Great news! The Plain English Awards are back for 2021. Photo by Natalia Łyczko on Unsplash

Here’s the news we know lots of you have been waiting for — the Plain English Awards are back for 2021! They’ll look a little different this year, with a virtual ceremony and some new ways to share your inspiring work in clear communication.

Fresh Awards with a new theme

This year’s Awards will have the theme of Story. We’ll be inviting all entrants to share the stories behind their plain language projects in short videos. We’ll showcase your stories on the Awards website so that others can be inspired and enlightened by your work.

As Awards patron Chloe Wright puts it:

We need to be innovative and adapt to the current circumstances. I’m right behind the idea of sharing stories and as a storyteller myself, I will love reading of these experiences.

The Awards aim to bring plain language into common use and raise awareness in the community. So we hope the stories you share will show others the what, why, and how of your projects. You’ll get the opportunity to share what excites you about plain language, and the impact your work has had on the world.

Watch for more guidance soon on our Story theme.

All the familiar categories are back

We’ll have all categories available in 2021, including the two People’s Choice categories for Best Communication and the infamous Brainstrain.

Entries will open soon. Meanwhile put your thinking caps on and start creating the stories behind your potential entries.

Read about the 3-step process for entering the 2021 Awards

Take a note of these key dates

Here are the key dates we’ve planned so far for the 2021 Awards.

• Mid-April: Video story submissions open
• 1 June: Entries open
• 2 August: Entries close
• 16 September: Finalists announced
• 14 October: Winners announced

Let’s keep in touch

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And if you’re interested in sponsoring the 2021 Awards, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact Melissa to find out about sponsor benefits at enquiries@plainlanguageawards.org.nz