writing

name

writing

description

Use when drafting or editing prose or copy, including reports, research write-ups, guidance, documentation, READMEs, emails, announcements, summaries, blog posts, marketing copy, product copy, or any text meant to be read. Triggers whenever the user asks to draft, write, rewrite, edit, or polish copy. Applies GOV.UK and GDS house style, favoring plain English, active voice, front-loaded content, sentence case, and no bold or italics for emphasis.

Open the content up so anyone can understand it the first time they read it, without losing substance, nuance, or precision. Open up the writing. Do not dumb it down.

Apply this style to reports, research write-ups, guidance, documentation, READMEs, emails, announcements, summaries, blog posts, marketing copy, product copy, and any prose meant to be read. When writing a report, default to this style. When briefing another agent to write prose, pass this skill so the report follows the same style.

This skill follows the GOV.UK style guide and Government Digital Service content design principles.

Content design principles

• Start from the reader's need. Write what the reader needs to know to do or decide something, not what you want to say.
• Front-load everything. Put the most important point first in the document, each section, each paragraph, and each sentence. Use the inverted pyramid: conclusion first, then detail, then background.
• Keep one idea per sentence and one topic per paragraph. If a sentence has more than one idea, split it.
• Be specific and concrete. Give the number, name, and date. Cut vague abstractions such as "a range of", "going forward", and "in terms of".
• Cut everything that does not add meaning. Shorter is clearer. Remove duplication.

Structure paragraphs with MEAL

When a paragraph makes a point or builds an argument, use the MEAL pattern. Skip it for short instructions, lists, or pure reference.

• Main idea: open with a topic sentence that states the paragraph's single point.
• Evidence: give the facts, data, examples, or quotations that support it.
• Analysis: explain what the evidence shows and why it matters. Do not leave it to speak for itself.
• Link: close by tying the point back to the thesis of the piece, or leading into the next paragraph.

This fits front-loading because the main idea leads and the link carries the reader on.

Plain English

• Open it up, do not dumb it down. Keep the substance, nuance, and precision. Strip out only what makes it hard to read: jargon, long sentences, abstract nouns, and tangled structure. A non-specialist and an expert should both understand it on first read.
• Use the active voice. Say who does what. Write "We reviewed the data", not "The data was reviewed".
• Keep sentences short, about 15 to 20 words, and avoid going over 25. Keep paragraphs short.
• Use everyday words. Replace jargon and formal wording:
  • use, not utilize or leverage
  • help, not facilitate or empower
  • work with, not collaborate, liaise, or engage with
  • make or provide, not deliver
  • about, not in relation to or with regard to
  • so, not in order to
  • start, not commence
  • end, not terminate
  • buy, not purchase
  • enough, not sufficient
  • solve, fix, or deal with, not tackle or combat
  • effect on, not impact on
• Do not use "impact" as a verb.
• Avoid metaphors and cliches such as drive, unlock, deep dive, robust, key, ring-fence, hub, portal, landscape, ecosystem, and going forward.
• Address the reader as "you". Write about yourself or the organization as "we".
• Use "they", "them", and "their" rather than gendered pronouns.
• Write "disabled people", not "the disabled".
• Contractions are fine for a warmer tone, but avoid negative contractions. Write "cannot", not "can't". Avoid "should've", "could've", and "would've".

Formatting

• Do not use bold or italics for emphasis. Plain words and good structure carry the meaning. Bold is only acceptable to name a literal interface element in an instruction, for example: select Save.
• Use single quotation marks for the titles of schemes or documents, not italics.
• Use sentence case everywhere, including headings, titles, and table headers. Capitalize only proper nouns.
• Front-load headings. Keep them under about 65 characters. Make them unique and descriptive. Do not end headings with a period, dash, slash, or question mark.
• Use bullet points only for genuine lists. Introduce the list with a lead-in line that ends in a colon. Start each bullet lowercase. Keep each bullet to one idea. Do not put "and" or "or" after each bullet. Do not use semicolons. Do not use a period after the last bullet unless the bullet is a full sentence.
• Use a numbered list only for a sequence the reader follows in order. Steps are full sentences and end with a period. No lead-in colon is needed.
• Use descriptive link text that says where the link goes. Never write "click here" or "read more". Link text should make sense out of context.
• Do not use Latin abbreviations. Write "for example" not "eg", "that is" not "ie", and "and so on" or "such as" not "etc".
• Write "and", not "&", except in a registered name or logo.
• Write "one" but use numerals from 2 upwards. Use 9, 25, and 50.
• Use the % symbol with numerals, such as 50%.
• Use $ with no decimals unless there are cents, such as $75 or $75.50.
• Spell out millions and billions, such as $5 million, not $5m.
• Write ranges with "to", not a hyphen, such as 10 to 20 or Monday to Friday.
• Write dates as "June 4, 2026". Do not write "4th".
• Use "to" for date ranges, such as "June 4 to June 8".
• Write times as "10am to 11:30am". Use "midday" and "midnight".
• Do not use FAQs when the content can answer the reader's need directly.
• Do not use exclamation marks.
• Do not use ALL CAPS for emphasis.

Avoid the LLM voice

Large language models share writing tics that practiced readers now recognize. They are defaults, not choices, and they make text read as machine-written. Cut them so the real content shows. Rewrite the sentence rather than only deleting a flagged word.

• Do not lean on em dashes, colons, or semicolons. The frequency is the tell, not any single mark. Split the thought into two sentences or use a comma. Keep em dashes out of repo prose unless a direct quotation needs one.
• Drop the "it's not X, it's Y" frame, and its cousin "not just X, but Y". State Y on its own. Write "This is a betrayal of trust.", not "This is not a price rise, it is a betrayal of trust."
• Cut jargon used for its own sake. Models reach for words such as delve, nuanced, multifaceted, comprehensive, pivotal, and leverage. If a word does not carry meaning the reader needs, remove it or swap it for a plain one.
• Do not narrate your own process or refer back to earlier decisions. Cut "as I mentioned", "as we decided earlier", "as established above", and "building on the previous section".
• Do not stack qualifiers. A chain such as "while this may vary, generally speaking, in most cases" reads as evasive. Keep one genuine hedge or none.
• Take a position. If one option is better, say so and say why. False balance reads as evasion.
• Do not over-structure. Models default to headings, numbered lists, and a paragraph per bullet for everything. Use a list only when the content is genuinely a list.
• Delete throat-clearing openers. Cut "it's worth noting that", "it's important to note", and "in today's fast-paced world". Start with the substance.
• Replace hollow transitions such as "moreover", "furthermore", and "additionally". Most can be a period, "and", or "also". If the link between two sentences is unclear without a formal connector, fix the logic.

Before finishing

• Put the single most important thing first.
• Make every sentence understandable to a non-expert on first read.
• Keep each sentence active, short, and focused on one idea.
• Remove bold and italic emphasis, jargon, Latin abbreviations, and marketing language.
• Use sentence case, descriptive headings, and descriptive links.
• Clear LLM tics: dense punctuation, "not X but Y", jargon, self-reference to earlier decisions, stacked qualifiers, false balance, and throat-clearing openers.
• Cut any words you can remove without losing meaning.

Scope

The "no bold" and formatting rules apply to prose you produce: reports, guidance, summaries, documentation, and copy. Code, data tables, and direct quotations keep their own conventions. Markdown headings and lists are structure, not emphasis.