Editorial style guide
This style guide is designed to make Goldsmiths communications clear and consistent.
Primary page content
About this guide
This style guide answers the most common questions about how we use language and grammar. It sets out our house style, which is based on three basic principles: simplicity, clarity and accessibility.
It is not – and can never be – an exhaustive set of rules. If you would like further explanation or are looking for something we haven't included, the Guardian Style Guide is a more extensive explanation of grammar principles.
If you have any queries or comments or would like to suggest an addition to this guide please contact the communications team: communications (@gold.ac.uk).
How to use this guide
Entries are ordered alphabetically. Search for specific queries by using ctrl+f on your keyboard (command+f on a Mac).
Avoid abbreviations.
An exception is Dr, which should be used instead of Doctor.
Professor should only be abbreviated to Prof when there are space issues.
Avoid using eg, etc and ie. Instead use for example, and so on and in other words.
Do not use a full stop after an abbreviation, unless it is at the end of a sentence.
Write names in full and include the acronym in brackets after the first mention and use the acronym for any further mentions.
- Political Economy Research Centre (PERC)
Use capital letters for acronyms, with no spaces or full stops between each letter.
Names of buildings, departments and research centres should be written in full in the first instance.
You can use an acronym in a situation where space is an issue (like a headline). Write the name in full followed by the acronym the next time you mention it and as soon as possible.
Use universally known acronyms like BBC, NHS, NUS, UCU, UCAS in the first instance without the full name.
Avoid using gendered forms of the noun alumni.
Alumni is a Latin word which takes a different form dependent on the gender of the subject: alumna, alumnus, alumni and alumnae. While this may be correct, it does not align with our move away from gendered language. You can use the masculine form, 'alumnus' for both genders, as you would use 'actor'.
Use alumnus for a singular individual regardless of gender, and alumni for two or more graduates.
If in doubt, use graduate.
Use an apostrophe followed by an s to show possession.
- The department's successes include...
- The student's work
Use an apostrophe without a second s to demonstrate the possessive noun is plural.
- The Students' Union
Some plural words do not end in an s, so would take an apostrophe and s in the possessive.
- Children's games
- Women's issues
Confusion can arise when referring to a singular noun that ends in an s, such as Goldsmiths.
In these cases, think about how you would say the sentence out loud.
- Professor Jones's not Professor Jones'
- Goldsmiths' not Goldsmiths's
The most important thing is to be consistent across the page.
Use bullet points to list information in a clear and simple way.
Where possible, avoid the use of complex sentences in bullet points.
Start each bullet point with an initial capital letter, even in simple lists. Do not use punctuation at the end of a bullet point.
Our aims:
- To analyse the socio-legal, economic, and political effect of Brexit in the UK and Europe
Use capital letters at the beginning of every line.
Use capital letters for proper nouns and when referring to academic departments, individual programmes and research centres and groups.
Use capital letters for acronyms.
Use capital letters for the titles of a published text – a novel, for example.
- Eimarr McBride was the first winner of the £10,000 prize with her work ‘A Girl is a Half-formed Thing’
Do not use capital letters for headings or the titles of pages. Treat headings and titles as you would a normal sentence.
Use capital letters for job titles if you are referring to a specific role or title. Use lower case if you are describing the content of someone’s role.
A useful rule is if a name comes immediately before or after a job title, the title should almost always be capitalised.
- John Price, Head of the Department of History
- The matter will be passed on to our finance managers for their consideration
Colons and semi-colons
Use colons:
- To introduce a list
- In a sentence when the second clause clarifies the first
Colons can be useful: they allow you to give additional information.
Do not use a capital letter after a colon unless it is a proper noun, an acronym or the start of a bullet-pointed list.
Semi-colons can be a useful and elegant writing tool but they're often used wrongly and can almost always be replaced by a full stop.
Good online writing uses short, simple sentences. If you’re unsure about the use of a semi-colon avoid it. If your semi-colon could be replaced by a full stop use a full stop.
Contact details
Write phone numbers in full with the country code at the beginning even if the audience is UK-based.
If listing contact details write 'Phone' followed by the number, followed by the destination:
- Phone: +44 (0)20 7919 7430 (Undergraduate enquiries)
On the website make these a tel: link so users on mobile phones can click them to make a call. Add an external link in the CMS in the format: tel:+442079197430
Write email addresses in lower case.
Put the email domain (@gold.ac.uk) in brackets – this is to avoid spam.
When writing for an external audience, all email addresses should link to a contact form rather than a mailto: link.
Instructions for adding this in our website CMS are on Goldmine.
Use the following format when writing Goldsmiths’ address:
Goldsmiths, University of London
New Cross
London
SE14 6NW
Phone: +44 (0)20 7919 7171
gold.ac.uk
There is no need for punctuation at the end of each line of an address.
Use Royal Mail's guidelines when writing a postal address.
The first use should be Covid-19 (Coronavirus). Further uses should be Covid-19.
It can also be referred to as:
- Pandemic - when talking about its effect on many people
- Virus - when talking its effect on individuals
Do not use terms like 'crisis'.
Use 'self-isolation' rather than 'stay at home'.
The NHS information pages should be linked to rather than GOV.UK, unless the information is only on GOV.UK.
The correct name for the system for tracing people who have been in contact with someone who has the virus is 'NHS Test and Trace'.
Use 'face coverings' to describe what should be worn in everyday situations. 'Face masks' should not be used except when referring to them as PPE for specific situations.
Dashes and hyphens
Use a dash to separate two values, in place of the word to.
When those values are words (months for example) do not use spaces around the dash.
- The gallery is open Monday-Friday
- Our main Degree Show season runs May-September
When those values are numbers (such as times, dates, or page numbers) use a space around the dash.
-
14 - 16 March
En dashes are longer than dashes or hyphens. They look like this: –
They are used in running prose to highlight a parenthesis – in place of brackets – but always consider if that additional information is necessary.
House style is to use simple language and always try to use one word in place of two.
If necessary, use hyphens to join two words (to make a compound adjective).
- Mid-summer shows
Some commonly used words which do not use a hyphen:
- Postgraduate/undergraduate
- Multimedia
- Website
- Online
- Wellbeing
- Login
You log in (verb) to your email using a login (noun). There is no need to hyphenate in either case.
Dates and times
The standard format should be: day, date, month, year.
Do not include the year if it is obvious which year you are talking about (if you're naming a date in the near future, for example).
Write the date as simple digits, there is no need for th or st.
- Wednesday 14 August
You can use three-letter abbreviations if there are space issues but write the year in full.
- Fri 14 August 2019
- Wed 14 Oct 2014
Use a dash with spaces to separate a range in dates.
- 14 - 16 March
- 1 March - 3 May
Year ranges have a dash without the start of the second year:
- 2012-19
- 2020-21
Use numerals for centuries and decades.
- 1960s
Use lower case for century.
- 21st century
Use a 12-hour format.
You can use midday and midnight if necessary, however always use numerals if expressing a range.
12pm is midday, 12am is midnight.
- Our lunchtime talks start at midday
- 12 - 2pm
Use a dash with spaces to show a range of time.
There is no need for spaces or punctuation around am or pm.
You do not need to state am or pm twice, unless you think it is clearer to do so.
- 9 - 10am
- 9am - 2pm
You only need to say what time of day it was once.
- The students struggle to make it to 9am lectures in the morning is incorrect
- The students struggle to make it to 9am lectures is correct
If necessary (if the audience is international, for example), state the time zone we should use GMT or GMT+1 (if it is during British Summer Time).
- The webinar will begin at 10am GMT
Use a full stop or question mark at the end of every sentence. Avoid the use of exclamation marks.
Do not use full stops after abbreviations.
Do not use full stops in acronyms.
Do not use full stops at the end of bullet points.
Do not use full stops at the end of titles, headers or headlines.
Goldsmiths
Use Goldsmiths, University of London or Goldsmiths.
Never use Goldsmiths University.
The College can be used internally, but avoid it when communicating with an external audience, and never use Goldsmiths College.
Only use an apostrophe when you are indicating possession:
- Goldsmiths’ reputation
If you’re not sure if you need an apostrophe, try substituting Birmingham for Goldsmiths: welcome to Birmingham Open Day doesn’t make sense, whereas welcome to the Birmingham Open Day or welcome to Birmingham’s Open Day does.
Some examples:
- A Goldsmiths degree
- Goldsmiths alumni
- Goldsmiths staff
- Goldsmiths students
- Goldsmiths’ campus
- Goldsmiths’ degrees
- Goldsmiths’ entry requirements
- Goldsmiths’ website
- The Goldsmiths website
Please see the section on apostrophes for more information.
Goldsmiths Centre for Contemporary Art can be used interchangeably with Goldsmiths CCA.
It does not take a definite article, never refer to it as the Goldsmiths CCA or the CCA.
You can use the gallery for variety, but only once you have mentioned its name in full.
Write the name of the department in full. For example, Department of Anthropology not Anthropology Department.
Only use ampersands if necessary to save space.
Use initial capitals when referring to any Goldsmiths department or academic area.
Avoid the use of acronyms in the first instance if you’re writing for an external audience, if necessary you can use acronyms after the first mention.
- Department of Anthropology
- Department of Art
- Department of Computing
- Confucius Institute for Dance and Performance
- Department of Design
- Department of Educational Studies
- Department of English and Comparative Literature
- English Language Centre
- Department of History
- Institute for Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship (ICCE)
- Institute of Management Studies (IMS)
- Department of Law
- Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies (MCCS)
- Department of Music
- Department of Politics and International Relations
- Department of Psychology
- Social, Therapeutic and Community Studies (STaCS)
- Department of Sociology
- Department of Theatre and Performance (TaP)
- Department of Visual Cultures
- Communications, Marketing and Recruitment (CMR)
- Development and Alumni Office (DAO)
- Human Resources (HR)
- Research and Knowledge Exchange (RKE)
- Student Experience Directorate (SED)
Goldsmiths Students’ Union is an independent body.
It belongs to Goldsmiths students rather than Goldsmiths. You do not need an apostrophe on Goldsmiths.
In the first instance, refer to Goldsmiths Students’ Union in full.
You can then refer to the Students’ Union, the SU, or GSU but be consistent with whichever acronym you use.
Goldsmiths campus
Write a location on campus as follows:
- LG01, Professor Stuart Hall Building
Link to the building's page in Place Finder where possible.
Write buildings as they appear on the campus map.
Use initial capitals when referring to Goldsmiths buildings and write them out in full in the first instance.
Avoid the use of acronyms for buildings where possible. If necessary (for space reasons for example) use the acronyms as below:
- Richard Hoggart Building (RHB)
- Professor Stuart Hall Building (PSH)
- Caroline Graveson Building (CGB)
- Deptford Town Hall Building (DTH)
- Laurie Grove Baths
- Ben Pimlott Building
- St James Hatcham Building
- St James Hall
- Lockwood Building
- Lockwood Annexe
- Barriedale Building A
- Barriedale Building B
- Whitehead Building
- Margaret McMillan Building
- Rutherford Building and Library, or Goldsmiths Library*
- Warmington Tower
*Most people will know this building as the Library and will be unaware of the Rutherford Building name. You should refer to it as the Goldsmiths Library when directing people.
- Goldsmiths CCA (see Goldsmiths CCA)
- Goldsmiths Students’ Union Building (see Goldsmiths Students’ Union)
- Thirty Five (not Café 35)
- Peak Street (in PSH)
- The Students’ Union Cafe
- Laurie Grove
- St James’s
Use capitals when you write about a geographical region.
- We’re based in South East London
Use lower case for directions and compass points.
- The Professor Stuart Hall Building is located on the south east side of College Green
- To reach us, head west on New Cross Road from New Cross Gate station
Do not use initial capitals in headings. Use capitals as you would in a normal sentence.
For more guidance on how and when to use headers, see the standard page template guide.
Avoid using idioms. Phrases like this is currently on the cards or the best of both worlds may be unfamiliar to an international audience and won't make sense when translated literally.
Your writing will be clearer and stronger without.
Inclusivity
The language about identity and inclusivity is constantly evolving. Preferences vary from person to person and choice can be politicised.
If you are in any doubt about the appropriate language to use, these resources are helpful:
BME stands for Black and Minority Ethnic.
BAME stands for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic.
Although still problematic BME should be used rather than BAME.
For more guidance on the terms used to describe race and ethnicity and their limitations see this guide by Beyond HE.
Avoid using unnecessary gender binary language.
If you are writing in the third person, use "they", "their" and "them" instead of "he" or "she", "his" or "hers", or "him" or "her".
If you are writing about a known person, use the pronoun that matches their gender.
Use language that conveys a positive message rather than emphasises limitations.
Use terms like:
- Students with disabilities
- Wheelchair users/person who uses a wheelchair
- Person with epilepsy
- Learning disabilities
- Mental health condition
- Health conditions
For more guidance on how to write about disabilities read the Spectrum Council's guide (PDF).
LGBT is used to describe the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans community.
LGBTQ is used to describe the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer community.
Terminology is frequently changing and can be highly individualised.
The LGBT equality charity, Stonewall, provides a thorough up-to-date glossary of terms which you may find useful.
Avoid the use of italics online.
For publications and titles, use inverted commas.
- Eimarr McBride was the first winner of the £10,000 prize with her work ‘A Girl is A Half-formed Thing’.
There is no need to italicise or use inverted commas when referring to newspapers or magazines.
The exception is using citations in an established style. For example, when referring to an article in a published text.
- 'The History of Protest at Goldsmiths', History Today, 2005
Goldsmiths Library has a good guide on how to reference citations on their Referencing page.
Miles (mi) for long distances.
Metres (m) and centimetres (cm) for shorter distances.
Kilograms (kg) for weight.
Celsius (°c) for temperature.
In the middle of a sentence write a measurement as a word.
- Goldsmiths is in New Cross, South East London, five miles from central London
If the measurement is part of a specification, use the abbreviation.
- Tennis court dimension: 20m x 8m
Use words for one to ten and numerals for 11 to 999,999.
Use numerals for percentages and money of any amount.
If you’re writing about people or animals, write million, billion and trillion in full. Abbreviations can be used for space in a headline.
If you’re writing about inanimate things (sums of money, for example) use the abbreviations m, bn and trn.
- The £50m grant
- Reaching 5 million people
People, Professors and Job Titles
Use the Warden’s full title in the first instance.
- Professor Frances Corner
Thereafter use Professor Corner.
For variety you can also use the Warden.
Use the following formats for roles at Goldsmiths:
- The Pro-Warden
- The Associate Pro-Warden (Collaborative Provision)
- The Head of Department
Capitalise job titles if you are referring to a specific or title, use lower case if you are describing the content of someone’s role.
- John Price, Head of the Department of History
- The matter will be passed on to our finance managers for their consideration
If a job title immediately follows or precedes a name, it will almost always take capital letters.
Never use one as a personal pronoun.
Use you and we where possible.
- We have a green, a tennis court and lots of sports societies and clubs
Put punctuation inside the quotation mark if you're reporting a full quoted sentence, outside if the quote is a fragment.
- The student said the award was “exciting” and would help contribute to further study. She said, “This is going to provide us with so many opportunities. I can’t wait to see what the future holds.”
Use the following format to refer to qualifications and degrees:
- A-level
- BTEC
- BA
- BMus
- BSc
- GCSE
- Graduate Diploma
- HNC or Higher National Certificate
- MA
- MFA
- MMus
- MPhil
- MSc
- Masters degree (not Master’s degree)
- Postgraduate
- PGCE or Postgraduate Certificate in Education
- PhD
- T Level
- Undergraduate
Our full degrees are referred to as degrees or programmes. However, to help people searching for programmes online, we will sometimes refer to them interchangeably as courses.
Use double quotation marks to report direct speech.
Use single quotation marks around any words contained within that quote.
- Professor Jones said: “Some students begin the course saying ‘theory is boring’, but they understand its importance by the time they graduate.”
Introduce quotes with a colon.
Do not use single quotes for emphasis, to impose judgement or place doubt on a word – as you would use air quotes, for example.
An exception can be made for news headlines, when single quotes can be used for conciseness.
Use single inverted commas when referring to published texts or articles.
- Last year’s Goldsmiths Prize winner, the ‘Long Take’ by Robin Robertson
- 'The History of Protest at Goldsmiths', History Today, 2005
If you are using a quote of a paragraph or more, use quotation marks at the start of the quote, at the start of each new paragraph, and at the close of the quote. To make it clear the quote is continuous, do not close the quote between each new paragraph.
If the quote constitutes the main body of the text – as in online student case studies – and it is clear the text is reporting speech, you only need a quotation mark at the beginning and end of the quote.
Use single spaces between words and sentences online.
There is no need to use a double space after a full stop.
Use single inverted commas when referring to published texts.
- Last year’s Goldsmiths Prize winner, 'The Long Take’ by Robin Robertson
- 'The History of Protest at Goldsmiths', History Today, 2005
Use capital letters when citing a published text. Do not use capital letters for a header or headline of your own page.
We use UK spellings.
- Recognise (not recognize)
- Organise (not organize)
- Analyse (not analyze)
- Enrol (not enroll)
- Flavour (not flavor)
To make it clear you are talking about a website, write out website addresses and hyperlink the address – you don’t need the www.
- Book tickets through eventbrite.com
Certain websites are recognisable by their brand names, such as Twitter and Facebook, so don’t need to be followed by .com.
For more guidance on the best ways to link to other sites, see the standard page template guide.