ELLAELLA for people with learning disabilities
Information is easier to use when it is short, clear and in the right order. ELLA can help a person, or the people who support them, get a document closer to that.
What ELLA can do
- Rewrite text in plain language, with shorter sentences and common words.
- Make large print with clear spacing.
- Turn a long letter or form into a shorter one that keeps the main facts. See convert a letter.
Who should use it
ELLA is usually used by a supporter, such as a family member, a support worker, a teacher or a charity. The account holder needs to be 13 or over. If the person is under 13, an adult can use ELLA to make copies for them.
Say who the reader is
Tell ELLA who will read it and what they must do next. "A person with a learning disability who needs to know when to go to the clinic" gives ELLA more to work with than "simplify this".
Check it with the person
A simplified text must be right and must be understood. Read it with the person, or ask someone who knows them. Check names, dates, times, places and amounts. For anything legal, medical or financial, the terms of service say a qualified person should check it.
Easy Read with pictures
Some organisations produce Easy Read documents with a picture beside each block of text and follow a set of rules. ELLA works on the words, and its results do not claim to meet such rules. If your document needs to, ask the people who set the rules to approve it.
Keep your original
Keep the original document. Give the person both if they might need to show the original to someone, such as a bank or a landlord.
Support
If a result does not work for the person you are helping, contact support and say what happened.
Still stuck?
Browse the help centre, or contact support and say what you were trying to do.