Grandma Government

Dear Here to Help,

I have written to government about a bad decision they made, but nobody has come back to me with anything that makes sense. Help!

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Thanks for your query.

Here are some tips to help you better communicate with government.

(1)???????????? Always state what you want, clearly, in the first few lines. Imagine you are explaining it to your grandma.

(2)???????????? Keep your “ask” to less than 3 things.

(3)???????????? Always repeat what you want at the end of your letter.

(4)???????????? Always keep your correspondence succinct.

(5)???????????? Always use Plain English.

(6)???????????? Always explain the problem.

(7)???????????? Give 1-2 examples where possible.

(8)???????????? Don’t hesitate to follow up, but not so often they get sick of you. Yes, this is a fine balance.

(9)???????????? Learn their language. This will help you better tailor your communication to them AND better understand what they say to you.

(10)???????? Remember, nothing is certain with government until it becomes enacted legislation.

(11)???????? In the meantime, government departments will rarely commit to anything. Bear this in mind when trying to interpret their communication to you.

(12)???????? If a government department points you to a website or mechanism, research it and try it. This is the case whether or not you think it applies to your situation.

(13)???????? On the other hand, electoral “promises” are not certain, until they become enacted legislation.

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Basically, imagine your conversation is with your grandma.

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Good luck!

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This article comes from my column entitled "Here to Help" in Hunter Local, August 2024. If you have an everyday problem just begging for a simple, real world solution, send it to "Here to Help" and let's see what we can achieve.

Elaine Abery has a closet full of great ideas and empowering solutions. She’s also the Director of Unravelling Red Tape, a company dedicated to helping everyday people, not-for-profits and companies change the world through improved decision-making and legislation.

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