Easy Read in Australia: what it is and how to create Easy Read documents

What is Easy Read?

Easy Read is an accessible written format designed to support people with reading support needs. Easy Read uses clear language, inclusive and accessible images and a specific layout to make information easier to understand and use.

Easy Read information can help people with a range of reading support needs to:

understand written information
participate in programs and events
build agency and make informed decisions
confidently access services or buy products they choose.

Easy Read presents information using short sentences, simple words and images that directly support each message. New or complex words are explained, and information is organised so readers can follow it step by step.

In Australia, Easy Read is widely used by government, community and corporate organisations committed to disability inclusion and communication access. It ensures people with reading support needs can access important information in ways that are respectful, clear and usable.

High-quality Easy Read follows clear accessibility principles. This includes presenting one idea per sentence, using meaningful images aligned to each sentence, providing strong visual contrast for WCAG 2.2 AA conformance, and prioritising disability co-design.

Download our factsheet

Easy Read or Easy English?
What's the difference?

Easy Read and Easy English are accessible written formats designed for people with reading support needs. Both use clear language, a structured layout and meaningful images to make written information easier to understand.

Easy English was first introduced in Australia in the early 2000's. It was a modified version of the Easy Read style popularised in the UK, and it targeted people with intellectual disability and increased reading support needs.

Today in Australia, the terms Easy Read and Easy English are increasingly used interchangeably. The accessible information industry is growing rapidly and demand for a variety of accessible written formats is rising.

With no national standards, what matters most is that information is developed using accessible communication principles tailored for a clear target audience.

Documents should be co-designed or tested with people who have lived experience of disability to ensure they are genuinely accessible and useful.

Download our Easy Read verses Easy English Guide

Who is Easy Read for?

Easy Read was first developed to support people with intellectual disability. Intellectual disability can affect how a person understands, remembers and uses information, which can make standard written information difficult to access.

Easy Read can also support many other people who benefit from clearer communication and visuals that aid comprehension. This might be:

people with acquired brain injury
older people with dementia or memory changes over time
neurodivergent people
people with limited educational opportunities
people from culturally and linguistically (CALD) diverse backgrounds who are still building English literacy skills.

In Australia, around 44% of people have low English literacy (ABS, 2013). Providing information in accessible formats such as Easy Read helps ensure people do not miss out on important information, services and opportunities.

Offering Easy Read supports inclusion by ensuring people with communication support needs can understand information, make choices and participate more confidently in community, services and decision-making.

Ruby Yee Embrace Access Easy Read Co-Design

Why Easy Read matters for disability equity, inclusion and human rights

Access to information is a human right. When information is not accessible, people with communication support needs can be excluded from decisions, services and opportunities that affect their lives.

Providing Easy Read helps people with disability to have access to the same information as the general public. The availability of an alternative, accessible format supports agency, meaningful participation, informed decision-making and greater independence.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) recognises access to information in accessible formats as essential for disability access and inclusion. Easy Read must be provided to people with disability in a timely manner and at no additional cost. Offering Easy Read is one practical way organisations can meet their responsibilities to provide inclusive, accessible communication.

In Australia, many organisations now provide Easy Read alongside standard information so people with reading support needs can access information in a format they can use and understand. This approach promotes equity, respect and genuine inclusion.

In this video, Mark tells Embrace Access how simple, clear and accessible communication supports his autonomy and empowers disability identity.

What makes high-quality Easy Read?

High-quality Easy Read is more than simplifying words. It is a structured, evidence-based approach to preparing accessible written information that ensures written text is both respectful and usable for audiences with communication disability and reading support needs.

Effective Easy Read uses:

short sentences
white space
one idea at a time
clear everyday language
inclusive and meaningful images.

Layout, font size, colour contrast and white space follow strict design rules to maximise clarity, support readability, and reduce cognitive load.

Best-practice Easy Read is developed using research, accessibility standards and co-design with people who have lived experience of disability. This ensures documents are not only easy to read, but meaningful, accurate and relevant for the people they are intended to support.

Consistency and quality matter. When Easy Read follows clear accessibility principles and is tested with the intended audience, it becomes a powerful tool for inclusion, understanding and participation.

Common mistakes organisations make when producing Easy Read documents

Many organisations are committed to inclusion but are unsure how to create effective Easy Read. One common mistake is simply shortening existing text without adapting language, structure or layout for accessibility. Easy Read requires a considered approach to language, images and design to ensure information is genuinely easier to understand.

Common mistakes people make when they create Easy Read include:

using images for decoration that do not meaning
forgetting to pair meaningful images to each sentence or new idea
choosing language without consulting people who have a reading disability
using 'Easy' words but in a book that is too long which contributes to to reader fatigue and disengagement
using too many images creating visual clutter, low contrast and crowded layouts which make information harder to process.

Easy Read should be developed foremose with the intended audience in mind. Without co-design or user testing, documents may appear accessible but still be difficult for people with communication support needs to use. High-quality Easy Read is created by disability subject matter experts (often speech language pathologists) and most importantly, will be guided by accessibility principles, lived experience insight and a clear target audience.

Taking time to plan, test and refine Easy Read documents helps ensure they are respectful, accurate and genuinely accessible for the people they are designed to support.

You can view and download some best-practice examples of Easy Read developed by senior speech pathologists on our Easy Read projects page.

How organisations can get started

Organisations can begin by reviewing the accessibility of their existing information and identifying where Easy Read could support greater inclusion. This may be key documents, program information, policies, forms or public communications that people need to understand in order to participate fully. Review must happen in direct consultation with disability steering committees, reference groups, employees and consultants with lived experience.
Organisations can plan and budget for creating Easy Read documents before a communications project begins. Releasing the Easy Read version alongside your full document is critical for ensuring equitable access to your information. Many organisations build internal capability through Easy Read training to plan and publish accessible information in a streamlined way, ensuring it reaches the people it is intended for in a timely manner.
Organisations can work to understand and map the needs of the intended audience. Working directly with your community, develop networks of advisors and user testers who can help you to build great Easy Read content over time. Our team of Lived Experience Advisors is passionate about helping organisations build internal disability capability. Testing content with people who have lived experience and following best-practice accessibility principles all contribute to high-quality outcomes.
Organisations should build internal knowledge and confidence in accessible communication. Best-practice Easy Read information is developed by subject matter experts: usually speech pathologists trained to meet the access needs of people with language disability and literacy support needs. Many organisations choose to develop internal capability through professional workplace training, co-design and ongoing consultancy with experienced Easy Read practitioners.

If your organisation would like to explore building Easy Read into business-as-usual, you can request a discovery call with one of our Easy Read specialists or learn more about our Easy Read translation services here.

How Embrace Access supports organisations to publish Easy Read

Embrace Access supports organisations across Australia to create high-quality Easy Read documents and accessible information for people with communication support needs.

Our disability-led team includes lived experience advisors and neurodivergent senior speech pathologists who work alongside organisations to plan, develop and review inclusive communications, including Easy Read.

We support organisations through Easy Read document production, co-design, training and strategic communication access advice. This work helps ensure information is clear, respectful and genuinely usable for the people it is intended to support.

Explore our Easy Read services