Manaaki Tāngata / Victim Support New Zealand

Finalists Manaaki Tāngata / Victim Support New Zealand proudly show their Award of Distinction and their certificate | Rochelle Corbett, James McCulloch, and Anna Thomson

Document name

Victim Assistance Scheme (VAS) overview poster

Judges’ comments

As you stressed from the beginning with this turnaround, users of this document work in a complex and highly fraught environment with victims who are often suffering from trauma.

Your motivation behind this turnaround was admirable — you wanted something shorter, kinder, with information that is quick and easy for your reader to digest. Under notable time constraints, you bravely managed to get all the elements of the original document onto one page.

A huge improvement on the original. So much easier to follow and more visually appealing. Congratulations.

Media statement

We are thrilled to be a finalist for the Best Plain Language Turnaround 2023 for our Victim Assistance Scheme (VAS) overview poster.

As an organisation that works with victims, we understand the value — and necessity — in making our resources as easy to read and understand as possible.

Our 2023 VAS overview poster was created to provide a snapshot of what is available under the Victim Assistance Scheme so that victims and those administering the grants alike could clearly identify the support that victims are entitled to.

The VAS team are working in a complex and highly fraught environment — often with victims that have been traumatised from the crime they have experienced. Therefore, it was integral that we utilised plain language and an easy-to-navigate design so stakeholders could understand the information at a glance.

As a victim-centric and trauma-informed organisation, we are committed to communicating with all our stakeholders in ways that are easy to understand, respectful of the nature of the mahi we do, and puts the victims at the heart. We are proud to be finalists for this award.

Anna Thomson
Head of Partnerships and Contracts
Manaaki Tāngata / Victim Support New Zealand