Policy Writing Training Course
Simplify policy and procedure documents for clarity and impact
Are your policies boring, dry and difficult to read? They shouldn’t be. But creating policies that are both effective and easy to read can be challenging. How do you make sure your documents guide behaviour, meet compliance standards and resonate with stakeholders?
This policy writing course will help you write policy and procedure documents that are clear, concise, and reader-friendly. You will learn to simplify complex ideas, structure policies, and use simple language to make your policies read.
Target audience
The Policy Writing training course is perfect for managers, HR professionals, compliance officers, or anyone involved in drafting policies and procedures who would like to enhance their writing skills.
Learning outcomes
In this Policy Writing course, participants will learn how to:
- Identify the key elements of strong policy documents
- Write policies that are clear, concise, and reader-focused
- Apply logical structure to policies and include signposting for easy navigation and comprehension
- Translate complex information into simple, actionable policy language
- Gather and integrate feedback from stakeholders
- Ensure compliance with legal and organisational standards.
Ideal duration
The Policy Writing training course is generally a full-day workshop and participants work on their own current or recent documents. Participants are asked to provide a copy of these before the workshop. The course will reference your organisation’s style guide and templates. The group size is capped at 15 to allow time to rewrite and apply a dozen techniques to improve readability.
The program can also be delivered in 2 half-day virtual workshops. For advanced writers, the course can be tailored to a shorter duration, assuming they are familiar with and practised in applying the principles of effective professional writing
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you offer the Policy Writing workshop to individuals?
Although ICML primarily delivers training to groups within organisations, we can deliver the program as a one-on-one coaching and training workshop. ICML does not offer ‘public courses’, where individuals from various organisations can attend. Call us at 1300 655 098 to discuss how we can help.
What is the importance of policy writing in an organisation?
Effective policy writing is essential as it establishes the rules and guidelines for behaviours within an organisation. This ensures clarity, uniformity and accountability. Well-articulated policies work as risk mitigation tools, improve organisational efficiency and provide a framework for behaviours and decision-making.
What topics are typically covered in a policy writing course?
Policy writing courses normally cover the scope of the document, the structure of the document, the language used in writing the policy and the legal requirements that must be met. They may also include how to convey information effectively and how to develop and enforce policies.
How can I improve my policy writing skills?
Improving policy writing skills requires defining precisely what the policy is meant to achieve. Second, you need to write topics in a clear, concise and simple style. Further, use a planning technique before you start writing to create an effective structure and make considerable time savings in writing the policy.
Are there any online policy writing courses available?
Yes, ICML offers the Policy Writing course as a live virtual workshop to help organisations with participants in various locations, including working from home. This eliminates the need for time-intensive travel and offers flexibility for time-poor people. ICML tailors policy writing courses to the types of policy documents participants typically write your organisational templates and the policy obligations within your industry and organisation.
HR Skill Shots
Yes, ICML offers the Policy Writing course as a live virtual workshop to help organisations with participants in various locations, including working from home. This eliminates the need for time-intensive travel and offers flexibility for time-poor people. ICML tailors policy writing courses to the types of policy documents participants typically write your organisational templates and the policy obligations within your industry and organisation.
What are the key components of an effective policy document?
An effective policy document includes a clear purpose statement, defined scope, detailed procedures, and responsibilities. It should also be well structured, easily obtainable and should be updated frequently to remain relevant.
How does policy writing differ from writing procedures?
Policy writing establishes the high-level principles and guidelines in an organisation. Procedures provide steps and processes. Procedures can give instructions on how to conduct policies but can also describe steps in other organisational processes.
Why is it important that policies are easy to read and understand?
Readable and clear policy documents make it less daunting for people to read and easy for the reader to understand what is expected of them. This ensures greater compliance to the guidelines.
What is the role of stakeholder feedback in policy writing?
Stakeholder feedback is a valuable tool in policy writing to ensure that the policy is realistic and relevant. It also fosters ownership and acceptance.
How can I ensure my policy complies with legal standards?
To safeguard ongoing compliance of policies with legal standards it is critical to say up to date with relevant laws and regulations. Consult with internal and external legal experts to review draft and existing policies.
What are common challenges in policy writing, and how can they be addressed?
Key issues in policy writing are the writer’s ambiguity about the goals of the policy, formal and inaccessible writing styles, and an unclear structure. Delivering an ICML Policy Writing course will build the understanding and skill of participants to create policies that support organisational strategies and goals. They learn to write documents that organisational stakeholders will want to read and adhere to.
Live virtual workshop testimonials
Lynne was very helpful and provided relevant details. Very easy to follow.
Lynne is an excellent coach who knows the subject extremely well and ran the course in an interactive and very enjoyable manner.
Lynne was very talented at engaging the group and facilitating active learning. I was alert and interested throughout the day.
The programme was excellent, content was personalised and allowed opportunity to edit our own work. Lynne tailored the programme, kept it engaging and taught us a lot.
A good communicator, clear on the relevant points and information. Very helpful course. So much of what we do is written word, and training to improve and hone written skills is most helpful. Thanks Helen.
I liked how this course was practical and used our own writing examples. Really appreciated the relaxed way that Lynne delivered the information and made it fun and interactive.
Highly recommended! Thanks, Lynne. The workshop was very useful and practical. Lynne was easy to connect with, experienced and responsive.
Great presentation skills. Kept the course flowing well. Peter was a great facilitator.
I gained valuable information on audience, structure writing and the correct use of grammar and punctuation
A well organised and facilitated course of excellent, contemporary, meaningful content which was well structured and delivered.
Loved the day and found it all very useful. Lynne is knowledgeable, interesting and effective. I came into the workshop wondering how to write more directly and effectively, and I got exactly that.
I would highly recommend this program to anyone, even if you think your writing skills do not need improving.
Great course! Lynne was a charismatic facilitator and great teacher. Great, interactive and well balanced between activities and learning. Great learning tools. Looking forward to reflecting and implementing the key points.
Well done Lynne - very interactive, great examples across a range of disciplines and topics. Need to extend the program to as many staff as possible.
Lynne is clear, concise and great communicator. Excellent at transferring knowledge. Provides feedback without causing embarrassment. Excellent training. Worth a full day out of the office due to the outcomes. Practical and results orientated.
What a vibrant and engaging facilitator. Jam packed info delivered in 3 and a half hours. Thank you so much Lynne, for all the knowledge sharing.
I thought Ian’s use of illustrations and examples was excellent and concise.
Lynne was great – delivered really well and kept it interesting. I learned skills and tips that will really easy to apply to my writing.
Peter was a great and informative facilitator who made us feel comfortable from the beginning and working as a team at the end.
Brilliant workshop. Wish I attended years ago. Will assist in everything I do in the office. Thank you.
Was fantastic to use our own examples. It has highlighted a few things I currently do that are not only easy to change but will make writing a lot quicker. Love the spidergram tool.
Honestly, when I saw that we were going to have 3 training sessions of 1.5 hours each about writing I thought I couldn’t keep attention during the whole training. But the way Ian delivered the sessions and how the content was structured and prepared, left me with the feeling of wanting more sessions! I think it was one of the workshops/trainings where I’ve learnt the most. I would absolutely recommend it!
Fantastic program - very rarely do we host training that participants want to extend or wish lasted longer, but that's the response this writing, presenting and communicating with influence course received.
Great facilitator well versed in good government writing. I took away a number of key tips to enhance my writing and improve efficiencies! Thanks very much Lynne!
Lynne is extremely knowledgeable and up to date with all tips and tricks for professional writing. Thanks for everything!
Andrea was well prepared, smart and humorous. What I learned will not only benefit my work but also my life. Andrea is a very experienced and considerate instructor.
Lynne was an engaging and energetic presenter who addressed the subject matter succinctly and effectively. Lynne has a very persuasive way of engaging her audience and challenging them in a positive way to reflect on their work. Great platform for me to engage with colleagues further on this important topic.
A fantastic trainer and great session. I can’t wait for Lynne’s next course!
Peter was an excellent facilitator that engaged well with the course participants and was able to communicate the content in a relevant way.
The pace and class size were spot on and the facilitator Lynne was clearly very knowledgeable. Lynne is easily one of the best presenters I’ve seen.
A significant period of change in our organisation resulted in the identification of a broad range of training requirements. We contacted ICML who meet our immediate needs, but have also continued to work with us to further develop our employees. Training has been delivered at our business site, tailored to our objectives, with a personalised and practical focus. I don’t think I have ever received such positive and strong feedback from participants on the courses we have held – even our CE has heard the ‘buzz’ about the recent session, Advanced Business Writing, and the Executive team are participating in a further session. I would recommend ICML for any customised training to help your employees learn practical tips and reach their potential!!
Loved the real world examples of AITSL content, felt the logic of the workshop was fantastic. Online format worked really well, great interactive elements as a group and in breakout rooms.
Lynne has clearly had a lot of experience in this field and was able to provide great answers to questions as we went through. The use of real relevant documents made a big difference to the relativity of the course content. Very knowledgeable and well presented.
Had a valuable day with Peter developing skills that will be of great benefit professionally and personally. Was a good learning environment for me. Exactly what I needed. It has given me renewed confidence and an ability to more effectively plan and write with purpose and direction. It was great.
We have been utilising Lynne’s skills over the years. Lynne is our ‘go-to’ person for writing, editing, writing for government courses every 2-3 years. We will continue to do so.
Great way to uplift the organisation outcomes by investing in the business case writing course.
Lynne is so well versed as well as great at engaging people in conversations. Loved the training session. Thank you for teaching us such valuable lessons.
Very informative, one of the best training sessions I have undertaken since joining local government.
Very engaging and what could have been a very dry subject. Engaging and very informative, made relevant by having our own examples of writing used throughout.
Highly recommend course. Really kept me engaged.
Lynne is an accomplished presenter who retains people's attention by keeping things active. I love writing, believe I'm above average, and was happy to pick up a few tips to improve further.
This has been an eye opening experience and will definitely change my old habits. This program will definitely get you thinking about changing old writing habits and help you to develop a new set of writing skills to communication to high level executives, managers and board members.
Fantastic course. Thank you Lynne!
An excellent session and the best I’ve attended on this topic over the years. Worked really well - I’d not seen the breakout tools used on zoom before so a bonus bit of learning there.
Should be compulsory training for anyone expected to draft and submit council reports.
This is the most useful writing course I've completed in over 20 years in the VPS. It's really practical advice with plenty of examples.
A very enlightening course, which was well presented. I thought I was good at writing until I realised I have much to learn and practise. Lynne is very knowledgeable and uses clear messages and examples.
A great combination of basic writing principles with application options and examples.
I thought the most valuable part of the workshop was providing actual examples of our own work and then editing them for practice at the end of each section. The generic examples were good as well, but I think the attendee specific examples and the pre work by Lynne to understand our reporting and pick it apart really made the workshop. Format worked better than I expected. Lynne kept everyone engaged and the breakout rooms worked really well.
I really enjoyed this course and can immediately deploy tactics I’ve learnt today, in my work. Lynne was a fantastic presenter, knowledgeable, funny and professional.
Lynne was engaging and brought us out of our protective shells to access our own work constructively. Lynne was very thorough, entertaining, succinct and used relevant examples.
I am already using the skills by referring to the quick reference guides and participant manual. I am now writing in the active voice and am clearly including my main message first. I have booked for the Advanced Business Writing workshop – I can’t wait.
Peter was an engaging trainer. Best training day I have ever had! The training day with Peter was insightful and enjoyable. This course and day exceeded my expectations – I can’t recommend this enough!
Lynne is wonderful. She made the training fun and interactive. I could easily do days of this! Lynne is excellent, knowledgeable, interactive and inclusive. We learnt things I thought I was doing right for some years that I can now rectify.
Really good session to bring the participants up to date with current practices. Lots of good tips on how to keep your report succinct and on point. Lynne was great, very engaging.
Lynne was knowledgeable and engaging and maintained a good pace for the workshops. The live workshop worked well, the breakout rooms were a good substitute for the usual breaking off into groups during a face-to-face workshop.
The most useful and productive training I have ever attended.
Lynne knows her stuff and can work a crowd! Lynne has a way of making writing fun and interesting. Great critiques and insight into writing styles.
Helen was excellent – a very clear facilitator. This course will make an immediate improvement to my writing. The pace was good and the examples were relevant.
Vivienne was highly engaging and kept everyone attentive during the course.
The Report Writing Training delivered by ICML was extremely engaging, professional and highly beneficial for council officers to develop and advance their report writing skills. The training provided staff with not only useful writing techniques and resources, but with a greater confidence and understanding of writing practices. I would highly recommend ICML to anyone wishing to progress their writing skills!
Lynne is wonderful. Very knowledgeable and easy to listen to. Lynne has a high level of knowledge and is a clear communicator. Fun!
Lynne is fantastic and very knowledgeable. Thank you. I would recommend all businesses to participate in this course. I really enjoyed how it was done, how we got to correct our errors and the examples related to our line of work.
Lynne’s session was excellent and I would highly recommend it to others. The program was well-delivered and engaging - could have easily become a very dry subject in someone else's hands.
Very good course that gave me some great advice on how I can improve my report writing.
Using samples from our own drafted documents made all the difference to the learning.
This is a fantastic course for anyone looking to improve their writing skills. Examples were relatable and highlighted areas for improvement. Lynne is enthusiastic and full of knowledge. A great course – never a dull moment!
Lynne was very structured in her presentation and explained everything very clearly and succinctly. She was also a pleasure to listen to with her explanations on writing styles and the little things that can help with your writing of documents and emails.
Excellent program!! All aspects were very helpful, even after years of writing. It’s nice to have an experienced facilitator making the trick of good writing explicit. Lynne was excellent – very good pace (not too slow) and not going down rabbit holes. Very engaging.
Vivienne was wonderful. She was engaging and I learnt a lot from her.
One of the best training modules I have completed for career development so far.
Lynne is a very engaging presenter and it’s been the best course I’ve attended in a long time.
The Advanced Business Writing course will allow me to improve all of my communication to clients. I highly recommend this course.
This course is a great introduction to someone coming into local government where responses may be analysed by the recipient - especially where there is a compliance element. It demonstrates the importance of effective language and phrases.
This was extremely helpful training. To the point, useful, kind in approach. Format was great for online, I liked that it stayed in the larger group setting but had exercises mixed throughout. Was engaged the whole time, time flew past. I would recommend that all staff should be required to do this training when they start as a Wyndham employee.
This course exceeded my expectations. The inclusion of real work via pre course submissions was invaluable.
All of it, one of the best training sessions I have attended. Loved that it was a no laptop session which meant no one was distracted doing emails/chats. Supplying our own examples and having a facilitator with council knowledge really helped make it fantastic. Also loved that the tips were short and sharp and easy to do.
A course that takes your personal input and uses it to improve your professional skills in an enjoyable and effective way. Facilitation was enjoyable, engaging and effective in communication.
Fantastic! Lynne had done great research and prepared relevant documents that were presented well. Lynne was fantastic. She gave great tips that will make a huge difference to our business both externally and internally.
Fantastic course. Very valuable training that I can put into use immediately. Well presented at the right level for the audience. Use of real examples was great. Very knowledgeable and assisted understanding with the use of examples.
Very inclusive, knowledgeable and authentic in wanting to share knowledge. Highly recommend the training to all levels of the department. A very practical course that we can apply to our writing.
Lynne was a fantastic facilitator who delivered a great program. It was an engaging and interesting use of examples to illustrate some of the issues within the organisation.
Very helpful, great trainer. Easy format, worked well.
Lynne was incredible. Really loved the session today. I feel like this course came at such a fantastic time. I have so much more confidence in preparing board reports and reports for senior management. Good pace and so many fantastic take aways.
Very engaging and very clear. Learned useful and practical tips that can be applied straight away. It will greatly improve my business writing. Excellent workshop! Using FSO examples made it even more relevant. Thank you so much!
Really beneficial to the organisation. Lynne was fantastic and I highly recommend this course to everyone in the organisation.
Lynne is knowledgeable and an excellent presenter. The content was concise and at just the right pace. Had fun!
I think this should be included in the induction process for new staff.
Thank you Lynne for sharing your expertise in such an engaging way. Very interesting and valuable workshop with practical and relevant examples. Can’t wait to implement what I’ve learnt! Very professional. Thank you.
The sessions were invaluable. Really easy to follow, engaging, I learned a lot. The perfect amount of conversation and collaboration. I'd recommend to everybody. I thought it was run really well. I appreciated that the need for extra breaks was factored in, so it never felt too tiring or overwhelming.
Very engaging course, learnt some key points and approaches which I will be able to utilise in future tenders and editing.
Lynne was fantastic and so knowledgeable in this area. Thank you for your time and assistance Lynne, one of the most useful and practical courses I have attended!
The course was practical, interactive, informative and action oriented. With little background in business writing – it was useful to learn new and practical skills.
Lynne, this has by far been the best training I have attended in my professional career. You were able to provide a safe, non-judgemental space where I felt comfortable to make mistakes, and did so with the most positive attitude. I will highly recommend both you and this course to my colleagues.
Fabulous day spent with Lynne. Really engaging and informative.
The content was extremely valuable and something that I have never be taught in my 15 years at different councils. It should be compulsory for all staff.
Good fun, ideal level of participation. Could be a dry subject it was delivered in an interesting way. Loved it, thanks. Excellent course and Lynne is a very professional facilitator. Great tools that were relevant to activities and which I’ll be using in the immediate future.
Peter is a great trainer/facilitator. Very clear and engaging in his presentation. Very helpful in my every day email correspondence and program report writing.
Lynne ran the course extremely well. Kept it informative and interesting without overloading with too much information.
The course was engaging and very relevant to my work. Surprisingly engaging for a virtual workshop, a testament to Lynne’s excellent facilitation.
Many takeaways and actions/skills I can apply and use in my day to day work. Small group – extremely beneficial to ask questions off topic. Much appreciated.
Thanks Lynne – really enjoyed the session. Logical structure and great range of topics covered.
Lynne is always so professional, friendly and encouraging. Excellent qualities in a facilitator. The course material was very useful and practical and will be a great resource to reference following completion of this course. Thanks Lynne! I got a lot out of the course and will no doubt stop myself from using cliches and repeating myself in emails now.
Jill was fantastic. She was engaging, fun and friendly. This training was really great. I got so much out of it and am excited to take my learnings back to my work.
Peter was very engaging and inclusive. Honed skills, particularly around making my writing more concise and effective. I write so many emails, I can already see how this will help me tomorrow.
Excellent delivery. Lynne is engaging and very knowledgeable. I now have a much better understanding of how business writing is different to other forms eg. academic.
I thoroughly enjoyed the course and would recommend it to others, Very enjoyable.
It was our absolute pleasure to recently have ICML deliver the Writing Powerful Emails course at our premises. The facilitator, Lynne, was both an informative and engaging presenter and held our interest through the half day session, with even a few laughs along the way. Already what I have learned is proving valuable in my work and will make a difference to the professionalism of my team. Thank you to the ICML team for making the process of organising the course easy and everything went without glitch. Highly recommend this course for even those who consider themselves competent email writers. We never stop learning.
I liked how the course covered various types of writing (documents, emails etc). The small group was perfect and a good environment to learn in.
Breaking down core elements of training using real DRC examples was excellent. Overall, a great session and very useful leading towards the final report.
Lynne was very engaging and enjoyable to learn from. I write a lot of emails and diary notes and the course has helped me identify where I can improve on my writing. I actually have no suggestions for improvement – the program was fantastic, especially the use of our own examples.
Very useful workshop with lots of practice examples to make it clear what is required. Excellent facilitation, just the right amount of time spent on each area. Highly recommend this for anyone wanting to improve report writing.
Lynne is a fantastic training facilitator because she made learning simple, interactive & enjoyable. During our virtual Business Case training with Lynne, I noticed a significant difference between self-paced online learning and a personalised training program, like the one delivered by ICML. I have learned and absorbed more information in one day’s worth of training (delivered via 90-minute sessions over multiple weeks) than I have in last 6 months while completing a self-paced online Project Management course.
Suzanne was fantastic, lovely, very entertaining and extremely knowledgeable. I found the program very beneficial. Will help me become more confident when presenting at workshops and addressing landholders, peers and industry bodies. Fantastic couple of days. Very constructive. Would highly recommend to others wishing to build on or improve their written and communication skills
Great balance of theory and practical application to improving my business writing skills.
Very worthwhile. Having break out sessions was great and so too was having your own work evaluated as part of group discussions.
Lynne was engaging the whole time – no moments of nodding off or inattention. Plus working on real life examples made the practice very relevant. The best one day course I have attended in quite some time. The skill and experience of the facilitator is evident.
Peter was a great facilitator with fun material to learn. Interactive learning and engaging environment.
Ian is a great facilitator. He made taking this course remotely an engaging experience.
Ian was very open and easy to talk with, but kept us on topic. I think my writing prior was pretty good, but this course gave me the reminder of really looking at what I am writing and concentrating some effort in certain areas. Really enjoyed it. I think the work book has some excellent reference material.
This is not your average communication training session. If you want some real skills that will help you personally and professionally this is it! Suzanne was brilliant. Highly engaging and brought light to some very interesting thoughts and methods. I thought I had some skills in this are but I’ve been turned on my head. Mindblowing information and learnings. I would have liked another day (I would never normally say this).
Loved it! I thought my writing skills were already high but I’ve learned there is lots of room for polishing and improvement!
Lynne was fantastic! Valid examples and real-life experience. Really fun learning and unlearning!
Great facilitation, strong examples, engaging facilitation style. A fantastic training session. Has changed the way I approach writing.
Nailing Council Reports was informative and interesting; the facilitator Lynne was great – really knows the subject matter and presents it in an easy to understand and apply way.
Lynne is a great presenter and very engaging with everyone. Lots of tips Lynne showed us when writing emails I would have never picked up prior to the session.
Jill was very personable and concise with her approach. The day flowed extremely well because of her styles and organisation. Very beneficial. It’s been refreshing to understand contemporary ways of writing.
Loved Lynne's passion and enthusiasm. She's made studying writing skills fun and entertaining. Loved the breakout sessions and the personal examples.
Another informative session that will be highly encouraged for all management to attend. It was great! Highly engaging.
The workshop gave me the skills to write more persuasively and I have a better understanding as to how I should structure my writing. ICML's organisation was excellent; I had a reminder several times about my attendance including email, text message.
Lynne was very clear, concise and engaging. The interactive exercises were engaging and helpful. I feel I have gained some valuable skills that I can apply immediately. Thank you!
The course was excellent. I would recommend the course for someone like myself because you gained a lot that you would not know.
This course was a great refresher on grammar and excellent for updating our team and aligning our writing styles.
Very practical, good to use real-life examples. Communication is important to your business, that’s why you should take this course.
I found the course very informative and look forward to applying all I learnt to my writing.
This training is amazing and Lynne was wonderful. Lots of practical tips and advice that I can apply straight away in my work. It was delivered well too virtually. Love it.
The training was very informative and engaging. Zoom was also an effective platform for remote training.
Learned a huge amount, and the materials provided will be a handy reference point to keep me on track! The best professional business/Board writing course I’ve ever been on. Thanks Lynne!
Lynne was incredibly knowledgeable and was great at explaining concepts. I am more confident now in being able to write to the audience.
Great overview of minute taking even for someone who has experience in this space.
Lynne was an excellent trainer. Content was packed with Substance/tips. It made me feel like I was getting value for time/money, and satisfied my learning objectives. Probably one of the best short training courses that I have been to. Highly recommend for Council personnel to attend.
I feel ten-fold more confident after completing today’s workshop. Thank you Peter!
Peter was engaging, funny and very knowledgeable on the Effective Business Writing course. Course materials were well structured and easy to navigate with exercises that were fun, varied and perfectly timed to avoid “post lunch dip”. The course more than paid for itself in re-invigorating my writing.
Very good facilitator. Peter had a warm and inviting manner and was very inclusive of all participants.
Lynne was fantastic and presented in a very informative style! Her delivery was excellent – very interesting. This program is very beneficial, as I am required to write business cases and reports in my role.
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Contact
Call us on 1300 655 098 or send us a quick info request to discuss how ICML can help your team write clear and concise policies.