How to write about Social Security Scotland and the people who use our services.

• Addressing the user
• Adviser
• Claim and claimant
• Collective nouns
• Death
• Dependant
• Income
• Job titles
• Social Security Scotland
• Stillbirth
• Team names
• We
• Words to use and avoid when talking about disability
• Writing about our users

Addressing the user

Our users include:

• Social Security Scotland colleagues, like client advisers and case managers
• clients
• client representatives

When addressing the user in content, use ‘you’.

For more information, see the GOV.UK style guide entry on ‘Addressing the user’.

Adviser

Follow the GOV.UK style guide entry for ‘adviser’.

Claim and claimant

Do not use claim or claimant.

For full guidance, follow our entries on:

• ‘addressing the user’
• ‘writing about our users’

Collective nouns

Collective nouns like family, government or team take a singular verb or pronoun when they’re thought of as a single unit.

When they’re thought of as a collection of individuals, use the plural forms.

Death

If the content is for helping someone complete a task, be direct wherever possible.

Clear and simple language can help people understand what they need to do quickly. This is generally more helpful than content added to make something sound more sympathetic. Use:

• death
• died

Do not use:

• loss
• passed away

However, research shows there are cases where users need content that shows empathy and care. An example is when designing content about stillbirth.

Death is a nuanced topic and experiences vary. You should test content related to death wherever possible and use the language your users use.

Dependant

A person reliant on another (usually financially). For example, a person’s child or an adult who relies on a person financially.

Use 'dependant' for the noun (British English version), not the American English version 'dependent'.

Income

Only refer to income if it's relevant. If you need to describe someone's income, be specific. Instead of 'high' or 'low' use income brackets or qualifying benefits.

Do not use stigmatising language like ‘poor people’ or ‘poverty-stricken’.

Job titles

Use lower case for job titles:

• client adviser
• case manager
• client experience officer
• director
• minister

Use upper case if you’re referring to a role held by one person:

• First Minister
• Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice
• Director of Social Security

Be specific if you’re writing for a specific role. Do not use generic terms like ‘agency staff’. Read the 'Social Security Scotland' entry.

Social Security Scotland

Use ‘we’ or ‘us’ when referring to Social Security Scotland, except in MyGov content.

For MyGov content use ‘Social Security Scotland’.

Social Security Scotland should be referred to as a singular entity: “Social Security Scotland is…” rather than “Social Security Scotland are…”

Never abbreviate to ‘SSS’ or refer to ‘agency’.

Stillbirth

All one word.

Do not overuse the terms ‘stillbirth’ or stillborn’, which can be triggering for parents.

Research shows that users need language that shows empathy and care in this situation. Test with users wherever possible and use the language they use.

Do not single out stillbirth from infant death, unless the context requires you to. People generally refer to the loss of their ‘child’, not their ‘stillborn child’. Singling out stillbirth puts more emphasis on it and could suggest that it’s treated differently to the death of a baby.

If you’re designing content with editable fields like forms or letters, make sure any name fields are optional, if relevant. This gives the opportunity to provide a name, or skip it if the child does not have a name or it’s not appropriate to provide it.

Sometimes we may have to use words that could be stressful or triggering to meet eligibility criteria or legal needs Unless words or phrases are legally necessary, use alternatives for any that could be triggering.

Find out more in the style guide entry on 'Death’.

Team names

Use lower case for team names and the word ‘team’. Do not use initials.

Also read the job titles entry.

We

Use ‘we’ or ‘us’ when referring to Social Security Scotland, except in mygov.scot content.

For mygov.scot content, use ‘Social Security Scotland’. 'We’ on mygov.scot refers to the 'Scottish Government'.

Words to use and avoid when talking about disability

Follow the GOV.UK entry on ‘words to use and avoid when talking about disability’.

Writing about our users

Do not use claimant or customer.

Use:

• client
• applicant
• individual
• child (if under 16)
• young person

If someone gets a benefit on behalf of someone else, make it clear what terms you're using and who you mean by each. For example, a parent getting Child Disability Payment for their child.