 

Best Plain Language Website — Public Sector


Best Plain Language Website — Private Sector


Best Plain Language Sentence Transformation

  • Finalist: Medical Assurance Society (MAS) — sentence from Your Professional Life Plan policy document
    ‘You cannot increase your cover or add new benefits while receiving the waiver.’
  • Finalist: Medical Assurance Society (MAS) — sentence from Your Professional Life Plan policy document
    ‘If we accept your claim for a Waiver of Premium benefit, we will waive your premiums for three months at a time.’
  • Finalist: Medical Assurance Society (MAS) — sentence from Your Professional Life Plan policy document
    ‘If the insured person has permanently retired or has not been in any gainful employment during the six months immediately before the start of their 90 days of absence, then the non-occupational criteria will apply.’

Best Plain Language Annual Report

  • Finalist: Mercer (N.Z.) Limited — New Zealand Defence Force KiwiSaver Scheme Annual Report 2022
  • Finalist: Hawke’s Bay Regional Council — 2020–2021 Annual Report Summary
  • Finalist: thinkstep-anz — Growth (thinkstep-anz Integrated Report 2020/2021)
  • Finalist: Xero Limited — Xero Limited Annual Report 2022
  • Shortlist: Ministry for Primary Industries — Ministry for Primary Industries Annual Report 2020/21
  • Shortlist: National Trauma Network — National Trauma Network Annual Report 2020/21

Best Plain Language Legal Document

  • Finalist: AA Insurance — Comprehensive Car Insurance Policy
  • Finalist: Medical Assurance Society (MAS) — Your Income Security policy document
  • Finalist: The Energy Collective — Conditional Offer of Employment
  • Shortlist: Draper Cormack Group — Terms and Conditions
  • Shortlist: Telstra — Telstra Energy Market Retail Contract

Best Plain Language Technical Communicator

  • Finalist: Helen Bradford, Capire
  • Finalist: Communications and Creative Team, thinkstep-anz

Best Plain Language Turnaround

  • Finalist: Manukau Institute of Technology, now part of Te Pūkenga — Professional Practice
  • Finalist: Medical Assurance Society (MAS) — Your Professional Life Plan policy document
  • Finalist: The Energy Collective — Health & Safety Guide

People’s Choice — Best Plain Language Communication

  • Finalist: Aurecon — www.aurecongroup.com
  • Finalist: Inland Revenue — Income Tax Assessment
  • Finalist: Sawmill Brewery — Sawmill Brewery Menu
  • Finalist: Wellington City Council — When to put out your rubbish or recycling

People’s Choice — Worst Brainstrain Communication

  • Finalist: Internal Affairs | Births, Deaths and Marriages — Application to register a name change (webpage and application form)
  • Finalist: Work and Income — COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme: who can get it (webpage)