What we publish

Anyone working on digital services and products for Defence can use the Defence Service Manual. The manual helps teams deliver great digital services and products.

In the manual, we include things like:

• how to meet service standards in Defence
• how to do your role in Defence
• shared approaches to doing common tasks
• what tools you are allowed to use

What we do not publish

We do not include large pieces of content published elsewhere, for example:

• existing sections on GOV.UK, including the GOV.UK service manual
• Ministry of Defence strategy, policy and rules
• security guidelines from the National Cyber Security Centre

When it is useful, we introduce content published in other places and provide a link.

Suggest content

Send content you would like in the Defence Service Manual to service-manual@digital.mod.uk.

You need to include:

• who the content is most useful for
• what tasks they are trying to complete
• the security classification

Currently, we only publish OFFICIAL information. Check how to classify information.

What happens next

We will let you know if the content fits in the Defence Service Manual or suggest another place to publish it.

If your content fits in the Defence Service Manual, we will review it and share our edits with you.

Get content updated

If you spot content that needs updating or removing, send the details to service-manual@digital.mod.uk.

You need to include:

• a link to the relevant pages
• details of the change
• why the change is needed

You can make the changes in a Word or Google document or we can write the new content with you.

Writing for the manual

We can add and update content quicker if it is in the GOV.UK style and MOD tone of voice.

If you prefer to send us a rough draft, we can edit it. We’ll share our edits with you before publishing.

Ministry of Defence tone of voice

In the MOD brand guidelines, our tone of voice is defined as:

• clear and straightforward
• confident and action-orientated
• friendly but respectful
• modern but not informal
• authoritative and expert
• human and authentic

Make every word count

Follow these tips for writing clear content:

• use straightforward language that can be easily understood
• avoid jargon, acronyms, abbreviations and unnecessary technical language
• if acronyms must be used, spell these out in full on first use
• keep sentences short – text should be punchy and succinct
• use active, not passive language, for example use ‘we communicate to staff’ instead of ‘staff are communicated to’
• speak to your audience but do not try to imitate them, for example avoid ‘street talk’
• do not use formal or long words when straightforward or short ones will do. Use ‘buy’ instead of ‘purchase’, ‘help’ instead of ‘assist’, ‘about’ instead of ‘approximately’ and ‘like’ instead of ‘such as’