{"id":12953,"date":"2026-05-11T15:23:25","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T15:32:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.apeldoorn.nl\/bestuur-organisatie\/commissies-en-adviesorganen\/adviesraad-sociaal-domein\/signaleringsbrief-over-taalgebruik-in-brieven-van-de-gemeente\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T13:15:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T11:15:35","slug":"signaleringsbrief-over-taalgebruik-in-brieven-van-de-gemeente","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.apeldoorn.nl\/en\/commissies-en-adviesorganen\/adviesraad-sociaal-domein\/signaleringsbrief-over-taalgebruik-in-brieven-van-de-gemeente","title":{"rendered":"Information letter on language use in letters from the local authority"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-acfblock=\"Tekst\" class=\"section a section--green-lighter e-tekst\">\r\n\t<div class=\"container\">\r\n\t\t<div class=\"row justify-content-center elementOnTop\">\r\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col article-content__content-custom-1220 editor elementOnTop\">\r\n<p>Administrative Secretariat PO Box 9033<\/p>\n<p>7300 ES Apeldoorn<\/p>\n<p>To: Head of Communications Michiel Haighton T: 06 2831 4935<\/p>\n<p>E: adviesraadsociaaldomein@apeldoorn.nl<\/p>\n<p>Date: 9 May 2022<\/p>\n<p>CC: Christine Mallon, Anne Klerks<\/p>\n<p>Our reference: ASDA 2022-03<\/p>\n<p>Subject: Information letter regarding language use in letters from the local authority<\/p>\n<p>Dear Mr Haighton,<\/p>\n<h2>Why is the Social Affairs Advisory Council writing this letter?<\/h2>\n<p>Clear language is needed in letters from Apeldoorn Council. You have already made a start, but there is room for improvement.<\/p>\n<p>How do you get your message across? Put yourself in the reader\u2019s shoes.<\/p>\n<p>In this letter, we would like to give an example.<\/p>\n<p>That is why we have used short sentences at language level A2.<\/p>\n<p>And chose the right words\u00a0<strong>which is simple<\/strong>,\u00a0<strong>clearly\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0<strong>understandable<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>are.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ve been talking to residents and organisations. Residents tell us that writing letters is difficult.<\/p>\n<p>Some members of the Social Domain Advisory Council are also social care workers. They experience this first-hand in their work as social care workers.<\/p>\n<h2>Who are we talking about?<\/h2>\n<p>This concerns 2.5 million Dutch people who have low literacy skills.<\/p>\n<p>Of these, 1 million people have a mild intellectual disability (MID). In Apeldoorn, people with low literacy skills account for 11% of the population.<\/p>\n<p>The national average for low literacy is 12%.<\/p>\n<p>Letters are also difficult to understand for people with dyslexia. Newcomers often find them difficult too.<\/p>\n<h2>What\u2019s the problem?<\/h2>\n<p>20% of the Dutch population have difficulty reading. This is a large number of people who are unable to participate.<\/p>\n<p>This group can only understand letters at language level A2.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, they receive letters and forms written at B1 level.<\/p>\n<p>This group of residents often takes too long to reply to letters they do not understand.<\/p>\n<p>As a result, they sometimes pay their bills late. Or they are not fully aware of what they are entitled to.<\/p>\n<p>To be able to understand their letters, they sometimes ask for help. But often they don\u2019t, because they feel ashamed.<\/p>\n<h2>What are the consequences?<\/h2>\n<p>Failing to understand a letter can have serious consequences. Many people with low literacy skills simply put their letters away in a drawer. They don\u2019t turn up for appointments.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s easy to run up a debt.<\/p>\n<p>Half of the people receiving debt counselling have low literacy skills.<\/p>\n<p>100,000 people with low literacy skills are living in poverty.<\/p>\n<p>They are twice as likely to live in poverty as other Dutch people. 25% of those receiving debt counselling have a mild intellectual disability.<\/p>\n<h2>Letters from Apeldoorn Council<\/h2>\n<p>It highlights the use of vague language, followed by a link to the website. Many residents \u2013 not just those with low literacy levels \u2013 lack these digital skills.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018Language of the City\u2019 is not yet the solution<\/h2>\n<p>We know that you want to make your letters clearer. You want to write letters at language level B1.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, many people still don\u2019t understand your post.<\/p>\n<h2>The solution?<\/h2>\n<p>Write in a friendly, informal, everyday style. Listen carefully: how do people with low literacy levels express themselves? What words do they use?<\/p>\n<p>Write letters at language level A2.<\/p>\n<p>Please refer to the style guide published by ABC, the advocacy organisation for people with low literacy skills<\/p>\n<p>The Reading and Writing Foundation, an important source.<\/p>\n<h2>Advice<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Is writing in a simple and easy-to-understand style the same as \u2018Jip and Janneke language\u2019?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>No, certainly not.<\/p>\n<p>This is offensive to people with low literacy skills.<\/p>\n<p>Get in touch with residents who do not reply to a letter. Set up language panels and ring residents up.<\/p>\n<p>Set up a point of contact for people with low literacy skills. Examples we have in mind<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>the Wmo helpdesk;<\/li>\n<li>the Meeting Points;<\/li>\n<li>the Work and Income team<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Fancy having a chat?<\/h2>\n<p>Do you have any questions about our letter? If so, please do let us know.<\/p>\n<p>Kind regards,<\/p>\n<p>Hans Wesselink<\/p>\n<p>Chair of the Apeldoorn Social Services Advisory Board<\/p>\n\r\n\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t\t<\/div>\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":10835,"menu_order":3,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"bestuur-standaard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"folder":[],"class_list":["post-12953","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v28.6 (Yoast SEO v28.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Signaleringsbrief taalgebruik brieven | Gemeente Apeldoorn<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"De Adviesraad Apeldoorn schreef een signaleringsbrief over taalgebruik in brieven van de gemeente. 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