Active grammar layer
Singles
#Use singles when one main condition explains most of what is going wrong.
Some entries on this page are marked provisional. That means they are published here, but still under review.
- Entries
- 11
- Under review
- 3 provisional
Indirect access
A service says access is available, but a person still needs another person, permission, or hidden step to get through.
Use this single when entry depends on help, approval, accompaniment, or a condition that the service does not show clearly enough up front.
Short example. A resident can book online only after phoning the office to check whether they are really allowed to proceed.
Threshold
The hard part is getting over the line into the next step.
Use this single when the key question is entry: what has to happen before a person can move forward, and what they meet at that point.
Short example. Someone reaches the booking step and only then learns they need proof of address before they can continue.
Route
The service only works if a person can keep track of the sequence.
Use this single when the problem lives in the path between steps, not only in one screen, call, or form.
Short example. A tenant can start the repair process, but after a missed visit they no longer know what step comes next.
Dependency
The visible service depends on hidden work elsewhere.
Use this single when the person-facing experience relies on another team, queue, approval, or system that the person cannot see.
Short example. A support adviser sounds ready to help, but the case cannot move until another team updates the record behind the scenes.
Exchange
The service depends on something important being handed over well.
Use this single when information, trust, responsibility, or case state has to pass between people or teams.
Short example. A customer explains the case once, but the next team receives only part of the information.
Interruption
The process breaks and the service does not help the person recover well.
Use this single when a pause, delay, or break leaves people unsure how to restart or continue.
Short example. A person stops halfway through an application and comes back to find their place lost.
Repeated effort
The same small piece of work keeps coming back.
Use this single when repeated checking, re-entry, restating, or chasing becomes part of the service burden.
Short example. A caller gives the same address details on the form, then again on the phone, then again at the appointment.
Return
Coming back is part of how the service really works.
Use this single when retrying, re-entering, or looping back is normal rather than exceptional.
Short example. A benefits check is not done once. People have to come back with more documents and restart the process.
Directed effort
Progress is possible, but only if someone pushes much harder than they should need to.
Use this provisional single when the service can be moved through only by persistence, chasing, or force that feels out of proportion to the task.
Short example. A resident only gets a response after repeated calls, emails, and follow-up messages.
Ambiguity
A person can continue, but they still cannot tell what the situation means.
Use this provisional single when the service gives enough to act, but not enough to understand the moment with confidence.
Short example. A status message says "in progress", but the person cannot tell whether anything has actually been approved.
Shelter
The service needs to give pause or reassurance before movement can restart.
Use this provisional single when holding, pausing, or protecting the person is part of the service condition, not just a nice extra.
Short example. After a failed assessment, the service needs to steady the person before asking them to try again.