Transforming HR communication - how I helped Making Space revolutionise its HR policies

When Making Space recognised the need for a more streamlined approach to its HR policies, Chief People Officer, Phil Orton, turned to Clarion Call Communications. The challenge wasn’t just about simplifying text but empowering managers and employees to navigate legal requirements and internal standards with greater ease and confidence

The collaboration led to a remarkable transformation, with a 40% reduction in policy pages and a 30% decrease in word count. Not only making the business’ HR policies more accessible and user-friendly but enabling employees and managers to self-serve effectively, significantly reducing the demand for HR support. 

The business

Making Space is a national charity and leading provider of adult health and social care services which helps adults with care and support needs, and their carers, to lead independent and fulfilling lives. 

The challenge

In the midst of an ambitious intranet redevelopment, CPO, Phil Orton, wanted to align the charity’s HR policies with its core values and make them intuitively accessible for every team member. Yet, a review of the policies surfaced a number of challenges:

Fragmented information

Related information was split across documents, making it difficult for colleagues to locate what they needed.

Overwhelming detail

Years of policy updates to reflect evolving laws and practices had made policies overly-detailed and long.

Cryptic legal jargon

Employees and managers struggled to understand and implement the policies due to the use of legal language.

Lacking company values

No mention of the company values created a gap between the HR policies and the business’ strategic direction. 

These issues meant the HR team spent more time providing advice and guidance to colleagues than it wanted. Phil’s goal was clear - to combine and edit the policies to make them more user friendly so colleagues could read and act on them independently. 

With the upcoming launch of the new intranet, the HR policy writing project became an urgent item on the team’s agenda. The time was ripe to hire an expert HR copywriter to get the project over the line. 

Editing HR policies takes a specialist copywriter - someone who understands employment law and balances best writing practices without compromising the legality of the policies’ guidance. With over 14 years working in HR teams and almost a decade’s copywriting experience, Making Space turned to Clarion Call Communications to deliver the project. 

“Our policy review had been on the back burner for several years, so I looked for an HR copywriter to make it happen. I wanted someone who understood employment law, best practice and our culture so they could accurately represent our organisation in the policies. I chose Becky due to her HR and copywriting experience. She considered our policy style and, through early conversations, understood what we wanted to create.”

— Phil Orson, Chief People Officer, Making Space

The solution

Step 1 - project planning and trial run

With so many policies to edit, planning was vital. A project plan was created which clearly set out:

  • Which policies were being combined.

  • The order in which the policies would be tackled.

  • Deadlines for each stage of the editing process including first and second drafts and revisions.

Working collaboratively with Making Space’s CPO, a consistent policy layout was agreed to ensure a standardised approach and end result. A trial run made sure the style, tone of voice and contents were right. Two rounds of revisions provided a valuable learning opportunity for both parties to firm up exactly what good looked like. This set the standard for the remaining policies.

Step 2 -  HR policy editing

Each policy was revised using a range of copywriting tactics applied through an HR lens. This included:

  • Replacing jargon, legalese and Latin phrases with plain English.

  • Making the documents more accessible and easier to read, understand and apply by:

    • Shortening long sentences.

    • Writing in an active (rather than passive) voice.

    • Breaking up long sections of text using headings and subheadings. 

    • Using bullet lists, process flows and tables to make information easier to interpret.

    • Including plenty of white space so the document didn’t feel cramped or overwhelming.

    • Using links to make it easy for the audience to jump to related sections within the policy.

  • Using software to assess each policy to ensure the readability score was appropriate for the audience.

Step 3 - HR policy perfection

While most of the revised policies didn’t need a lot of changes, two rounds of edits gave Phil the opportunity to leave comments to ensure each policy remained legally compliant and accurate. Weekly updates kept the project on track and made sure every policy was completed in good time.

Outstanding results

Number of HR policies

50% reduction

From 40 to 20

Number of pages

42% reduction 

Or 143 fewer pages for employees to read

Word count

30% reduction 

Saving employees from reading 21,000 words

Making Space’s HR policies have been transformed. By consolidating related information within single policy documents, colleagues can effortlessly navigate the content. Seamlessly integrated links enable readers to leap to relevant sections. And the reduction in word count, plus the adoption of plain English, has made the policies straightforward and concise, inspiring confidence and enabling colleagues to take prompt, decisive action. 

In this new landscape, Making Space’s HR policies aren’t just documents - they’re vital tools empowering every team member with the knowledge and understanding they need to excel in their roles.

“Becky developed a project plan to suit our pace and delivered in line with it. Responsive, friendly and easy to work with, Becky is very capable and her costs were very reasonable too. Would definitely recommend.”

— Phil Orton, Chief People Officer, Making Space