Our House Style

An overview of how to write as Alpha

Who is this for?

As a global organisation we write and speak in British English. If you’re making content for Alpha International, or in the UK, this guidance is for you.

If you’re writing for an audience that spell realize with a z, or say sidewalk rather than pavement, don’t feel bound by these rules; you can adapt this House Style so that it works in your region. If you’re writing in a language other than English, please see this guide as a template for creating your own.

Alpha Web Icons 2021_Artboard 2.png

What’s included?

Alpha Web Icons 2021_Artboard 7.png

Our voice

Discover our tone of voice and the creative values we want to project. Also in this section, tips for making an impact and writing for a digital audience.

Alpha Web Icons 2021_Artboard 8.png

Our style

Get stuck into the nitty gritty of our editorial style. This section includes guidance on punctuation, spelling, titling, writing in numbers, and formatting.

Alpha Web Icons 2021_Artboard 9.png

Alpha in words

Is it Youth Alpha or Alpha Youth? Is it okay to say Alpha Course? What on Earth does TPMC mean? Find examples of how we talk and decode some acronyms.

Our voice

Discover our tone of voice and writing guide

5 creative values

We want our personality and values to shine through in the way we communicate, whether on paper or in person.

Friendly

We want to provide a positive, welcoming and inclusive first impression – just like at a session of Alpha. We are flexible, understanding, and quick to help where we can. We are relatable and speak to people on their level. We’re personal, not corporate.

Inspiring

The experience of Alpha is always fun and often life-changing. Whether it’s an invitation to run, try, or give to Alpha we present it as an exciting and uplifting opportunity. Our writing should encourage and inspire our readers to take action.

Bold

We want people to see Alpha as a bold and exciting experience. We see life as an adventure and the exploration of faith as a key part of that journey. We understand people may be nervous to try or run Alpha, we encourage them to take a risk and see what happens.

Authentic

We are open about Alpha and how it works. When we connect with people we allow our human characteristics to shine through, such as humour and vulnerability. We don’t sugar-coat the truth or up-sell our offering. We’re always upfront and honest.

Simple

We are down to earth and accessible. When we speak we are clear and get straight to the point. We don’t use Christian jargon or language that alienates or confuses our readers. We are not ambiguous, vague or rambling. We are not verbose.

Our style

From Oxford Commas to the Cambridge Dictionary, welcome to the Alpha House Style

Punctuation

  • Full points in titling

    Never use full points after titles. Titles can however end with an exclamation point or question mark.

    For example

    Alpha Style Guide

    How to Run Alpha Online

    Alpha Film Series

    Who is the Holy Spirit?

  • Abbreviations and contractions

    Do not use full points in abbreviations or contractions.

    For example

    Mrs Landingham

    Dr Jones

    St Paul

    USA

    Eg

    Etc

  • Lists

    Don’t use full points at the end of bullet points (even the final one). The same rule applies for numbered and dashed lists.

    For example

    1. No full stop here please

    2. Here? Not here either

    3. Not even on the final item in the list

  • Commas

    Generally we don’t use an Oxford comma (a comma used after the penultimate item in a list), unless it adds clarity to the meaning.

    For example

    There were five of us: Laura, Kurt, Kitty, Philippa and Jo.

  • Quotations

    Use single quote marks for speech or quoted matter. Only use double quote marks for speech within speech.

    For example

    ‘Then something happened, I couldn’t believe my eyes.’

    ‘That’s when I said, “look at that” and pointed wildly.’

  • Hyphens

    As far as possible, the hyphenation of words and phrases should be kept to a minimum. Hyphens (-) should be used only when joining words to avoid ambiguity.

    For example

    Step-mother

    Twenty-three

    One-to-one

  • En-dashes

    En-dashes (–) are longer than hyphens and should be used without spaces for number ranges. Spaced en-dashes can be used where a comma or parenthesis might otherwise be used.

    Number range example

    Suitable for ages 4–8.

    In the years 1904–1915.

    Spaced example

    These attitudes – love and joy – should fill our hearts.

    Welcome to Alpha – we’re so glad you could make it!

  • Ellipses

    An ellipsis has no space before starting, but does have a space after. No spaces between dots.

    For example

    This is a great ellipsis... Really great.

Spelling

  • British English spelling

    Keep in mind that we use British English spellings, rather than US English spellings. Differences are often found in words ending ise/ize or containing our/or.

    For example

    Advise

    Advertise

    Exercise

    Colour

    Favourite

  • British common usage

    Always use terms common to British English, rather than US English.

    For example

    Shop not store

    Garden not yard

    Pavement not sidewalk

    Flat not apartment

    Mum not Mom

    Lift not elevator

  • Look it up

    To make sure we’re as consistent as possible across our products, communications and content, use the Cambridge Dictionary as your reference when looking up spellings.

    Cambridge Dictionary

Capitalisation

  • Our general style

    Generally, our house preference is to use lower case letters whenever possible.

    Our approach to capitalisation around religious language is guided by the NIV Bible editorial style.

  • Specific titles

    Role titles: Only capitalise for specific titles, eg I am President of Uganda vs I want to be the president one day.

    Institutions: Only capitalise for specific names, eg I went to Oxford University vs I went to university in Oxford.

    Geographical areas: Only capitalise when referring to a set geographic area, eg South-East Asia vs southern Scotland

  • Church talk

    The church: The universal church should be lowercase, eg The early church, The global church, The church is growing in Colombia. So should references to specific churches when not using their full name, eg I go to the Baptist church round the corner. However the word should be capitalised when referring to a denomination, eg The Catholic Church is growing in Colombia.

    Denominations: Denominations should always be capitalised, eg Roman Catholic, Baptist, Anglican

  • Holy words

    Deity: Upper case letters should be used at the start of words referring to Deity, eg the Saviour, the Messiah, God, the Spirit. But pronouns referring to God should be lower case, eg his, you, your, who.

    The Bible: Upper case letters should be used to start words that are synonyms for the Bible, eg the Law, the Scriptures, the Bible.

    Gospel: The word gospel should be lowercase when speaking of the good news, eg Let us share the gospel. But when referring to a specific testimony in the Bible it should be capitalised, eg Luke’s Gospel.

Numbers

  • Writing numbers

    It’s our house style to write out (in words, not figures) all numbers from one to ninety-nine and write out (in figures, not words) all numbers above 100.

    Eg.

    One cat

    Fourteen dogs

    Thirty-three badgers

    1,672 otters

    But—this rule is flexible. If the medium calls for it, you can use your own discretion. For example, you might want to design a giant 3 to illustrate three points, or write a blog with a catchy title like ‘7 things you never knew about hazelnuts’. It’s also useful to pick one style if using in close proximity, for instance, if a sentence include a 92 and 120, choose either figures or words to prioritise ease for the reader.

    Oh, and percentages are always numerals. Eg 5 per cent or 83%

  • Dates

    To avoid the numerals coming together, always write dates like this:

    15 June 2022 or on 15 June

    NOT 15th June, 2009 or 15th June 2009, June 22 or June 22nd etc

    Never use the pattern 6.15.91 – transatlantic confusion will abound

    Decades: 1990s (not 1990’s or ’90s)

    No comma for thousands in dates: so, 3000 BC not 3,000 BC; 1750 BC not 1,750 BC.

    Pairs of dates: 1890­–1910, 1971­–75 (not 1971–­1975 or 1970­–5).

  • Times

    Always write times like this:

    8 am

    8.30 am

    1 pm

    1.30 pm

    7 pm

    8.50 pm

    Use words for periods of time, ‘it took him six months’ (but numerals for periods of time over 100, ‘600 years ago’)

Alpha in words

In-house language and an acronym decoder

Talking about Alpha

Previously, Alpha was known as The Alpha Course. Now, it’s just ‘Alpha’. For instance, Try Alpha, Run Alpha, Give to Alpha. The word course can be used to describe the structure but never capitalised, for instance, ‘Alpha is a great course.’

When describing the experience, use the word ‘sessions’ over ‘weeks’, roles at Alpha should not be capitalised, for instance, hosts and helpers.

Generally, teams and departments start with the word Alpha, followed by the category or function: Alpha Youth, Alpha Prisons, Alpha Digital.

Acronyms

  • Acronyms

    At Alpha, we love an acronym (WLAA). Here’s a quick guide to some of the most common acronyms.

    Regions

    EMENA – Europe, Middle East, North Africa

    Lat Am – Latin America

    NAO – National Alpha Office

    AO – Alpha Office

    APAC – Asia Pacific

    ASSA – Alpha Sub Saharan Africa

    AUSA – Alpha USA

    AUK – Alpha UK

    Products

    BNAP – Bible with Nicky and Pippa Gumbel

    AFS – Alpha Film Series

    AYS – Alpha Youth Series

    TMC – The Marriage Course

    TPMC – The Pre-Marriage Course

  • More Acronyms

    Please do only use these in internal comms (otherwise you’ll see a lot of confused faces when you talk about EMENA sharing at ExCo about using TPMC in their CEF).

    Events & Affiliated Groups

    LC – Leadership Conference

    GELC – Global Emerging Leader Cohort

    ELG – EMENA Leaders’ Gathering

    ALG – APAC Leaders’ Gathering

    EA – Experience Alpha

    AC – Alpha Collective

    HTB – Holy Trinity Brompton

    HTBB – Holy Trinity Bukit Bintang

    CRT – Church Revitalisation Trust

    Committees & Governance

    ExCo – Global Executive Committee

    OpCo – Global Operations Committee

    Op Leads – Global Operations Leads Committee

    RemCo – Renumeration Committee

    COG – Core Operating Group

    AI – Alpha International

    AI USA – Alpha International USA (separate entity to AI)

  • Last one, I promise

    Strategies & Processes

    GPMS – Global Product Management System

    DMS – Devotion Management System (related to BNAP)

    PGF – Product Globalisation Framework

    CEF – Church Engagement Framework

    CDR – Continuous Development Review (review process with manager)

    In-House Naming

    MyAlpha – A website for churches to get free digital resources to help run Alpha

    AlphaNow – Free online platform for churches to host/run Alpha online

    Marriage Builder – A website where churches register courses for TMC and TPMC

    Hub Church – A strategic church with experience running Alpha and supports other churches in their area with training