You know that feeling when you've spent hours getting an Easy Read document just right - the layout works, the symbols land perfectly, the language flows - and then someone asks for the same thing but for a different person? Or a different service? Or a different date?

You open the original, copy the text, start changing names and places, and before long you've got three tabs open and you're not sure which version is which.

We built EasyMaker Templates to fix exactly that.

Save any pack as a template

Any pack you've created in EasyMaker can become a reusable template with a single toggle. Once it's a template, it appears in a template browser where you (or your team) can use it again and again. Every time someone uses it, they get their own fresh copy – the original stays exactly as it is.

There are three levels:

• Personal Templates – just for you. Perfect for documents you make regularly, like appointment letters or weekly updates.
• Team Templates – shared with everyone in your organisation. Great for making sure the whole team uses the same format and language.
• EasyMaker Templates – curated by Photosymbols and available to all users. Ready-made starting points for common document types.

You can preview every page of a template before you use it, so you know exactly what you're getting.

Now add placeholders – and things get really interesting

Templates on their own save time. But what if you could also fill in the bits that change each time – without opening the editor at all?

That's where template variables come in.

When you're building a template you'll find the Insert Template Variable button in the text toolbar – or you can simply type them in directly by putting words in square brackets. For example:

Dear [name], your appointment is on [date] at [location].

When someone uses that template, they see a simple form asking for Name, Date, and Location. They fill in the details, click a button, and the pack is created with everything already in place.

No editing. No hunting through pages for the bits that need changing. Just fill in the form and go.

Use cases we're excited about

We've been thinking about how this could help the people who use our service every day. Here are a few ideas.

Annual Health Check invitation letters
Create a template with placeholders for the patient's name, appointment date, time, and practitioner's name. Reception staff can produce a personalised Easy Read letter in seconds – no design skills needed.

Supported living welcome packs
A template for new service users with placeholders for their name, their key worker, and important contact numbers. Consistent, professional, and personal.

Activity club schedules
A weekly schedule template for an activity group where staff fill in the activity name, time, and location. Group members get a fresh, clear timetable every week.

The common thread: you design it once, and anyone on your team can produce personalised Easy Read documents without needing to understand the editor.

Works with AI conversion too

Here's where templates become even more powerful.

When you use EasyMaker's AI conversion – where you paste in standard text and it's converted into Easy Read – you can now choose a template as the layout. Instead of starting from a blank page, the AI fills your chosen template structure with the converted content.

You get two options:

• Keep existing content – the AI only fills in the empty blocks. Any text or images already in the template stay put. This is perfect when your template has fixed sections (like a header or contact details) alongside sections that change each time.
• Structure only – the AI replaces everything, using the template purely for its layout. Same number of pages, same block arrangement, but fresh content throughout.

And yes, template variables work here too. If your template has placeholders and you choose "Keep existing content", you can fill in the variable form before the AI does its work. The result is a document that combines your fixed personalised details with AI-converted content – all in one step.

A real example

Imagine you run a supported living service. You regularly need to produce Easy Read guides about local services – the GP surgery, the library, the leisure centre.

You create a template with:

• A title card with [service name] as the heading
• An introduction block: "This is about [service name] in [town]"
• Several content blocks for the AI to fill
• A final page with your organisation's contact details (fixed, never changes)

When a new local service guide is needed, a member of your team:

1. Starts an AI conversion with the source text about the service
2. Selects your template
3. Fills in "service name" and "town"
4. Clicks convert

Thirty seconds later, they have a fully formatted Easy Read guide with the right branding, the right structure, personalised details, and AI-converted content. Ready to review and share.

Getting started

If you're already using EasyMaker, you can start today. Find a pack you'd like to reuse, toggle the Template switch on the pack card, and it's ready to go. To add placeholders, just type variable names in square brackets – like [name] or [date] – anywhere in the editor. Head to Start from Template and it's right there waiting.

One more thing

We know that for many services, consistency matters as much as speed. When every document follows the same format and uses the same clear language, the people reading them can trust what they're looking at. Templates help you build that consistency into your workflow, rather than relying on everyone remembering "how we usually do it".

If you have ideas for public templates you'd like us to create – document types you use all the time – we'd love to hear from you. Get in touch and let us know.