Structuring paragraphs and sentences
As with the overall structure, each paragraph and sentence should be frontloaded with the most important information at the start.
When writing your content, your paragraphs should:
- have no more than four sentences that follow a logical order
- begin with the most important information for that paragraph, meaning readers can skim through the information
- make complete sense on their own
- cover one subject
Individual sentences should be no longer than 25 words. If they are any longer, they may need to be divided into two.
A sentence should not start with a figure. If it does, the sentence should be restructured. For example:
“47% of people in the population of the UK are left-handed.”
Should be rewritten as:
“Left-handed people make up 47% of the UK population.”
We are constantly improving based on research and best practice. Any significant changes to our guidance are available on the Updates page.
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