Information for new arrivals in plain language

The administration has had its brochure for new citizens, which it has been handing out for many years when registering at the citizens' office, professionally translated into plain language by the Samariterstiftung Aalen. Testers who understand texts in plain language better were also used here.

The 76-page brochure in landscape format has many icons, a table of contents and clear formatting that makes it much easier to read.

"This allows us to better reach people who have difficulty understanding complex texts," explains press officer Sandra Berges, who was in charge of the project. This brochure for new citizens is therefore also a great help for people with reading and writing problems, for people who are just learning German or for older citizens.

As the contents change quickly, the brochure is only ever printed in small print runs.

"This is our first brochure in easy-to-read language, but we will keep on the ball to enable more participation," emphasised Martin May-Neitemann, Head of Social Services.

The fact that the brochure has significantly more pages than the original is also due to more extensive explanations of specialised terminology. For example, open all-day care and child day care are explained here in a clear and concise manner. In both versions, QR codes link to the respective websites with more information.

The municipal website also benefits from the translations. In many places, texts on municipal services are linked in plain language.