Resources for organisations

This is the project report of NALA’s latest health literacy work.  It involved conducting a literacy audit in four Irish health settings and two focus groups in 2010. The quotes from these focus groups are very interesting and put a human face to this area.  A number of recommendations are made and NALA hopes to publicise this report in 2011 to make health setting aware of literacy and how they can address this issue in a practical way.   This project was funded by a grant from MSD.

The evaluation of the Return to Learning Initiative was conducted with reference to criteria of relevance, linkage, benefit and quality. The researcher combined a number of methods in her approach to the evaluation. These included desk research in relation to project and organisational documentation; participation in national meetings of LANPAG-NALA-VEC personnel who were involved in implementing the Initiative and visits to each of the five local settings in which Return to Learning was being piloted.

This report concerns the Return to Education initiative which has been designed to meet the basic education needs of Community Employment (CE) participants. There have been three parties to the initiative, FÁS, VECs in each local area and NALA which instigated the first Return to Education programmes in 1998 and which has been fulfilling a support role since then. NALA now plans to adopt a reduced support role in relation to the initiative. The purpose of this report is to provide a resource and a guide to individuals and organisations who will be involved in implementing Return to Education programmes in the future.

 Plain English

Plain English is a style of presenting information that helps someone understand what they read or hear first time. By applying plain English guidelines, you will use appropriate language, detail and design to help readers quickly find the information they need. This is important for public information of course, but it is just as important for internal documents, particularly those that must be understood by all members of an organisation.

NALA's plain English support includes advice and training as well as professional editing. We also offer accreditation for clear documents.

Our plain English service offers advice, resources and editing and training. We also offer accreditation for clear documents through the Plain English Mark.

A range of organisations have used the service, including: 

• the Communications Regulator (ComReg),
• EBS Building Society,
• Dublin City Council,
• Health Service Executive,
• Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions,
• Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE), and
• Road Safety Authority.

We also produce resources for organisations such as plain English guides to legal, financial, citizenship, political and environmental terms and "Simply put", an interactive CD-ROM that features plain English tips, exercises, glossaries and sample documents.

Safe and Well is a basic education pack dealing with health and safety issues.

The pack was produced by FÁS and the National Adult Literacy Agency, with the support of the Health and Safety Authority.

It was funded through a Workplace Basic Education Fund (WBEF) set up by the Irish Government under the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

We are interested to get your feedback on the Safe and Well pack. There is an evaluation form at the end of this book. Please fill and send back to: NALA, 76 Lower Gardiner Street, Dublin 1.

This book is out of print and out of stock. However, it can be viewed online or you can download a copy.

This is a workbook of exercises that goes with the Safe and Well CD. It was designed for students on FÁS Skills for Work courses where they can improve their reading and writing skills through a workplace theme. The workbook covers 5 sections: 1. Safety symbols and signs; 2. Managing information at work; 3. Health and hygiene; 4. Working safely and 5. Filling in an accident report form.

This is a workbook of exercises that goes with the Safe and Well CD. It was designed for students on FÁS Skills for Work courses where they can improve their reading and writing skills through a workplace theme. The workbook covers 5 sections: 1. Safety symbols and signs; 2. Managing information at work; 3. Health and hygiene; 4. Working safely and 5. Filling in an accident report form.

This is a workbook of exercises that goes with the Safe and Well CD. It was designed for students on FÁS Skills for Work courses where they can improve their reading and writing skills through a workplace theme. The workbook covers 5 sections: 1. Safety symbols and signs; 2. Managing information at work; 3. Health and hygiene; 4. Working safely and 5. Filling in an accident report form.

This is a workbook of exercises that goes with the Safe and Well CD. It was designed for students on FÁS Skills for Work courses where they can improve their reading and writing skills through a workplace theme. The workbook covers 5 sections: 1. Safety symbols and signs; 2. Managing information at work; 3. Health and hygiene; 4. Working safely and 5. Filling in an accident report form.

This is a workbook of exercises that goes with the Safe and Well CD. It was designed for students on FÁS Skills for Work courses where they can improve their reading and writing skills through a workplace theme. The workbook covers 5 sections: 1. Safety symbols and signs; 2. Managing information at work; 3. Health and hygiene; 4. Working safely and 5. Filling in an accident report form.