133 Molesworth Street
PO Box 5013
Wellington 6140
New Zealand
T+64 4 496 2000
4 May 2023
Thomas A
By email: [FYI request #22360 email]
Ref:
H2023023001
Tēnā koe Thomas
Response to your request for official information
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act) to Manatū Hauora
(the Ministry of Health) on 3 April 2023 for:
“I would like to request a copy of the Ministry of Health Brand Guidelines. By Brand
Guidelines, I refer to material that informs the use of the Ministry of Health brand identity.
I would also like to request a copy of the Style Guide.”
I have identified 2 documents within scope of this part of your request. Al documents are
itemised in Appendix 1 and copies of the documents are attached.
I trust this information fulfils your request. Under section 28(3) of the Act, you have the right to
ask the Ombudsman to review any decisions made under this request. The Ombudsman may
be contacted by email at:
[email address] or by calling 0800 802 602.
Please note that this response, with your personal details removed, may be published on the
Manatū Hauora website at:
www.health.govt.nz/about-ministry/information-releases/responses-
official-information-act-requests.
Nāku noa, nā
Sarah Turner
Deputy Director-General
Government and Executive Services | Te Pou Whakatere Kāwanatanga
Appendix 1: List of documents for release
# Date
Document details
Decision on release
1 May 2022
Manatū Hauora – Brand Guidelines Released in full.
2 August 2022
Communication Standards for
Manatū Hauora – A style guide for
written communications
Page 2 of 2
Document 1
Brand
v4
Guidelines
ACT 1982
May 2022
INFORMATION
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
1
Document 1
Contents
Our Ministry Values
Ngā Uaratanga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Manaakitanga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Whakapono . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Kaitiakitanga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Kōkiri ngātahi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Principles of the design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Logos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
ACT 1982
Ministry of Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Ministry of Health logo variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Ministry of Health icons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Te Tuakiri o Te Kāwanatanga o Aotearoa | New Zealand Government Identity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Logo lock-up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Co-branding and partnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
INFORMATION
Colour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Poppins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Unna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Recommended text sizes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Microsoft Office suite alternatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Web pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
The New Zealand Government identity fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Graphic elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Kōwhaiwhai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Ngutu Kura—Ripple (Internal) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Ngutu Kura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
Block and tag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Block - reversed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Tag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
Icons and infographics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Photography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
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Our Ministry Values
Ngā Uaratanga
Our culture is guided by our
Manaakitanga
values and informed by our
rich history, our current context,
We show care, inclusion, respect,
and our experience of how
support, trust and kindness to each
we work together to solve
other.
problems and deliver on Tā
‘He aroha whakatō, he aroha puta mai’
ACT 1982
Tātou Rautaki | Our Strategy.
If kindness is sown, then kindness you
Find out more about our values
shall receive
on the intranet.
Whakapono
We have trust and faith in each
INFORMATION
other to do the right thing.
‘He tangata ki tahi’
A man who speaks once. A person
who says something and sticks to it
Kaitiakitanga
We preserve and maintain an
environment that enables the
Ministry and our people to thrive.
‘Ka mua, ka muri’
The past is clearly visible but the
future is not. The future comes out of
the past. The only constant is change
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Kōkiri ngātahi
We connect and work together
collectively towards a common
purpose.
‘He waka eke noa’
We are all in this together
‘Mā pango, mā whero, ka oti te mahi’
Many hands make light work
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Document 1
Introduction
The Ministry of Health Manatū
Our mission is to have a fair, effective and sustainable
Hauora is kaitiaki (steward)
system that people trust.
of the health and disability
Our values help guide and inform how we deliver on our
system with the vision to
purpose as kaitiaki. They underpin how we work together
achieve pae ora – healthy
within the Ministry and with the health and disability
futures for all New Zealanders.
sector and public service colleagues and communities to
achieve pae ora.
Our brand brings our vision, purpose and values to life in a
way that guides and unites us. It is the distinctive style that
defines our public image and unifies our communications.
ACT 1982
Our brand embodies trust and integrity and personifies our
role as kaitiaki of the health and disability system.
These guidelines will help staff, partners and suppliers
maintain consistency with our brand and its supporting
elements across a variety of applications and channels.
Principles of the design
INFORMATION
We work together, make connections and collaborate.
We’re at the heart of the health and disability system.
We act as kaitiaki – steward of the health and disability
system.
Our collective impact is felt across the sector, like the
ripples from the hoe/waka.
Navigation is a theme that underpins the visual identity.
The whakatauki ‘He waka eke noa’ can be interpreted as a
waka we’re all in, headed in the same direction – we’re all
in this together.
The eddies and ripples created by the hoe (paddle) and
waka are the subtle impacts we create both within the
organisation and more widely across the sector. These
ripples remind us of our collective impact, responsibility
and our role as kaitiaki.
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
These ripples are reflected as subtle design elements in
the visual identity, and are coupled with a contemporary
kōwhaiwhai pattern, the Ngutu Kura design, which embodies
concepts of health, welfare and spiritual wellbeing.
[email address]
Please consider the environment before printing.
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Logos
Ministry of Health
This guide will ensure the correct minimum size, clear space, and the appropriate
version of the logo is used.
The primary logo is to be considered first and only use an alternative if it will not work on the
background or colour space.
Primary logo
ACT 1982
Logo use requires sign off from an appropriate Ministry
manager. Send logo requests and managers sign off to
the Communications Team.
Do not skew, alter or crop our logo in any way.
INFORMATION
Digital Secondary logo
For use in digital space and only when the primary logo
block of blue will have a negative visual impact.
Clear space
Clear space is the area around the logo which should be
kept blank. It is defined as the width of the ‘T’ in ‘Manatū’
from the logo.
The Ministry logo files come with built in clear space.
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40mm
46mm
Minimum size
Recommended size (width) for an A4 page is 40mm; use
30mm for smaller page sizes such as A5 and DL.
25mm / 110px
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Ministry of Health logo variations
If the logo is unable to be produced in the brand colours it can be used in one of
these variations.
No other variations should be made.
One colour – reversed
Black
ACT 1982
INFORMATION
White
Black – reversed
Ministry of Health icons
These icons are to be used where it is not possible to use the full Ministry logo, such as
social media profile pictures, favicons, sharepoint websites.
Icon
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The icons can be reproduced in white, black or the
primary brand colour. Both round and square variants are
available.
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Te Tuakiri o Te Kāwanatanga o Aotearoa |
New Zealand Government Identity
The New Zealand Government Identity is used by the Public Service and some public
sector agencies to identity how funds are being used to provide services, programmes
and infrastructure.
The administration of the New Zealand Government Identity is the responsibility of Te Kawa Mataaho
Public Service Commission.
ACT 1982
The New Zealand Government Identity can be downloaded, along with full brand guidelines,
from the Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission website
www.publicservice.govt.nz/our-work/govt-brand
All external publications must display a New Zealand Government Identity.
INFORMATION
Relative Scale to Ministry Logo
The height of the New Zealand Government Identity should
x
be set to the height of the Ministry logo.
Minimum height is 11mm, recommended minimum is
13mm.
x
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Logo lock-up
The lock-up enables easy and consistent application of the Ministry logo and
New Zealand Government Identity to documents. It should be placed at the top of
the page for covers and at the base for posters. Further information and examples are on
pages 9–10.
The standard height of the lock-up is 30mm. The height is the core measurement that determines the
size and placement of the logos, not the width.
ACT 1982
Lock-up dimensions
2X
3X
3X
X
INFORMATION
2X
2X
The Ministry logo height is half that of the lock-up. It is placed two thirds (2X) its height from the top of
the lock-up and from the right margin. The New Zealand Government Identity is one the height of the
Ministry logo and is vertically centred to the Ministry logo – it is 2X from the left margin.
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Portrait lock-up examples
Report
title
ACT 1982
January 2021
INFORMATION
The lock-up on a publication or document
The lock-up on a flyer or poster should be
cover should be placed at the top of the page.
placed at the bottom of the page.
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Document 1
Landscape lock-up example
Title slide using
ACT 1982
option 1
Sub title
INFORMATION
The lock-up on a PowerPoint slide should be placed on the bottom of the slide
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Co-branding and partnership
The lock-up enables easy and consistent application of secondary logos that are in
partnership or co-branding with the Ministry.
Below are relative dimensions and an example with actual mm measurements based on A4 portrait
lock-up
Co-branded portrait lock-up (relative dimensions)
ACT 1982
4X
5X
3Y
4Y
INFORMATION
Co-branded portrait lock-up (absolute dimensions)
12mm
15mm
7.5
10
mm
mm
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Colour
Warm earth and forest greens are the foundation of the palette, linking to the original
meaning of kaitiakitanga as guardian of the environment as well as signifying
wellbeing, balance, harmony, renewal, growth, strength, hope, trust and knowledge.
Other colours can be used to add contrast and richness to diagrams, graphs, highlighting colour or a
box out device. Fewer colours used in a document will have more impact.
Brand colour
ACT 1982
Accessibility
Not all colours are suitable for text or as a
Pukepoto
background colour with a text overlay. Ensure
Dark Blue
colour choice is suitable for use and complies
PMS
280C
with contrast and accessibility standards.
CMYK 100/90/35/20
Contrast checking tool:
RGB
35/48/93
www.webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker
INFORMATION
HEX
#23305D
Supporting palette
Kākāriki
Kārikiōrangi
Māwhero
Pango
Green
Turquoise
Pink
Black
PMS
569C
PMS
7459C
PMS
709C
PMS
3C
CMYK 80/20/60/20
CMYK 80/30/25/10
CMYK
0/70/40/0
CMYK 60/40/50/90
RGB
31/128/106
RGB
27/131/160
RGB
237/108/119
RGB
24/31/27
HEX
#1F806A
HEX
#1B83A0
HEX
#F36279
HEX
#171F1A
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Karera
Kikorangi
Kōwhai
Hāuratea
Light Green
Blue
Yellow
Light Brown
PMS
2251C
PMS
7472C
PMS
129C
PMS
482C
CMYK
80/0/70/0
CMYK 65/0/30/10
CMYK
5/15/80/0
CMYK 10/20/25/0
RGB
0/168/112
RGB
75/175/176
RGB
247/211/69
RGB
233/209/192
HEX
#00A770
HEX
#4AAEB0
HEX
#F7D346
HEX
#E8D1C0
Not suitable for text.
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Fonts
Poppins
Poppins is a well designed legible font that comes in a variety of weights and styles
and supports many language character sets including te reo Māori.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ĀĒĪŌŪāēīōū 1234567890
https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Poppins
ACT 1982
Unna
Display font, only for large uses such as posters, headings, titles. Not to be used as
body copy. The point size will need to be increased when using this font.
INFORMATION
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ĀĒĪŌŪāēīōū 1234567890
https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Unna
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Recommended text sizes
Heading size, weight and colour may vary depending on the document needs.
Point size and colour must comply with accessibility standards. Make sure there is enough contrast and
the type is not too small (recommended minimum size is 9pt).
Poppins
Heading 0
ACT 1982
54 point / 64 point leading
Heading 1
20 point / 26 point leading
INFORMATION
Heading 2 / Intro
12 point / 16 point leading
Body copy
10 point / 14 point leading
Unna
Heading 0 64 point / 72 point leading
Heading 1
24 point / 28 point leading
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Microsoft Office suite alternatives
These are the default fonts used in Word and other Microsoft office templates.
Segoe UI
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ACT 1982
Arial
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
Georgia
INFORMATION
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
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Web pages
health.govt.nz
Body font is Arial
heading and intro font is Georgia
homepage font is Fira Sans
consult.health.govt.nz
ACT 1982
Uses Delib/CitizenSpace default fonts
There are limited theme options, logo, accent colour and homepage image.
CWP websites
INFORMATION
The Common Web Platform(CWP) sites use the Ministry base theme (i.e. not custom builds) there is a
limited font and colour set, based on the New Zealand Government Identity fonts, brand guidelines and
accesibility requirements.
The New Zealand Government identity fonts
The New Zealand Government identity uses Ideal Sans as its primary typeface. Ideal
Sans is a humanist sans serif favouring handmade letterforms with flared stems,
fluted terminals, and very few symmetries. These attributes make Ideal Sans engaging
at large sizes, perform well at small ones, and give the typeface a sense of warmth,
craftsmanship, and humanity.
For general usage, outside of designed artefacts when Ideal Sans is not available, Source Sans Pro will
be used. This font is available throughout all MS Office products.
Ideal Sans
Sour
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ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
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Graphic elements
Kōwhaiwhai
The Ministry has five kōwhaiwhai, each with their own unique meaning. The meaning
of kōwhaiwhai should be used to add context, depth and value to the overall design
of the document.
Symmetry and reflection are important design elements of kōwhaiwhai. Think about using those ideas
when placing the kōwhaiwhai on a page.
Be consistent with the illustration style of the kōwhaiwhai throughout the document.
ACT 1982
Avoid using the kōwhaiwhai on an angle, alone in a corner, or to ‘fill up space’.
Hononga
Joining, confluence, in particular how organisations are the
joining points for outcomes. The pattern is also a reference
to woven arts such as tukutuku.
INFORMATION
Tipu
Growth, the idea of how kumara tend to grow better in
groups, shelter and microclimate. There is independence,
but also a dependence seen in the linking spirals.
Ngutu Kura
Spiritual and emotional welfare. The passing of knowledge
between generations.
Whangai
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The concept of nurture, the enclosure and protection of the
vulnerable.
Tauawhi
Support, embrace.
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Kōwhaiwhai - examples
ACT 1982
Why do you want to
INFORMATION
know my ethnicity?
Having good information
We ask for this information regularly to make sure
our records are up-to-date.
about the ethnicity of
It’s up to you what you tell us about yourself. For
people using our services
example, you might identify with more than one
ethnicity group, or the group you identify with may
helps us plan health
change over time.
services to meet the
We appreciate you sharing this information and we’re
happy to answer any questions you might have.
needs of everyone in our
We’ll store your information securely in line with the
Privacy Act. You’re welcome to see your information
community.
and make any changes.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
visit health.govt.nz or email [email address]
Poster with kōwhaiwhai background
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MINISTRY OF HEALTH
UPDATE
Email banner
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Ngutu Kura—Ripple (Internal)
The voyage creates vortices and ripples that travel inward and outward. These ripples
remind us of our collective impact and responsibility.
The Ngutu Kura—Ripple is the primary internal identity device.
The default weight for the device and supporting device is 2 pt.
Do not apply a fill to the device or supporting device. It should be used as line art only.
ACT 1982
INFORMATION
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Ngutu Kura
This kōwhaiwhai is based on the Ministry’s ngutu kura which is the basis of the internal
identity ripple kōwhaiwhai. It draws the illustration style from the Ngutu Kura—Ripple
(Internal).
Position and size
ACT 1982
The default position of the
Ngutu Kura is the lower left
corner of the page
The default size of the graphic device
is 136 mm wide x 158 mm high.
The device can be flipped, scaled
INFORMATION
and rotated to fit the space, see
examples on page 21.
Ensure that the device remains
intact and is not skewed when
resizing, flipping or rotating. Be
respectful when using the device.
Take care not to cover people’s
faces, heads or other significant
areas of a photo – the device
should compliment the design, not
overwhelm it.
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Document 1
Ngutu Kura - examples
Brand
Guidelines
Ministry
December 2020
of Health ACT 1982
Manatū
Hauora
INFORMATION
Cover
Developing a strategy for
health and disability data
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and information
The Ministry of Health is working
What we found out
Priorities
with healthAlliance and other
experts to develop a strategy
Sector organisations reported issues with
We have identified the following enduring
to guide the way health and
access and data quality, manual processes
themes for the data strategy:
to capture information, lack of sharing
disability data and information is
between different sectors, and clinicians
acquired, used and managed.
not being able to see clinical data and
information across the continuum of care.
Equity
People
and Data
and
This is part of building a modern data and
Sovereignty
Leadership
digitally-enabled system that is more
Messages from our engagement with
connected and equitable, and which
other groups, experts and consumer
Priority
improves health and wellbeing outcomes
bodies have emphasised the importance
Areas
for all New Zealanders.
of complete and relevant health records
Consumer
Data
Participation
Accessibility
supporting health care in different settings
The first step has involved engaging with the
as well as the value of consumers being
Data
Foundations
sector to understand the data issues people
able to access, manage, and contribute
and organisations are facing to identify
to their own health records to support
what should be included in the strategy. We
improvements to their health and wellbeing.
heard from people working in the health
What next
and disability sector, facilitated in-person
and video discussions with existing data-
We are now preparing a strategy and
focused groups, sought feedback from
accompanying roadmap to share with the
selected consumer forums within district
sector and all interested in better use and
health boards, and sought input from Māori
management of health and disability data
data specialists.
and information.
For more information
Contact Simon Ross at the Ministry of Health, [email address]
Informational poster
Banner
21
Document 1
Block and tag
There are two foundation graphic elements – both can be used as title elements on
cover and the tag can be used as a design throughout a document, or poster.
Block
Tag
ACT 1982
INFORMATION
The block element is used on publication covers
The tag can be used on covers in either margin
for title placement. See page 23 for sizing
and is vertically centred to the title. The tag can
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and placement.
also be used through out a document next to
page or section headings. It can also be used
in other applications, such as flyers, to highlight
the date or other important information.
Colour choice should be reflected throughout the publication.
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Block
Size and position
5X
3X
Size, position and
2Z
measurements of items on a
page are all relative to each
ACT 1982
Z
other and the page.
The cover page is broken down to
Report
5 columns and 5 rows.
Y
The Block is 3 columns wide and
title
1 row (+15mm) high. Text inside the
January 2021
block is vertically centred and sized
to fit.
INFORMATION
The Block sits 15mm below the lock-
5Y
up (half the height of the lock-up)
and extends down the base of the
second row.
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23
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Example
5X
3X
2Z
Z
ACT 1982
Report
Y
title
January 2021
INFORMATION
5Y
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Examples
E.10 AR (2019/20)
Ministry of Health
Annual
Health and
Independence
Report
Report 2019
ACT 1982
for the year ended 30 June 2020
The Director-General of Health’s
Annual Report on the State of Public Health
INFORMATION
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25
Document 1
Block - reversed
Size and position
5
5X
3X
Size, position and
2Z
measurements of items on a
page are all relative to each
ACT 1982
Z
other and the page.
The dimensions and positioning is
Report
the same as the block (see page
Y
23). The colour of the block is set
Title
to white with the left 5mm of the
January 2020
block set to a solid colour (tab).
The colour of title font should match
INFORMATION
the tab, when accessibility allows.
5Y
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Tag
Size and position
5
The tag is 5mm wide, sits on the right
edge of the page, and top edge is
aligned to the top of the second row
Y
(59.4mm on an A4).
ACT 1982
The height of the tag should match
the height of the title text, so two lines
of text will make a taller tag.
Report Title
January 2021
INFORMATION
5Y
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Example
5
Y
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Report title
January 2021
INFORMATION
5Y
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Examples
HP7593 - MAR21
Consumers and whānau at the
centre
“ nHIP is an exciting and
ground-breaking change
• Consumers and whānau must be at the
and will transform the way
centre of nHIP, so it works effectively and
equitably for them.
people interact with health
• Along with the Department of Internal Affairs,
services and use their health
we have worked with over 70 consumers and
information.”
whānau, and health professionals to really
Dr Ashley Bloomfi eld
National health information
understand the challenges.
Director-General of Health
• We learnt that these four key features should
be prioritised in the project:
platform update
March 2021
◊ Delegation and authorising access –
Next steps
the ability to view, update and share
information with permitted whānau and
• A business case seeking investment in nHIP
Better data, better access, better sharing, better health and wellbeing
family
will go to Cabinet in the fi rst half of 2021.
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◊ Customisable content to increase choice
• A business case for investment in the fi rst
A Ministry of Health team is working in partnership with consumers and their whānau,
and control, allowing people to share the
tranche of the programme is also being
and the sector, to deliver the national health information platform (nHIP) programme.
parts of their story they believe are most
developed.
A business case seeking investment in nHIP will go to Cabinet in the fi rst half of 2021.
important
• A Request for Information (RFI) process
◊ Wrap-around services to support
was undertaken in November 2020 for the
the introduction and buy-in of new
tranche one projects. This was part of the
Better access to health
Why change is needed
technology for consumers and health
discovery process only; contracting for
information – anywhere, anytime
practitioners and improve the end-to-end
services and service partners will occur
• Many of our health and disability information
health care experience
following business case approval.
• nHIP enables a virtual electronic health
data sources aren’t joined up, and there is
◊ Establishing meaningful relationships
• Tranche one will focus on quality and
record by drawing together a person’s latest
variation in how data is collected and stored,
within communities that will foster trust in
timely information sharing between service
health data from trusted sources to create a
and in its quality.
the health care system for consumers and
providers, leading to improved decision
view of that data as needed – rather than a
• Data is not always accessible to help a
whānau.
making and releasing time to care.
single electronic health record.
person receive the best health care for their
• Tranche one will include access for providers
• Consumers will have better access to their
needs.
and consumers to health information such as
health information and can control who they
• It is not easy for New Zealanders to access or
demographics, enrolled practice, Community
“ nHIP is not a new system – it
share it with.
control their own health data, or to share it
Service Card entitlements, prescribed and
is a ecosystem of data and
• Providers will have secure, easy access to
with trusted family and whānau.
dispensed medicines, COVID-19 immunisation
patient information, in the right context and
• We need to enable access to quality, up-to-
digital services that comes
status, and summary primary care data
at the right time.
date patient data:
together to enable a whole
(GP only) through multiple consumer and
• There will be investment in new technology
provider channels.
new way for a person’s health
INFORMATION
◊ to empower consumers to have more
and in working with the health sector on
information to be accessible
• As part of tranche one, consumers will have
control over their own health information
enabling the technology services people use
the ability to update information held in the
and updated.”
◊ so clinicians can provide the best possible
to interact with and share information. The
NHI, such as their contact details.
care
nHIP programme will support sector uptake
Shayne Hunter
• Tranche 1 will also deliver technology
and innovation.
◊ for developing new models of care, and
Deputy Director-General Data and Digital
enablers such as digital identity and
for improved planning, decision making
• Improving Māori health outcomes is a
interoperability services.
and research.
priority. nHIP will target equity challenges
and identify ways to address these. The
principles of Māori data governance will be
More information about nHIP will be available on the Ministry of Health’s website.
incorporated.
health.govt.nz/our-work/digital-health
Newsletter
Infections
are getting
harder to
treat
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World Antimicrobial
Social media tile
Awareness Week
18 – 24 November 2020
Poster
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Document 1
Icons and infographics
Our supporting colour palette (page 12) is ideal for statistics, data and
infographics. The colours can be used as an accent, pull out key information or
provide consistency across illustrations..
Consistent style of illustration across a publication, infographic or suite of documents is important to
create a legible and cohesive experience for the reader.
Consistent use of colour is important – if a colour is applied to an icon don’t arbitrarily change it when
ACT 1982
used again in the document (unless there’s a reason and it’s clearly sign-posted).
Icon set example 1 – consistent style
INFORMATION
Icon set example 2 – consistent style
Icon set example 3 – inconsistent style (do not use)
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Document 1
Photography
Our people are at the core of everything we do and our approach to photography
and video should reflect this.
Composition
Wide shots that allow for cropping
for wide landscape, portrait, or
square.
Consider cover elements.
ACT 1982
Consider the brand and
supporting colours.
People and equity
Photos are used to represent the
diversity of people who work across
the sector. Photography should have a
naturalistic approach and reflect the
INFORMATION
type of organisation we want to be–
approachable, inclusive, fun and ‘real’.
Show equity, a variety of people,
ethnicities, ages and walks of life.
General considerations
Avoid generic stock photography.
Take care not to crop out or cover
heads and faces, or distort sections
of culturally sensitive imagery.
Kōwhaiwhai or other patterns
can be overlaid to add context
to the imagery.
Photography budget should
be considered as part of any
bespoke design work.
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Be mindful that subjects of
photography follow best practice
for the situation, eg, sun hats
outside, healthy food (no junk),
helmets on bikes or scooters, etc.
uView
Access to the Ministry’s image
library can be requested by emailing
[email address]
31
Document 2
ACT 1982
Communication
Standards for
Manatū Hauora INFORMATION
A style guide for written
communications
August 2022
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Released 2022
health.govt.nz
Document 2
ACT 1982
INFORMATION
Citation: Manatū Hauora. 2022.
Communication Standards for Manatū Hauora:
A style guide for written communications. Wellington: Ministry of Health.
Published in August 2022 by the Ministry of Health
PO Box 5013, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
HP 8540
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This document is available at health.govt.nz
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
In essence, you are free to: share ie, copy and redistribute the material in any medium or
format; adapt ie, remix, transform and build upon the material. You must give
appropriate credit, provide a link to the licence and indicate if changes were made.
link to page 38 link to page 39 link to page 39 link to page 39 link to page 40 link to page 41 link to page 42 link to page 42 link to page 43 link to page 43 link to page 43 link to page 44 link to page 44 link to page 45 link to page 45 link to page 45 link to page 46 link to page 46 link to page 48 link to page 48 link to page 48 link to page 49 link to page 49 link to page 50 link to page 50 link to page 52 link to page 53 link to page 54 link to page 54 link to page 56 link to page 57 link to page 57 link to page 57
Document 2
Contents
Introduction
1
Our plain language standard
2
Voice and tone
2
Structure
2
Use plain, familiar language
3
Be positive and helpful
4
Keep sentences and paragraphs short
5
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Use the active voice
5
Use the right word
6
Use inclusive language
6
Proofread your work
6
Formatting
7
Te reo Māori
7
INFORMATION
Our style
8
Ampersands
8
Abbreviations and acronyms
8
Brackets
9
Capitals and lower case
9
Collective and plural nouns
11
Commas in a list
11
Dates and time
11
Fonts
12
Hyphens and dashes
12
Italics
13
Links
13
Lists
15
Macrons
16
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Measurements
17
Numbers
17
Quotation marks
19
Percent
20
References
20
Semi-colons
20
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
iii
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Spacing
21
Telephone numbers
21
Titles
21
Our preferred spelling
23
Manatū Hauora
28
Government department names
28
Appendix 1: References
29
References in the text
29
Referencing print sources
32
Referencing online sources
36
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Appendix 2: Accessible communication
42
Inclusive language
42
Accessible formatting
45
Appendix 3: Writing letters
49
Forms of address
49
INFORMATION
Te reo Māori forms of address
50
Format of a Manatū Hauora letter
51
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iv
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Introduction
The
Communication Standards for Manatū Hauora is the primary resource for anyone in
the Ministry writing to the public, ministers and others in the health sector. This style
guide wil help you write clearly for your audience.
Using these communication standards consistently across the Ministry ensures that our
writing is understandable and there are no conflicting or unusual terms that could
distract and confuse our readers. They set us up with a single, unifying tone that
consolidates trust and confidence in the information we provide as an organisation.
ACT 1982
Our communication standards also save time and resources by providing an answer
when questions arise about our preferred style.
The focus of the standards is not generally a matter of ‘correct’ or ‘incorrect’ grammar
or style but rather providing guidance for instances where many possibilities exist.
Over the fol owing pages, you wil find information on:
• our plain language standard
INFORMATION
• our preferred styles for spelling and punctuation
• useful, commonly used terms
• our style for citing and referencing other texts
• our style for inclusive language and accessible formatting
• our preferred style for writing letters.
Whether you are writing content for online or printed copies; a fact sheet, a
consultation document, a letter or a report to the Minister of Health, always refer to
these
Communication Standards to ensure your writing is clear, professional and fits
our Ministry style.
If you don’t find an answer to your question in these
Communication Standards,
contact the Publications team for further advice at
[email address].
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
1
Document 2
Our plain language
standard
We use plain language because it is clear and easy for people to understand.
Voice and tone
ACT 1982
Our writing is:
• clear and easy for people to understand
• friendly and accessible.
When we write, we use:
• plain, familiar language
• short sentences
INFORMATION
• active voice most of the time
• inclusive language.
Structure
‘Big picture’ elements
• The purpose of the document is clear at the start.
• The content supports the purpose of the document.
• The structure of the document is clear and logical to your reader.
• Headings are informative and clearly signpost main messages.
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Language elements
• Paragraphs are mostly short and focus on one topic.
• Sentences are mostly short and straightforward.
• The words are precise and familiar to your reader.
• The tone is friendly and accessible.
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Presentation elements
• The layout helps your reader absorb the messages quickly and easily.
• The document is error free and fol ows the recommended style set out in these
standards.
We also use the fol owing resources for aspects of spelling, grammar and punctuation
that are not covered in these standards:
• Oxford Dictionaries
oed.com (set to New Zealand English)
• Te Aka Māori dictionary
maoridictionary.co.nz.
ACT 1982
Use plain, familiar language
Use precise and simple words
. Let your ideas, not your vocabulary, impress the reader.
Use
Don’t use
About
Regarding, concerning
INFORMATION
Because
On the grounds that
But
However
Buy
Purchase
Do
Accomplish, operationalise
Expect
Envisage
Has
Comprises, consists of
Help
Assist
Imagine
Envision
Meet, work with
Engage with
Now
At the present time
Or, on the other hand
Alternatively
Provided
The provision of
To
In order to
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While
Whilst
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
3
Document 2
Avoid jargon and buzz words. Phrases such as ‘moving forward’, ‘circle back’ and ‘over
the line’ might be commonly used by your team or col eagues but do not belong to
clear, plain writing for a wider audience.
Use
Don’t use
Affected
Impacted
Finished
Done and dusted
In the future
Moving forward
Let’s meet
Let’s touch base
Reason
Key driver
Keep it simple and concise.
Use
Don’t use
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It rained every day for a month.
A period of adverse weather set in.
Thank you for your reply.
We would like to acknowledge receipt of your response and
we thank you for your feedback.
We accept your proposal.
We would like to inform you that your proposal has been
accepted.
We used their services twice.
We utilised their organisational services twice.
INFORMATION
Be positive and helpful
Write for your audience. The words you choose can make a huge difference to the
reader’s experience. Writing should reflect our values.
Use
Don’t use
I need more details to be able to
Unfortunately I’m unable to proceed with your enquiry as I do
answer your questions.
not have sufficient information.
Thank you for your input.
We consider your input to have been valuable.
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Keep sentences and paragraphs
short
• Have one idea per sentence.
• Sentences should have an average length of 15 words.
• A paragraph is a group of closely related sentences. Begin each paragraph with a
topic sentence that ‘signposts’ what wil be covered in that paragraph.
• Keep subheadings between 3 and 8 words long. Avoid using questions in
subheadings.
• Avoid complex sentence structures. For example:
Use
Don’t use
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The red fox jumped over the gate.
The fox, which was red, over the gate jumped.
Use the active voice
Use the active voice as much as possible, as it is stronger and clearer. The t
INFORMATION hing doing
the action should be the subject of the sentence.
Active
Passive
The Ministry of Health implemented a pilot
A pilot programme was implemented by the
programme.
Ministry of Health.
The Minister of Health recommended additional
Additional funding was recommended by
funding.
the Minister of Health.
Exception: Use passive when the thing doing the action is unknown or less important.
Passive
Active
Some errors were made in the calculation.
Peter made errors in the calculation.
The Minister of Health was concerned by the delay.
The delay caused concerns for the Minister
of Health.
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
5
link to page 79
Document 2
Use the right word
affect
(verb) To make a difference to (‘I was affected by the cold’)
effect
(noun) A result (‘The effect was amazing’)
(verb) To bring about a result (‘He wanted to effect a quick result’)
alternate
Happening or occurring in turns. Every other, second option (‘They meet on
alternate Sundays’)
alternative
Available as a choice or possibility, where there are 2 or more options (‘Developing
an alternative approach to treating the disease’)
its
Possessive (belonging to it), no apostrophe. (‘Its own’)
it’s
Short for ‘it is’ or ‘it has’; use the apostrophe only if the words ‘it is’ or ‘it has’ could
be substituted into the sentence (‘It’s windy today’).
less
A decreased and uncountable amount (less rain, less money, less time)
ACT 1982
fewer
A decreased and countable number (fewer people, fewer rooms)
Use inclusive language
Wherever possible, use verbal and pictorial examples that show different gender
identities, different ethnicities, disabled people and people of different ages. Do not
INFORMATION
stereotype anyone.
For more information, s
ee Appendix 2: Accessible communication.
Proofread your work
Check your document for spelling or typing errors, grammatical errors, unnecessary
repetition and omission of words. (Don’t rely on the spellcheck in Word; it wil not
distinguish mistakes like ‘form’ instead of ‘from’, ‘manger’ instead of ‘manager’ or
‘heath’ instead of ‘health’.)
Remember to check:
• punctuation
• dates
• names and titles
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• organisation names and acronyms
• website addresses
• facts (including al number amounts and the facts in footnotes)
• labels on graphs, tables and charts
• page numbers if used in the body text of the document
• headers and footers.
6
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
link to page 79 link to page 79
Document 2
Formatting
Our standard templates have been developed to produce consistent and professional
documents. Be sure to check formatting details in your document:
• capital letters
• hyphenation
• word breaks
• font style and size
• heading styles and positioning
• alignment, margins and spacing.
For more information about formatting documents and making them accessible for
ACT 1982
people, se
e Appendix 2: Accessible communication.
Te reo Māori
We use:
INFORMATION
• plain font for words in te reo – do not use italics
• macrons where required
• the same rules for capitalisation as we would for English.
We don’t use an apostrophe to indicate possession or belonging with places, tribes or
entities, or hyphenate Māori with English words.
Example
Use
Don’t use
The mayor of Kaikōura
Kaikōura’s mayor
Care based around whānau needs
whānau-based care
For more information about using te reo se
e Appendix 2: Accessible communication.
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
7
Document 2
Our style
Ampersands
Avoid using ampersands (&) unless it is part of a title, for example, Capital & Coast
DHB. We don’t use ampersands in our own titles at the Ministry (eg, People and
Capability).
Abbreviations and acronyms
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Avoid abbreviations and acronyms unless they are familiar to your audience (eg, ACC,
Pharmac).
Where the name of an organisation or publication is abbreviated in the text, write the
name in full the first time it is used and show the abbreviation in brackets immediately
after the words.
INFORMATION
Example
The World Health Organization (WHO) was established in 1948 as the directing
and coordinating authority in global public health within the United Nations
system. The WHO Western Pacific Region is home to more than one-quarter of
the world’s population, stretching over more than one-third of the distance
around the globe.
If an acronym is better understood than the full text, use that.
Use abbreviations such as ‘eg’, ‘ie’ and ‘NB’ sparingly and only inside brackets (ie, like
this) or in references, figures and tables. Do not use in text – spell out as ‘for example,’
and ‘that is,’ respectively.
NZ or New Zealand
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Use NZ sparingly, generally only in references, figures and tables. When using NZ, it’s
‘an NZ law’ not ‘a NZ law’. This is because NZ is pronounced with a vowel sound –
‘en zed’.
8
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Species names
The genus (eg,
Escherichia) but not the species (eg,
coli) may be abbreviated after first
appearing in full; thus use
Escherichia coli and subsequently
E. coli. (Note that a full
stop fol ows the abbreviation to comply with international style conventions.) Use
enough letters to avoid confusion (eg,
Strep. for
Streptococcus,
Sal. for
Salmonella,
Sh. for
Shigella).
Brackets
Use round brackets (or parentheses) to enclose remarks that are not part of the main
statement.
ACT 1982
Punctuation sits outside the bracket (like this). If the brackets surround a separate
sentence, put punctuation inside the brackets.
Examples
Hepatitis A (which used to be called infectious hepatitis) is one of 3 kinds of viral
INFORMATION
hepatitis.
For several years the rate increased (from 5% to 18%).
Try to choose foods from the 4 food groups. (For more information, see
page 305.)
Capitals and lower case
Always use lower case unless the word is part of a name or a proper noun. It can be
tempting to capitalise nouns such as general practitioner, but they should be in lower
case if they are not part of a name.
Examples
Jemaine Clement is a general practitioner and member of The Royal New
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Zealand Col ege of General Practitioners.
The reporter criticised the Minister of Health on the basis that ministers should
not mix public and private business.
The Government wil release its budget today. Election day is when the people
decide the next government.
The High Court noted that a court should be cautious about interfering in
political matters.
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
9
Document 2
Lower case
Use lower case for:
• generic titles, for example, ‘As you know, doctors, chief executives and managers
are usually busy people’
• the names of diseases, syndromes, signs, symptoms, for example, listeria,
tuberculosis, shingles
• generic names that are not trademarked, for example, amoxicil in, aspirin.
Upper case
Use capitals:
ACT 1982
• for legislation, specific international treaties, conventions and protocols; for
example, Official Information Act 1982; Health and Disability Services (General)
Standard
• for trademarked brand names; for example: Penbritin, Amoxil, Aspro.
Capitalise the fol owing:
• The Budget
INFORMATION
• Cabinet
• Crown, but Crown entities
• Department of the Prime Minister (as in the Department of the Prime Minister)
• Government, when describing the government of the day, but government when
referring to the government in general terms
• Member of Parliament
• Minister of Health
• Parliament, but parliamentary
• State
• The Treasury
• Vote (as in Vote Health).
For more examples of when to use upper and lower case, see ‘Our preferred spelling
for words’.
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Collective and plural nouns
In most cases col ective nouns are singular. For example, ‘Today the Ministry has
moved’ not ‘today the Ministry have moved’.
An exception to this rule is the media which is plural. For example, ‘the media have
taken a keen interest in this issue’.
Plural nouns
You don’t need to add an extra ‘s’ after noun or names ending in ‘s’. Exceptions are OK
where the alternative reads more naturally.
ACT 1982
Examples
Department of Internal Affairs’ address
The businesses’ share prices have risen.
INFORMATION
Commas in a list
The Oxford, or serial comma, is the comma used before an ‘and’, ‘or’, ‘but’ in a list of
three or more items. Use the Oxford or serial comma only if it makes a list in a
sentence easier to understand.
Example
This includes things like the family home, cars, furniture, and money like
superannuation and wages.
Dates and time
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
The order for dates is: day, month, year. Do not use commas between the elements in a
date or time.
Example
23 February 1975
Use a slash for a range of financial years. Use ‘2020/21’ rather than ‘2020/1’.
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
11
Document 2
Express decades as the 1970s (not the 1970’s or the ‘70s).
For times, do not use a space between the figures and the ‘am’ and ‘pm’ (written
without full stops).
Example
The meeting starts at 3.30pm tomorrow.
Fonts
Segoe UI, Arial and Georgia are the default fonts used in Word and other templates.
ACT 1982
For many documents, our standard font for text and headings is Arial 11 point. This
includes Manatū Hauora correspondence, Cabinet submissions, replies to Official
Information requests, and presentations made to external agencies, departments and
community groups. For briefings to Ministers, our standard font for text and headings
is Segoe UI 11 point.
For Cabinet papers, see the Cabinet policy paper template on the Department o
INFORMATION f the
Prime Minister and Cabinet website at:
dpmc.govt.nz/publications/cabinet-policy-paper-template
Webpages’ fonts are set automatically. Draft your document using default Word styles.
Hyphens and dashes
Only use a hyphen for compound adjectives that come before a noun.
Example
Use
Don’t use
a well-known leader
The leader was well-known.
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
Many compound nouns are commonly accepted and do not need a hyphen. However,
some still need a hyphen, for example, ‘passer-by’.
Example
Use
Don’t use
online
on-line
cooperate
co-operate
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Dashes
Em-dash
Try to avoid using dashes to separate 2 thoughts in a sentence. Instead use a comma,
or write shorter sentences.
You can use an em-dash (—) to:
• separate 2 thoughts in a sentence
• signal a change in tone
• indicate the author of a quote.
ACT 1982
Include a space before and after an em-dash.
Example
The clinics are for anyone delivering digital services — public or private sector.
INFORMATION
Italics
Never use italics for emphasis. This is because we want to make our writing accessible
for everyone and people with visual impairments can find italics difficult to read. Use
italics for the:
• titles of publications, newspapers, journals and newsletters
• names of parties in the citation of law cases; for example’
Donahue vs Stevenson
• scientific names of biological organisms (eg,
Salmonella causes salmonella enteritis).
Links
Links to websites should have meaningful names that describe to people where they
wil go and what they wil find.
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If you include links in a document that might be printed out, include as much
information as possible.
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
13
Document 2
Examples
on the Ministry of Health website
(health.govt.nz) and the Te Whatu Ora
websi
te (tewhatuora.govt.nz)
You can find out more about Te Tiriti o Waitangi Framework on the Manatū
Hauora website at
health.govt.nz/our-work/populations/maori-health/te-
tiriti-o-waitangi.
If you have a list of links, you can use a bulleted list, depending on what works best for
the text. Use short URLs when possible.
Remove:
• ‘http://’ from the start
• ‘www’ if the address wil work without it
ACT 1982
• the forward slash from the end of the address
• any full stop at the end, unless it is inside brackets.
Writing links for web content
If you are writing links for a web page, wherever possible place links below the
INFORMATION
sentence or list they refer to. If the link works best at the end of a sentence, then use
brief lead-in text so that the link makes sense.
Example
How to take a rapid antigen test
If you are linking to a download, include the title of the document, file format and file
size.
Example
Content tracking template (XLS 34KB)
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
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Lists
Bul eted lists
Always format bullet lists consistently.
When introducing bullet points with a phrase or clause:
• the phrase or clause ends with a colon
• each bullet point begins with a lower-case letter
• there is no end-of-line punctuation until the last point
• the second-to-last point does not end with ‘and’ or ‘or’
ACT 1982
• the last point ends with a full stop.
When the bullet list is introduced by a complete sentence, the style is different.
• The introductory sentence does not end with a colon but with a full stop.
• Each bul et point begins with a capital letter.
• If the bul et points are all complete sentences themselves, they each end with a full
stop.
INFORMATION
• If the bul et points are a list of phrases or terms rather than complete sentences,
only the final bul et ends with a full stop to clearly indicate the end of the list.
For lists within a bulleted list:
• indent further
• separate the points with the next level of bul et in Word
• distinguish any further levels by:
– continuing to use the next level of bullet in Word
– indenting further.
Numbered lists
Fol ow the same style as for bul eted lists above. Do not use brackets around your
numbers; use a full stop after the number.
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
1.
For a list inside a numbered list, use an ‘a, b, c’ system, preceded by a colon, and:
a. do not use a capital letter to start the point
b. indent consistently, inside the numeric system. Try to avoid a list that mixes
phrases/clauses with complete sentences and even groups of sentences (as
here). If a new sentence is unavoidable, do not put a full stop at the end of
the sentence, to keep with the style of the list
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
15
Document 2
c. if you need a third level, use smal roman numerals preceded by a colon,
and ensure that you:
i. indent the points one more tab space, so it is very easy to distinguish
between the end of a level and the end of the overall list
ii. do not use initial capitals
d. finish your list with a full stop.
Macrons
A macron is a short dash placed above a vowel in the Māori alphabet (eg, ā, ō, ū) to
indicate a long vowel sound. We need to make sure we use macrons correctly because
ACT 1982
macrons can change the meaning of a word entirely.
Some te reo words with macrons that you might use often include:
• Manatū Hauora
• ngā mihi
• Tairāwhiti
• tāngata whenua
INFORMATION
• Taupō
• tēnā koe
• Waitākere
• Waitematā
• whānau.
Keyboard setup for macrons
Confirm the Māori keyboard is enabled. Look beside the battery icon in the system tray
and select the Māori keyboard. “MI” is the Māori keyboard.
Once the Māori keyboard is enabled, to add a macron, tap the ~ (tilde) key then the
letter. The ~ key is usual y found top left under the Esc (escape) key.
To enter a macronised capital vowel, tap `, then hold do
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL wn shift and tap the vowel, for
example,
`A = Ā.
Note: You don’t need to hold down ` while you tap the vowel, just press ` then tap the
vowel.
16
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Measurements
Always use symbols and write the number in figures.
Example
Walking 10km every day in 30°C helped Sam lose 5kg in weight.
Numbers
Use numerals instead of words for all numbers.
ACT 1982
Example
There were 2 committees and 5 meetings to plan the parade but only 99 of the
town’s original 354 settlers could attend.
Separate thousands with a comma rather than a space. For example, use ‘1,000’,
INFORMATION
‘200,000’, ‘10,000’.
Other rules for numbers
• When a number begins a sentence always spell it out, unless it’s a year.
• If a heading starts with a number, write it as a word, unless it’s a year.
• Use words for zero and one. Avoid using 0 and 1 if numerals could cause confusion
with letters.
• Abbreviate large whole numbers to a single numeral and its denomination (for
example, 5 million not 5,000,000).
• Use numerals for page numbers, street numbers and years (never spell out).
• Use numerals for quantities that involve a unit of measurement (eg, 5kg, 32 MB,
7 metres, 2 inches, 5%).
• Use numerals in tables, figures and graphs (never spell out).
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
• Hyphenate the numbers twenty-one to ninety-nine when they are written in full.
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
17
Document 2
Ordinal numbers
Ordinal numbers tell you the position of something, such as first, second, third. Use
words for ordinal numbers from first to ninth.
Examples
• The second referendum
• The 10th flag
Rates
ACT 1982
Use ‘per’ not a slash to express rates in text and brackets. Use a slash in figures and
tables.
Example
The rate for non-Māori was 56 per 100,000.
INFORMATION
Ranges
There are two common phrases for expressing a range of numbers:
• ‘between … and’
• ‘from … to’.
Write
Don’t write
It costs between 5 and 6 times more It costs between 5–6 times more than last year.
than last year.
It costs between 5 to 6 times more than last year.
It is cheaper from the months of
It is cheaper from the months of September–November.
September to November.
It is cheaper from the months of September and November.
Children between the ages of 5 and
Children between the ages of 5–16 years were more likely to
16 years were more likely to
succeed.
succeed.
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
Use ‘to’, not a dash, for spelt-out numbers; for example:
Five to eight subjects drank only water
not:
Five–eight subjects drank only water.
Where a range involves measurements, percentages or ages, use numerals and an
en dash (–) with no space on either side, not a hyphen (-) to indicate ‘to’.
18
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Examples
14–20kg
2–3%
18–24 years.
When expressing a single age, you can use: 16-year-olds. When expressing an age
range, try to avoid saying: 5- to 16-year-olds. While this is strictly correct, it is
cumbersome and makes it difficult to insert a dash. To avoid the problem, rephrase
wherever possible.
Examples
participants aged 5–16 years
ACT 1982
between the ages of 5 and 16 years
from the ages of 5 to 16 years
Quotation marks
INFORMATION
Use single ‘curly’ quotation marks for small sections of quoted material (less than four
lines). If the text is over 4 lines, indent it and offset it as a block quote. Do not put
quotes into italics.
If the quoted text goes over more than one paragraph, use opening quotation marks
at the beginning of each paragraph and a closing quotation mark at the end of the last
paragraph only.
Use quotation marks to separate article titles and chapter or section headings for
example:
The article ‘Report tackles problem of glue ear’ appeared in this week’s
newsletter.
Place punctuation that is not part of the quoted text outside the quotation marks, for
example:
To exit, press ‘Return’.
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
Direct speech
If the sentence does not start with direct speech, use a comma before the opening
quotation marks and begin the speech with an initial capital, for example:
He said to her, ‘It’s not fair.’
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
19
link to page 66 link to page 66
Document 2
If the speech starts the sentence, end the speech with a comma then closing quotation
marks. The rest of the sentence will fol ow; for example:
‘I am tired of hearing that,’ she told him.
If direct speech is broken up by a phrase indicating who is talking, continue the
sentence with a lower case letter, for example:
‘You say that,’ he said, ‘but I’m sure you don’t mean it.’
Use double quotation marks for a quote within a quote, for example:
‘The customer told us, “That was useful”, which was good to hear.’
Percent
ACT 1982
Use ‘%’ in narrative text. Always use ‘%’ in tables and figures.
References
INFORMATION
Our standard form of referencing is the author–date system of referencing.
Citations in the text should give the author’s surname (or name of organisation)
fol owed by the year. There is no punctuation between the name and year.
(Smith 2010) and (Ministry of Health 2011)
References sit in a list at the end of the document and are formatted as: Author. Year
of publication.
Title. City of publication: Publisher.
Ministry of Health. 2016.
The Health of New Zealanders. Wellington: Ministry of
Health.
For more detailed guidance on formatting and reference style, see
Appendix 1:
References.
Semi-colons
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Avoid semi-colons or comma splices. Instead, write 2 sentences, or separate the clauses
using an em dash with a space on either side.
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Spacing
Leave one space between sentences.
Telephone numbers
Fol ow this format:
• local: (09) 495 0345
• mobile: 021 234 4321
• international:+ 64 9 495 0345
ACT 1982
• numbers with an extension: (09) 495 0345 extn 213.
Titles
When writing a person’s full official title, use capital letters.
INFORMATION
Examples
the Minister of Health
the Director of Mental Health
Abbreviate titles of distinction and qualifications fol owing a name and set them in
small capitals without full stops, for example, Valerie June FRS, FRCNZ, FCANZ.
Use initial capitals for titles that appear before a person’s name. Do not use a full stop
after abbreviated titles such as Dr.
Examples
Professor Michael Baker
Dr Andrew Old
Use titles for knights and dames as Sir (Name) and
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL Dame (Name).
Examples
Dame Karen Poutasi
Sir Brian Roche
Tā Mason Durie
Knights and dames do not use ‘Dr’ before their name (even if they have that status).
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
21
link to page 86
Document 2
Example
Sir John Smith KNZM PHD
For more information about titles for knights and dames , see the Titles and styles of
knights and dames webpage on the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
website a
t: dpmc.govt.nz/our-programmes/new-zealand-royal-honours/honours-
lists-and-recipients/information-honours-recipients/titles-styles-knights-dames
For more information about forms of address s
ee Appendix 3: Writing letters.
ACT 1982
INFORMATION
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Our preferred spelling
This list has commonly used acronyms, terms and preferred spelling we use in our
writing.
ACART
Advisory Committee on Assisted Reproductive Technology
Act
initial capital for a piece of legislation. Note, the first mention of a
named Act must be followed by its date (eg, the Privacy Act 1993)
advisor
and advisory, do not use ‘adviser’
AIDS
capitals, no full stops. Note, this is the abbreviation for acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome, which is caused by the HIV virus
ACT 1982
Anzac
note lower case for Anzac Day, but ANZAC for Australian and New
Zealand Army Corps
Associate Minister
note capitals
Aotearoa New Zealand
note order
caesarean
note lower case
chapter
usually lower case (eg, ‘see chapter 3’), if the chapter is actually
labelled ‘Chapter 3’, use upper case (eg, ‘see Chapter 3’)
INFORMATION
cisgender
those who identify with the sex/gender they were assigned at birth
Community Services Card
note initial caps
COVID-19 or COVID
note full capitals and hyphen. This is the abbreviation for novel
coronavirus
data
in modern non-scientific use, data is treated as a mass noun (like
information) that takes a singular verb. ‘Data was collected over a
number of years’. ‘The data shows an increase of 5%.’ This is widely
accepted in standard English and is the Ministry’s preference.
Deaf
the capitalised D is used to denote a distinct cultural group of people
who are deaf, use the New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) as their
first or preferred language, and who identify with the Deaf
community and Deaf culture
Deputy Director-General
note position of hyphen
Deputy Directors-General
hyphenated (plural ‘s’ on ‘Directors’)
DHB
district health board, capitals when it is part of a title; for example,
‘Waitematā District Health Board is one of 3 Auckland district health
boards’
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Director-General
hyphenated
Directors-General
hyphenated (plural ‘s’ on ‘Directors’)
district health boards
lower case, unless part of a specific DHB’s title
Down syndrome
note: not Down’s
drinking-water
hyphenated
died
not ‘passed away’
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
23
Document 2
eg,
no full stops but with a comma after. Avoid in text (use ‘such as’, ‘for
example’ or ‘for instance’). Use within brackets or in tables and figures
(eg, like this)
elderly
do not use; use older people
ELT
the Ministry’s Executive Leadership Team, comprising the Director-
General and Deputy Directors-General
emergency department
lower case, but abbreviate to ED
et al
no full stops, abbreviation of
et alii or
et aliae (and others)
etc
no full stop, avoid in text (if unavoidable, use ‘and so on’)
factsheet
one word
fetus
plural: fetuses, adjective: fetal
Figure
in the text, use initial capital (eg, see Figure 23)
freephone
one word
ACT 1982
freepost
one word
Funding Agreement
initial capitals only when a specific funding agreement is being
referred to (eg, MidCentral Health Funding Agreement) otherwise
lower case as a generic term
gazettal, gazetted
the act of publishing or notifying of an item in the Gazette. Not ‘the
gazetting’
gender
socially constructed characteristics such as norms, roles, rela
INFORMATION tionships
of and between groups, by which can assign a person to particular
roles or identities as considered widely appropriate by a society or
culture
gender diverse
a person whose gender identity or gender expression differs from a
given society’s normalised gender concepts. Gender diverse refer to
those who are transgender, nonbinary, genderqueer, or have other
identities outside the gender binary framework.
gender identities
Gender identities refer to a sense of one’s own self, regardless of
what may be expected of a person per their sex as assigned at birth.
government department
lower case
Governor-General
hyphenated, initial capitals
gram
not ‘gramme’
graph
lower case (eg, ‘see graph 1’); see separate entries for ‘Figure’ and
‘Table’
Hawke’s Bay
apostrophe (but note that Healthcare Hawkes Bay does not use an
apostrophe)
health care
2 words
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
health targets
lower case
helpdesk
one word
helpline
one word
hep B
accepted abbreviation for hepatitis B
HIV
abbreviation for human immunodeficiency virus, the virus that causes
AIDS
Hodgkin’s disease
always spell with the apostrophe, also non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
24
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
HQSC
Health Quality & Safety Commission (note the ampersand)
ie,
no full stops with comma after (ie, like this). Avoid in text (use that is).
Only use within brackets.
immunisation
spell with an ‘s’, not a ‘z’
industry
singular (the industry is interested)
inpatient
one word
interagency
one word
intersectoral
one word
intranet
lower case
-ise
not ‘-ize’, thus ‘realise’, ‘organise’ (but note: World Health
Organization is an exception)
Iwi-Māori Partnership
note upper case
Boards
ACT 1982
-ize
do not use; see –ise
Kia ora
note ‘ora’ is lower case
Lead Maternity Carer (LMC) initial caps
LGBTQI+
an acronym to refer to anyone who is lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, queer, intersex, aroace, and other identities that would
not be considered cisgender or heterosexual
INFORMATION
manager
lower case, but use a capital when writing the full title of a particular
manager (eg, the Manager, Communications)
Māori
initial capital
media
plural (eg, the media have taken a keen interest in this issue)
medical officer of health
lower case unless referring to a specific office holder; do not
abbreviate to MOH
Medsafe
a business group of Manatū Hauora
NASC
Needs Assessment Service Coordination (NASC) organisation
NB:
no full stops usually followed by a colon. Abbreviation for
nota bene (ie, note well); avoid in text (spell out as ‘Note’ instead).
NEAC
National Ethics Advisory Committee, short for National Advisory
Committee on Health and Disability Support Services Ethics
Ngā Paerewa
Ngā Paerewa Health and Disability Services Standard
NGO
no punctuation; abbreviation for non-governmental organisation
non-binary
An umbrella term for people whose gender identity doesn’t sit
comfortably with ‘man’ or ‘woman’. Non-binary identities are varied
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
and can include people who identify with some aspects of binary
identities, while others reject them entirely.
non-governmental
lower case (note ‘al’)
organisation
non-Māori
hyphenated
NSU
National Screening Unit
nurse practitioner
lower case
OECD
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
25
Document 2
older people
not ‘the elderly’
organise, organisation
spell with an ‘s’ (the World Health Organization is an exception)
outpatient
one word
Pacific peoples
the plural form recognises the diversity of nationalities, ethnic groups
and languages of people deriving from the Pacific Islands. However,
the singular is still appropriate when referring to individuals (3 Pacific
people is not the same as 3 Pacific peoples), and it is preferable to
use ‘Pacific’ as the adjective rather than ‘Pacific peoples’ (eg, ‘Pacific
girls’, not ‘Pacific peoples girls’).
pae ora
healthy futures (note lower case)
page
lower case when referring to a page number (eg, see page 6)
Pākehā
initial capital (an initial capital is the style when referring to any ethnic
group)
Parliament
initial capital
ACT 1982
Parliamentary Counsel
not Council
Pātengi
the document management system for Manatū Hauora
per annum
two words; avoid in text (use per year)
percent
use ‘%’ in narrative text, tables and figures
person
the preferred plural is people (not persons)
Pharmac
Pharmaceutical Management Agency Ltd, note single capital
INFORMATION on initial
letter then lower case
PHO
primary health organisation. Lower case if generic, initial capitals
when it is part of a title. For example, Manawatu Primary Health
Organisation.
Planned Care programme
note upper case
policy maker
2 words
postnatal
one word
postpartum
one word
post-test
hyphenated (but pretest)
preschool
one word
pretest
one word (but post-test)
preventive
do not use preventative
programme
not ‘program’ (unless referring to a computer program)
public health unit
lower case when used generically, but use initial capitals if referring to
a named public health unit
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
radioactive
one word
rest home
2 words
roadshow
one word
schoolchildren
one word
section
lower case, when referring to a particular section in an Act of
Parliament, such as section 4, or to part of a document, and when
referring to a specific section in Manatū Hauora, such as the
Communications section
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
sector
lower case (eg, health and disability sector)
self-harm
hyphenated
sex
sex is biological (male or female); see gender identities
smokefree
one word (but note: the Smoke-free Environments Act 1990)
SOGIESC
sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex
characteristics
STI
capitals, no full stops; only to be used after first written in full with
abbreviation following in brackets: ‘a sexually transmitted infection
(STI)’
stillborn
one word
strategy
lower case, unless referring to a specific named strategy
sunbed
one word
sunscreen
one word
ACT 1982
Table
in the text, use initial capital (eg, see Table 45)
taskforce
one word
taxpayer
one word
TB
capitals, no full stops; abbreviation for tuberculosis
Te Aka Whai Ora
Māori Health Authority
Te Hiringa Mahara
Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission
INFORMATION
Te Puni Kōkiri
use this, not Ministry for Māori Development
Te Whatu Ora
Health New Zealand
timeframe
one word
timeline
one word
under-report
hyphenated (as a compound adjective before a noun)
under-represent
hyphenated (as a compound adjective before a noun)
under way
2 words (originally a nautical term, ‘under weigh’)
universities
The University of Auckland
Auckland University of Technology (AUT University)
The University of Waikato
Massey University
Victoria University of Wellington
University of Canterbury
Lincoln University
University of Otago
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
web
lower case when short for World Wide Web
webpage
one word, lower case
website
one word, lower case
wellbeing
one word
well child care
no hyphens; note: use Well Child when referring to the Well Child
programme
Well Child / Tamariki Ora
initial capitals, Well Child is 2 words
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
27
Document 2
Whaikaha
Ministry of Disabled People
WHO
capitals, no full stops; abbreviation for World Health Organization
Work and Income
not WINZ
workplace
one word
World Health Organization initial capitals (note the ‘z’ spelling)
X-ray
preferred spelling; note initial capital and hyphen
year-end
hyphenated
Manatū Hauora
ACT 1982
Our style is to write the name in full the first time it is used, for example:
Manatū Hauora (the Ministry of Health).
Subsequently we can say Manatū Hauora. We can also say the Ministry of Health or the
Ministry.
Say
Don’t say
Manatū Hauora (the Ministry of Health)
MOH or MoH
INFORMATION
the Ministry (note the capital ‘M’)
the Health Ministry or Health
the Ministry of Health
Min of Health
If the name Manatū Hauora is familiar to the audience, we don’t need to include the
English translation.
Government department names
Say
Don’t say
the Ministry of Education
Education or MoE
the Ministry of Justice
Justice
You can find contact details and information for all government departments and
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
organisations on Te Kāwanatanga o Aotearoa (New Zealand Government) website at
www.govt.nz/organisations
Te Kawa Mataaho (Public Service Commission) maintains a list of all central
government organisations at:
publicservice.govt.nz/our-work/state-sector-organisations
28
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
Document 2
Appendix 1: References
The standard form of referencing at Manatū Hauora is the author–date system.
The author–date system has the fol owing advantages.
• It is easy for someone unfamiliar with the document to check that every reference in
the text is in the reference list.
• If some of the text is deleted, the entire reference system does not have to be
redone.
• The system is not reliant on electronic systems, so references do not have to be
retyped when they are converted into a different electronic format.
ACT 1982
• The reader can see the author of an idea or quote without having to move to the
end of the chapter or the book.
If you believe that your document would be improved by using another system of
referencing, discuss this with the Publications team before going ahead with it.
INFORMATION
References in the text
General
References in the text (also known as ‘text citations’) should show in brackets the
author’s surname (no initials), or the name of the organisation taking authorship,
fol owed by the year of publication. Do not use punctuation to separate author and
date; for example:
(Smith 2016).
Two or more references
Use a semicolon to separate more than one citation and insert a comma between 2
references by the same author. For references from the same author, put citations in
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date order, from earliest to most recent; for example:
(Smith 2016; Ministry of Health 2010, 2011).
If there are 2 authors for a reference, give both names separated by ‘and’ (not ‘&’), for
example:
(Smith and Jones 2014).
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Reference 3 or more authors as the first author’s surname fol owed by ‘et al’, for
example:
(Attenborough et al 1978).
If the same author produced more than one publication in a year, these publications
wil sit in alphabetical order (by publication name) in the reference list, with the years
assigned letters to indicate the alphabetical order (a, b, c, etc), and these letters should
then be added to the author–date citations in the text itself, for example:
(Jones 2015a; Public Health Association 2010d, Ryan2022a, b, d)
Note: The ordering of these year–letter combinations bears no relation to the order in
which the reader encounters the citations in the text.
ACT 1982
Citation format
The only reason for putting surnames first is to alphabetise the names efficiently. In any
context where names are not alphabetised (eg, in footnotes), the initials should
precede the surname.
Place references at the end of a sentence if possible, just before the punctuation mark.
INFORMATION
There is no punctuation before the reference in brackets; for example:
... with poor health and no positive role models (Jackman 2015).
Correspondence between text and reference list
The author and date of all citations in the text must correspond exactly with the list of
references at the end of the document. There should never be citations in the text that
have no corresponding item in the reference list, and there should never be items in
the reference list that are not referred to in the text – these should go in a separate list
headed ‘Bibliography’ or ‘Further reading’, whichever is appropriate.
Editor listed as author
Treat editors the same as authors in text references; for
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(Chalmers 2009)
It is only in the reference list that the word ‘(ed)’ or ‘(eds)’ wil fol ow the name(s).
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An organisation as author
Some group names are lengthy or are composed of several parts and are awkward in
text references. Use abbreviations or shortened forms, but be sure the entry in the
reference list begins with the abbreviation used in the text reference. For example, if
you use ‘(WHO 2003)’ in the text, you must use ‘WHO’ in the reference list, not ‘World
Health Organization’.
Statutes
In the text, give the name of the Act and the year it was passed (eg, the Privacy Act
1993). Do not use any punctuation between the name of the Act and the year. Do not
italicise Acts of Parliament.
ACT 1982
Personal communications
Personal communications, such as letters, memos, minutes of meetings, telephone
conversations, do not usually provide recoverable data so are not included in the
reference list. Cite personal communications in the text only. Give the initials as well as
INFORMATION
the surname of the communicator, and provide as exact a date as possible, for
example:
(WE Brown, personal communication, April 2010)
(Minutes of Corporate Services Group meeting, 23 March 2010)
Newspapers
Do not include print source newspaper articles in the reference list. Cite all print source
newspaper references in the text or (preferably) in footnotes.
Example:
‘Doctor’s advert breaches codes’.
Dominion Post, 15 July 2010, p 6.
New Zealand Gazette Notices
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Cite New Zealand Gazette Notices in the text or in footnotes. There is no need to
include them in the reference list.
‘Criteria for the Assessment of Proposals for Capability in Independent Research
Organisations Funding by the Science Board’. New Zealand Gazette, 14 February
2013, 15: 493.
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Websites
When referring to a website (rather than a particular document), cite it in running text
or in a footnote, for example:
The report is available on the Manatū Hauora websi
te (health.govt.nz).
Emails
Emails are handled in the same way as other personal communications; in other words,
they are cited in the text, rather than the reference list. As a minimum, give the name of
the sender and the date of the message, but the person’s role can also be informative,
for example:
ACT 1982
Since 2014 the number has dropped to 150 per year (BD Black, Department of
Gerontology, Otago University, personal communication, 2 April 2012).
Blogs
Make the blog name the author name in the citation and give an author name in the
INFORMATION
text if known.
Examples
In the text we may have:
It has been argued by A. Wilson (Ulcer-Wars blog, 6 April 2015) ...
In the references we wil have:
Ulcer-Wars blog, comment posted 6 April 2007
, www.ulcer-
wars.com/archives/2006/ulcer.html (accessed 4 June 2015).
Referencing print sources
General format of items
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Place the complete list of references at the end of the publication, under a major
heading: ‘References’. Note: this is not a bibliography (documents used by the author),
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
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nor is it a list of further reading. It is a list of all and only those items cited in
abbreviated form in the text of the document.
For books, the essential referencing elements after the name of the author (or authors)
are the:
• date of publication
• title of the publication
• place of publication
• publisher.
For example:
Ministry of Health. 2011.
Annual Report: For the year ended 30 June 2011.
Wellington: Ministry of Health.
ACT 1982
For journal articles, the essential referencing elements after the name of the author (or
authors) are the:
• article title
• journal name
• volume number
• issue number (if applicable)
INFORMATION
• page numbers.
For example:
Banks I. 2011. Honey or the money?
The Beekeepers’ Business Buzz 17(1): 10–22.
The list should be in alphabetical order by the first author’s surname (unless the
numerical system is used, in which case references wil be listed in the order cited in
the text).
Use italics for the title of the publication or journal. Do not use quotation marks or
underlining. Use only the punctuation shown in the examples given below.
Author
Single and multiple authors
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List the first 3 authors by name, cover all other authors by using ‘et al’. Fol ow each
author’s surname by their initial(s). There are no full stops fol owing the initials or
spaces between initials (but a full stop, fol owed by a space, is used to separate the
final set of initials from the year of publication). There is no comma between the
surname and the initials. Titles (eg, Dr) are not given, for example:
Wilson AE.
Don’t use ‘and’ with 2 or more authors, for example:
Porteous A, Davis E.
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Note that where ‘et al’ is used, there should be a comma after the third author’s initial,
before ‘et al’, for example:
Wilson AE, Smith JC, Jones A, et al.
Organisation as author and publisher
When an organisation is author and publisher, and the name of the organisation is very
long, it may be abbreviated when listed as the author but spelt out in full when listed
as publisher, with the abbreviation fol owing in brackets, for example:
OECD. 2010.
OECD Health Systems. Paris: Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Do not abbreviate ‘Manatū Hauora’ or ‘Ministry of Health’.
ACT 1982
Anonymous author
If, and only if, the work is signed ‘Anonymous’, begin the entry with the word
‘Anonymous’, alphabetised as if Anonymous were a true name. If there is no author,
move the title to the author position and alphabetise the entry by the first significant
word of the title.
INFORMATION
Editor
Treat editors the same as authors but put (ed) or (eds) after the name(s); for example:
Wilson AE, Smith JC (eds).
Date
The year of publication fol ows the author. There are no brackets around the date and
there is a full stop immediately after the date. Normally only the year of publication is
necessary. If the publication has been reprinted, cite the date of the edition being
referenced, for example:
Porteous A, Davis E. 2017.
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Title
Books and other monographs
Give the full title of a publication as it appears on the title page, or on the cover if there
is no title page. Titles are always fol owed by a full stop. Italicise book titles and
subtitles.
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Capitalise major words (nouns and verbs) in the titles of books and monographs, for
example:
An Epidemiological History of Kidney Disease
Separate a subtitle from the title by a colon. Use lower case for subtitle initial letters
except for the first word and proper nouns; for example:
The Silent Killer: An epidemiological history of kidney disease in New Zealand
The same rules apply for titles in other languages, such as titles in te reo Māori.
Use lower case for chapters in books except for the first word and proper nouns. Do
not italicise chapter titles.
ACT 1982
Article in a journal
Give the title of the article (in Roman text) and the ful name of the journal (in italics),
not just an abbreviation, for example:
Vulnerability to childhood problems and family social background.
Journal of
Child Psychiatry
Use lower case for the first letter of words in the title of articles in journals, ex
INFORMATION cept for
the first word in the title and proper nouns.
Do not italicise article titles. Italicise the journal name.
Publication details
Books and other monographs
The place of publication and publisher fol ow the title of the publication. After the
place of publication, insert a colon and a space, then give the publisher, for example:
New Zealand Health System Opportunities. Wellington: Ministry of Health.
Journal article
Fol ow the title by the:
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• volume number of a book or journal (and, in journals paginated separately, the
issue number for each issue)
• sequence number of a bulletin or ‘occasional’ publication
• edition, if not the original.
Examples
Journal of Health and Social Behaviour 38: 131–48
Journal of Child Psychiatry 31(7): 1145–60.
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List the numbers of pages referred to in a journal using as few digits as possible. For
example: 240–9 (not 240–249), but note: 213–19. It is not necessary to give page
numbers in books or monographs.
Referencing online sources
When referring to a document or other information held online, the idea is to provide
as much specific and accurate information as possible. This means providing references
to specific documents rather than just home or menu pages and providing addresses
that work.
ACT 1982
As a minimum, a reference for an internet source should provide:
• a document title
• a date (the date of the publication and/or the date of retrieval)
• an address (a uniform resource locator, or URL
; eg, health.govt.nz).
However, information on the internet is prone to being moved, restructured or deleted,
resulting in broken links and URLs in the reference list that don’t work. In an attempt to
resolve this problem, publishers may assign a digital object identifier (DOI) to jo
INFORMATION urnal
articles and other documents. A DOI is a ‘unique alphanumeric string assigned by a
registration agency to identify content and provide a persistent link to its location on
the internet’.
Handling links to websites
Ensuring you get all a URL or DOI absolutely correct is crucial. The best way to do this
is to copy and paste the link (eg, from the address window of your internet browser to
your document). Use Ctrl-c to cut and Ctrl-v to paste.
General style for internet sources
Manatū Hauora uses a clean style for referencing printed sources, with less punctuation
and more regard paid to New Zealand standards (eg, for giving dates), and it is
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sensible to fol ow this when citing electronic sources. There are a number of variations,
but the recommended general style for the majority of entries you are likely to come
across in reference lists is as fol ows.
Journal
Smith AB, Jones CD. 2007. The best cures for warts.
Homoeopathic Monthly 14(6).
URL
: www.homoeopathy.com/items/papers.html (accessed 3 September
2008).
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Book or other non-periodical document
Smith AB. 2007.
The Complete History of Cures for Warts. URL:
www.warts.com/items/docs.html (accessed 4 September 2008).
Note the fol owing points:
• Many of the elements remain the same as for print sources, including the author
names and date; the form of title for an article, journal and stand-alone document;
and the punctuation before the URL.
• Use the New Zealand style for the date of access: 4 May 2018 not May 4, 2008.
• The access date comes after the link and is in parentheses. This avoids the issue of
whether to add a full stop or some other punctuation at the end of the internet
ACT 1982
address.
• If you access a document online, unless it is specifically noted as being
part of a
larger document (eg, an article in a journal, a chapter of a book), then it functions as
a stand-alone document and takes the style of a book or other non-periodical given
above.
Journals and other periodicals
INFORMATION
Online journal articles used to be primarily duplicates of print articles, with identical
citations but with a URL tacked on the end. This is changing as more information is
only accessible on the internet.
Journal article: URL with print equivalent
Baddcott R, McGovern P, Bernstein E. 2007. The evolution of psychological
technique: the role of psych clinics in UK health care.
British Journal of
Psychological Management 18(1): 93–105. URL
: papers.tvrn.com/soh3/
papers.cfm?abstract_id=965214 (accessed 4 May 2009).
Journal article: URL with no print equivalent
Here the form is the same, but the page numbers are omitted.
Meister ST, Zilcher A, Damson R. 1995. Can we r
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL eally teach test-taking skills?
New
Horizons in Adult Education 13(1). URL:
www.nova.edu/~aed/newhorizons.html (accessed 7 February 2000).
Journal article: DOI with print equivalent
Gilbert J. 2008. Against the commodification of everything.
Cultural Studies 22: 551–66. DOI: 10.1080/09502380802245811 (accessed 25 March 2009).
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
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Journal article: DOI with no print equivalent
Marsh HW, Trautwein U, Lüdtke O, et al. 2007. The big-fish-little-pond effect:
persistent negative effects of selective high schools on self-concept after
graduation.
American Educational Research Journal 44(3). DOI:
0.3102/0002831207306728 (accessed 16 December 2007).
Newspaper article
Chang K. 2008, 6 April. In study, researchers find nanotubes may pose health
risks similar to asbestos.
New York Times. URL:
nytimes.com/2008/05/21/science/21nano.html (accessed 17 January 2014).
Abstract
ACT 1982
Isaac JD, Sansone C, Smith JL. 1999. Other people as a source of interest in an
activity. Journal
of Experimental Social Psychology 35: 239–65. Abstract from
IDEAL database site. URL
: www.europe.idealibrary.com (accessed 7 July 1999).
Books and other non-periodical documents
INFORMATION
Books still tend to be in print form, but there are many non-periodical documents
available on the internet. The citations remain much the same as for print sources. The
main difference is that the publisher and place of publication drop out and are
replaced by the internet address.
Organisation as author
Department of Internal Affairs. 2011.
Community Access to Digital Technologies:
A literature review. URL
: www.dia.govt.nz/diawebsite.nsf/wpg_URL/Resource-
material-Our-Research-and-Reports-Index?OpenDocument (accessed
27 September 2016).
World Health Organization. 2006.
BMI Classification.
URL:
who.int/bmi/index.jsp?introPage=intro_3.html (accessed 29 November
2007).
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Personal author
Pan H, Cole TJ. 2007.
ImsGrowth: A Microsoft Excel add-in to access growth
references based on the LMS method. Version 2.2. URL:
healthforallchildren.co.uk (accessed 5 November 2015).
No author, no date
This situation can be common online. As with print sources (eg, an article in a
newspaper), do not use ‘Anonymous’; the title of the item effectively becomes the
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
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author name. If an item has no discernible date, use ‘nd’ and ensure you include a date
the item was accessed.
SARS May Have Been Caused by Genetic Research. (nd).
URL
: plaguewatch.com/archives/2008/papers.html (accessed 4 January 2009).
Online encyclopaedia
Encyclopaedia items will frequently have no date associated with them, and may have
no author either. The names of the editor(s) may not be available, in which case they
can be left out, but ‘In:’ is used to emphasise the fact that this is not an article in a
journal.
Adamski BK. (nd). Lacrosse. In:
Canadian Encyclopedia Online. URL:
www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1SEC
888940 (accessed 15 September 2006).
ACT 1982
Biomedicine. (nd). In:
Wikipedia: The free encyclopedia. URL:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomedicine (accessed 28 March 2007).
Using a DOI with non-periodicals
This is the same as for journal articles (see above), whereby the URL is replaced by a
INFORMATION
DOI identifier, for example:
Pan H, Cole TJ. 2007.
ImsGrowth: A Microsoft Excel add-in to access growth
references based on the LMS method. Version 2.2. DOI: 0.3102/
0002831207306728 (accessed 5 November 2007).
Education Resources Information Center (ERIC)
document
ERIC provides access to bibliographic records of journal articles and other education-
related materials. Journal records usually include bibliographic data (author, title, date,
journal citation, publisher) and an abstract or short description of the work. A few
journal publishers also make the full text of an article available at no cost, but the
majority of journal articles need to be obtained through library print and electronic
holdings, or directly from the publisher.
Mackey M. 1999. The changing powers of readers in a time of new technology.
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Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the International Association of
School Librarianship (IASL), Birmingham, Al, 1999. (ERIC Document Reproduction
Service No. ED 437067.) URL:
eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/
0000019b/80/16/00/60.pdf (accessed 3 June 2008).
COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
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Cochrane Reviews
There is little consistency in formatting Cochrane Reviews. We recommend the
fol owing style.
McCarney RW, Linde K, Lasserson TJ. 2004. Homeopathy for chronic asthma.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev, Issue 1, Art. No. CD000353. DOI:
10.1002/14651858.CD000353.pub2 (accessed 5 May 2009).
Non-http transfer protocols
FTP site
You may need to cite a file available for downloading via file transfer protocol.
ACT 1982
Marks J. 1997. Preface. In:
Basic Mechanics of Conic Sections.
URL:
ftp://ftp.ntua.gr/pub/netlib/textbook/index.html (accessed 18 August
2000).
wellington2.gif. 1993, 4 April. 535K.
Image of Wellington. URL:
ftp://ftp.ntua.gr/pub/images/views/sorted.by.type/Cities/wellington2.gif
(accessed 13 May 1996).
INFORMATION
Gopher site
The gopher search protocol was popular during the early 1990s, especially at
universities, before the hypertext transfer protocol (http). Although now outdated,
many documents can stil be accessed via gopher.
Bodie J. 1993. Medicine and science: separation or divorce?
Journal of New
Zealand Medical Research 75(2). URL:
gopher://gopher.auck.edu.tw/00/ioe/angbull/75b.txt (accessed
12 May1995).
Databases
Citations for information obtained from a database are much the same as for periodical
and stand-alone documents, except that you provide the database after the document
name instead of a URL. Where there is no formal document name, give a brief, accurate
description of the content. The date of access should be provided.
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Harold RF, Baker TC. 1997. Early childhood learning in remote locations.
Journal
of Early Childhood Psychology 73(9). PsycARTICLES database (accessed
14 October 2000).
Wilkinson B. 2003.
Full data set from the Alberta State Survey of Psychiatric
Institutions. University of Alberta Database (accessed 22 July 2005).
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Citations that don’t match any of the above forms
In these cases, ensure you provide as much of the basic information as possible
(author, date of publication or access, link to website) and try to find the closest
parallel of print or internet style and fol ow that. If all else fails, use a brief accurate
description of the content and how to access it.
ACT 1982
INFORMATION
RELEASED UNDER THE OFFICIAL
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Appendix 2: Accessible
communication
Inclusive language
Inclusive language respectfully acknowledges and values all people as they are and the
words that they use to describe themselves. It also helps to increase the visibility of
diversity and to prevent bias or discrimination from occurring.
ACT 1982
Te reo Māori
As a part of ‘the Crown’, Manatū Hauora (the Ministry of Health) has an important role
to play in supporting the continued revitalisation of te reo Māori, which is protected by
Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
INFORMATION
Te reo Māori is a national taonga (treasure) for all New Zealanders – it is one of our
official languages, is central to Māori culture and identity and forms part of the
heritage of our country.
Māori words
The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary tells us which Māori words are part of New
Zealand English. These include:
Aotearoa
aroha
haka
hāngī
hīkoi
hongi
hui
iwi
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kai
karakia
kaumātua
Kia ora
mahi
mana
Māori
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COMMUNICATION STANDARDS FOR MANATŪ HAUORA
link to page 86
Document 2
marae
pā
Pākehā
pounamu
puku
taonga
Te reo Māori
waka
whānau
whāngai
A simple way of acknowledging and using te reo Māori is in our written
correspondence. For more information about greetings and signing off, see
Appendix 3: Writing letters.
ACT 1982
Disabled people
Here at Manatū Hauora, we use the term ‘disabled person’ as outlined in the New
Zealand Disability Strategy rather than ‘person with a disability’. In some situations and
for some writing it may be appropriate to use other terms, such as ‘people with
INFORMATION
disabilities’ or ‘people with impairments’.
When referring to a specific type of disability it is appropriate to ‘put the person first’,
for example, refer to ‘children with epilepsy’ rather than ‘epileptic children’ or ‘an adult
with a cognitive impairment’ rather than ‘a learning-disabled adult’. When referring to
people with a sensory disability, use the word impairment, for example, ‘adult with a
hearing/visual impairment’, or ‘adult who is deaf/blind’.
When referring to an individual, ask what term they use to refer to themselves –
different disabled people have different backgrounds, communities, and ideas that can
influence which term they prefer.
One in 5 New Zealanders reports some level of long-term disability. Besides being a
matter of good public relations, there are sound policy and legislative reasons to
ensure that your information is available to everyone, including disabled people. It
makes good sense to ensure disabled people can access the information you provide
because:
• They and their families wil be better informed.
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• You wil be showing a commitment to the intentions of the New Zealand Disability
Strategy.
• You wil reach a greater number of people.
• People without disabilities wil also find it easier to access your information.
• When you provide accessible information, you help to create a positive public
image for the Ministry of Health.
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Gender-inclusive language
Gender-inclusive language is more welcoming and promotes gender equality.
About gender identities
Gender identities refer to a sense of one’s own gender, regardless of what may be
expected of a person per their sex as assigned at birth.
Non-binary is an umbrella term for gender identities that are neither male nor female.
About the terms Rainbow and Rainbow communities
ACT 1982
‘Rainbow’ is an umbrella term that covers a diversity of sexual orientations as well as
gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics.
Rainbow-inclusive language embraces the spectrum of sexual orientations, gender
identities and expressions and sex characteristics.
Using gender-inclusive language
INFORMATION
When using gender pronouns and referring to gender identity consider that:
• Your readers are a diverse group of people from across the gender spectrum.
• Labelling people as male or female can reinforce outdated stereotypes and
influence how men and women are perceived.
• Gender-exclusive language — for example ‘man-made’, can alienate people who do
not identify as male.
Tips
Do not reference gender unless absolutely necessary.
• Use gender-neutral pronouns (they, them) by default, especially if you’re writing
about a hypothetical person or do not know a person’s pronouns.
• Respect a person’s pronouns when referring to that person.
• Do not ask people for their title or gender unless absolutely necessary.
• Avoid words that are gender exclusive. For example, s
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– spouse or partner – not husband, wife
– parent – not mother, father
– ‘police officer’ not ‘policeman, policewoman’.
For more information about using inclusive language, please refer to Te Kawa Mataaho
Public Service Commission’s Rainbow inclusive language guide
(publicservice.govt.nz/our-work/diversity-and-inclusion/rainbow-inclusive-
language-guide).
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Age-inclusive language
When you write about age, avoid using stereotypes or words that may discriminate
against people.
Tips
• Refer to age only when necessary.
• If age is relevant to the context, use the correct, respectful language.
• Use numerals to refer to age.
• Use birth years to refer to a generation.
• ‘People 65 and over’ is a group of unique people with different ages that can span
over 30 years.
ACT 1982
• Younger people are not a homogenous group. This age group includes children and
young adults.
Accessible formatting INFORMATION
Document accessibility helps people using assistive technologies, such as screen
readers, as well as people with moderate to low vision, older people and people with
cognitive and motor impairments.
Our standard templates for publications and documents have been developed to be
accessible.
Keep in mind the fol owing points when formatting your document:
• Documents and letters are easier to read if the text is not cramped, the margins are
wide and there is plenty of white space on the page.
• Make sure there is good contrast between print and any background colour, and
never print text over the top of graphics.
• Do not use block capitals in headings, or italics and underlining for word emphasis,
because they are not easily readable for people with visual impairments.
• Use ragged right rather than justified text (as in this document) to ensure that the
words are spaced evenly.
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If you are producing a video, include captions for all dialogue. This not only helps
hearing impaired people but also helps get your message across if the sound is turned
off. All web-based videos must include captions to comply with the New Zealand
Government Web Standards (see:
digital.govt.nz/standards-and-guidance/nz-
government-web-standards).
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Accessibility for Word documents
These best practice techniques wil increase the accessibility of Microsoft Word
documents.
Structured content
The main way to increase a Microsoft Word document’s accessibility is to add
structure. It is the structure that allows assistive technologies like screen reader to read
the document.
Document accessibility is most effective when it is incorporated from the beginning of
the document creation process.
ACT 1982
Styles
Always use styles to format text, such as headings, rather than changing the
appearance of the text yourself.
Well-structured headings make it:
• easier for people with disabilities to navigate your document
INFORMATION
• easier for you to do things like create a table of contents, or link places within your
document.
Titles should be styled ‘Heading 1’, sections under that ‘Heading 2’, sub-sections
‘Heading 3’, and so on. (Try not to skip heading levels, for instance by putting a
Heading 3 straight under a Heading 1.)
Alternative text
All images with informational value (including graphs and diagrams) need alternative
text. This text replaces the image for people who can’t see it (eg, people who use
screen reader software to read documents aloud).
Images that are purely decorative should not have alternative text.
You can insert alternative text in Word by right-clicking on an image and clicking Edit
Alt text.
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Creating links
You can link to places within your document and to external webpages.
When creating links to other places in your document, it’s best to link to a heading.
Link to webpages rather than to other downloads.
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Tables
We only use a table if there’s no clearer way to display the information with text.
Tables are generally used for data, not for layout. We try to limit the number of
columns in a table.
Left align table column headings.
Complex tables (eg, with merged cells) are unlikely to be accessible in Word. Consider
whether or not they can be made simpler.
Remove blank spaces
Create spacing in your documents using styles, rather than by pressing enter several
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times or leaving blank spaces in tables. Otherwise someone using a screen reader wil
have the word ‘blank’ read to them several times, and they may assume the document
is finished.
Document properties
All documents should have at least a title and author (in the Properties wind
INFORMATION ow). The
author should be ‘Ministry of Health’ in most cases – don’t leave your own personal
information in the document.
Check for accessibility
You can check the accessibility of Word documents by going to Review> Check
accessibility. This might not pick up on al problems, but it wil remind you to do things
like insert alternative text.
Alternative formats and translations
Alternative formats (eg, Easy Read, Large Print, New Zealand Sign Language) and
translations may be needed to provide a range of accessible formats. This can add
significant time and cost to activities and needs to be factored in early on in a project’s
development.
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Contac
t [email address] when you are thinking about a new document
that wil involve alternative formats or translations.
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New Zealand Sign Language
Deaf people who use New Zealand Sign Language as their first or preferred language
can find English information difficult to access and understand. This is due to a range
of factors including the fact that New Zealand Sign Language and English are different
languages and the grammatical order and linguistic rules of each language are very
different. New Zealand Sign Language gives Deaf people significantly greater access
and understanding of information.
Making information accessible for Deaf people entails translating the information into
New Zealand Sign Language. When organising a public event, you should:
• plan well in advance if you need New Zealand Sign Language interpreters and book
in one or more interpreters
• advise presenters and other participants that New Zealand Sign Language
interpreters wil be available at the event
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• where possible provide all written material to the interpreters well in advance of the
event so that they can familiarise themselves with the information (particularly if it
has a highly technical or specialised content).
The Office for Disability Issues website
(odi.govt.nz/nzsl/tools-and-resources)
includes advice on how to work with New Zealand Sign Language interpreters.
INFORMATION
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Appendix 3: Writing
letters
Forms of address
Present and former Ministers of the Crown are usual y referred to as ‘Hon’.
Current and former Members of Parliament who have been made members of the
Privy Council are always addressed as ‘Rt Hon’, for example; the Prime Minister, Rt Hon
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Jacinda Ardern; the former Minister of Health, Rt Hon Wyatt Creech.
When you are unsure of the proper form of address, you should email the Government
and Executive Services group at
[email address] for information on
Ministers’ preferences.
When you are not sure of the proper form of address use the person’s initials, for
INFORMATION
example, for A Smith use ‘Dear A Smith’.
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Te reo Māori forms of address
We prefer to use forms of address in te reo. If the writer has used a Māori greeting or
sign-off it is appropriate to respond in the same way. If you start with a Māori greeting,
you should use a Māori sign-off.
Greetings
Dear Sir: Tēnā koe
Dear Ms Smith: Tēnā koe, Ms Smith
Dear Mark: Kia ora, e Mark
Dear Miriama: Kia ora, Miriama
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Note that names that have one or 2 vowels are preceded by the word ‘e’ (eg, Peter,
Mary, Hiko) while longer names don’t use it (eg, Miriama, Jonathan, Katherine).
Tēnā koe is a formal address to a single person and can be used to address different
gender identities. The equivalent when addressing 2 people is tēnā kōrua, and for 3 or
more use tēnā koutou.
INFORMATION
Like Tēnā koe, the greeting Kia ora can be used to address different gender identities.
Kia ora can be used to address any number of people and is less formal than Tēnā koe.
Words in te reo should not be italicised to distinguish them from English or have an s
added to them in the plural.
Signing off
Yours sincerely: Nāku noa, nā
Before 2 signatures write: Nā māua noa, nā
and before 3 or more, write: Nā mātou noa, nā
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Format of a Manatū Hauora letter
(6 spaces from top margin; this can be less if the letter goes over one or 2 lines)
[Date]
(2 spaces)
Sam Smith
4 Tilden Avenue
Mandevil e
WELLINGTON 6011
(3 spaces)
Kia ora, e Sam
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(1 space)
Subject heading if required
(1 space) Thank you for your letter of 30 June 2022 concerning the new style guide developed
by the Publications team at Manatū Hauora.
The standard font for Ministry letters and other correspondence is Arial 12 point. The
Ministry standard for page set up in Microsoft Word is to have the top and
INFORMATION bottom
margins set at 2.5 cm. Left and right margins are set and 2.5 cm and the gutter at 0 cm.
The text is always left justified, so the sentences are ragged right. There is only ever
one space after a full stop.
If the letter goes over the page by one or 2 lines, you can change the spacing to pul it
back to one page. Do not change the font size.
(2 spaces)
Nāku noa, nā
(6 spaces; this can be less if the letter goes over one or 2 lines)
Dr Ashley Bloomfield
Te Tumu Whakarae mō te Hauora
Director-General of Health
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(1 space)
cc
Warren Burrows, Chief Executive, Ministry of Finance and Savings
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Document Outline
