A-Z House Style Guide
- partner names #
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Use a singular verb with partner names: Tearfund partner organisation The Bread of Life is working… KHC is… You would then continue with: They are… Staff have… Exception: Servants are… or similar (because the organisation’s name is plural and a singular verb would sound odd). Follow rules for acronyms where relevant eg Pentecostal Assemblies of God (PAG).
Capitalisation: keep upper case partner names that can’t be pronounced as a word: KHC, AEL. If it can be pronounced as a word, use just an initial capital: Asha, Heed and Mopawi. Exceptions: If possible avoid abbreviating the Fellowship for African Relief. If you write the name as ‘Far’, it does look odd. If necessary, write it as FAR. Where the partner organisation has an established and recognised house style for its name, follow that and disregard above Tearfund style guidance.
- passive/active #
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Avoid the passive where at all possible. Experts have discovered… is better than ‘It has been discovered that…’
- past/last #
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Say ‘in the past two years’. Only use last if saying ‘in the last two years of her life…’
- pastor #
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Use church leader unless referring to a specific person who calls him/herself a pastor.
- per cent #
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Two words. The numbers that precede it follow the normal convention, ie numbers one to ten should be written in words, and 11+ written as numerals (unless the numbers include a decimal point, when numerals should always be used), so: seven per cent, 11 per cent, 7.7 per cent, 11.5 per cent.
Exception: you can use ‘%’ if part of a table, pie chart etc or you are quoting large numbers of percentages in succession. Another exception to this rule would be an outbox on a DM or similar, where the Project Manager feels a giving handle or stat is more clearly communicated using numerals and %. (DM main body copy should follow the regular style. If you have queries, please double check with the Project Manager.)
- phone numbers #
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The standard telephone number to be included on Tearfund communications is: 020 3906 3906.
If the product is going to be used overseas as well as in the UK, the number should be as follows: +44 (0)20 3906 3906.
- photo credits #
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Photos should be credited as follows:
[description first, with no full stop; photographer credit underneath]
Children in Chagunda village, Salima, Malawi
Photo: Tom Price/Tearfund
See main brand guidelines for more on this if needed.
- police #
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Use full name and title on first mention, eg Inspector Joan Simpson, then Inspector Simpson thereafter. Only abbreviate title if it is particularly long and/or frequently repeated: Ch Supt, Supt, Ch Insp, Insp, Sgt, PC, Det Ch Supt, Det Supt, DI, DS, DC.
- poor, the #
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Calling groups of people the poor could be seen as stigmatising them, defining people by their poverty not honouring them as individuals with many facets and equal worth. So, don’t refer to the poor unless you’re quoting specific sections of the Bible (NIVUK preferably) that use that phrase. It is much better to say people living in poverty or people in need. It’s also best not to use the word poor at all unless you are referencing a statistic, such as: Burundi is the third poorest country in the world. Or use the term low-income countries/communities.
- population #
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Use a singular verb, eg The population of the United Kingdom is about 60 million. The local population has fled the area. Half the population is aged under 30.
- possessives/names ending in an ‘s’ #
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If a word ends with an ‘s’ sound, add an ‘s’. Jonathan Ross’s lispshow. If it ends with a ‘z’ sound, don’t. St James’ epistle; Achilles’ heel. Exceptions: Jesus’ name; St James’s (the park/area in London). Let spoken English be your guide. Leader’s guide, visitor’s guide (keep singular).
- president/President #
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Use capitals if you’re including the surname or if you’re referring to a specific politician. So: President Bush; the President is due to arrive later this afternoon. Only use lower-case if you’re talking about more than one president or the role of the president. So: She was elected president in 2005.
- province/region/state #
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Avoid saying the equivalent of ‘Teddington town’. Say Sindh Province or the Province of Sindh if it’s known as that, but the province of Sindh (lower case ‘p’) if it’s just known as Sindh and you want to inform the reader that Sindh is a province. Check on Google or with the country representative.
- PS/postscript #
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Capitalised with no full stops. One space before the main copy, and start the sentence with a cap as usual eg PS Don’t forget, places are limited so RSVP today if you can.
- pseudonyms #
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When using pseudonyms, include an asterisk beside the name/each name at first mention (or the second mention if the asterisk severely disrupts the flow/design at first mention). Don’t forget to reference the asterisk at the bottom of the page (web or print) along with the following copy (note lack of space after * and use of full stop):
*Name changed to protect identity.
OR
*Names changed to protect identities.
Remember, you don’t need to change the name of every person in every story, only when there is a particular vulnerability or consideration. For more on this, see: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rJrG–MtUnUwPBVzRoDKRK4zTzIQXtYXaybTDQSqyWE/edit#bookmark=id.dwlytfc7dngh
- publication names #
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In running copy, use italics and capitalise first letters apart from on transition words, eg a copy of Tear Times… readers of The Guardian… The Daily Mail is one of the most popular newspapers.