Australian Style Manual MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides Claude with access to the Australian Government Style Manual as a reference tool for writing guidance.

📦 Available on npm: mcp-australian-style-manual

Features

• Global cache system: Download content once, automatically reused across all projects
• Permanent storage: Downloaded files persist forever until manually refreshed
• Four MCP tools:
  • fetch_style_page: Fetch individual pages from the Style Manual
  • search_style_content: Search across ALL cached content instantly (155+ pages)
  • download_all_content: Bulk download to global cache for universal access
  • rewrite_with_style_guide: Rewrite documents using Style Manual guidelines
• Zero project clutter: No files created in user project directories
• Lightning-fast searches: Instant results from cached content
• Respectful scraping: Built-in rate limiting and batch processing
• Domain validation: Only allows URLs from stylemanual.gov.au
• Rich markdown output: Properly formatted content with sections and navigation

Installation

NPM Package Install (Recommended)

1. Install the package from npm:

npm install -g mcp-australian-style-manual

2. Add the server configuration:

Option A: Using Claude CLI (Recommended):

claude mcp add --scope user australian-style-manual npx mcp-australian-style-manual

Option B: Manual configuration file edit:

code ~/.config/claude/settings.json

3. (Manual option only) Add the server configuration to the "mcp" → "servers" section:

{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "australian-style-manual": {
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["mcp-australian-style-manual"]
      }
    }
  }
}

4. Restart Claude Code

Development Install (Local)

For development or customization:

# Clone and build from source
git clone https://github.com/jerome-erasmus/mcp-style-guide.git
cd mcp-style-guide
yarn install
yarn build

Add to Claude Code MCP configuration (~/.config/claude/settings.json):

Add this to the "mcp" → "servers" section:

{
  "mcp": {
    "servers": {
      "australian-style-manual": {
        "command": "node",
        "args": ["/absolute/path/to/mcp-style-guide/dist/server.js"]
      }
    }
  }
}

Alternative Install Methods

Global install:

npm install -g mcp-australian-style-manual

Quick test without install:

npx mcp-australian-style-manual --help

Uninstall

To completely remove the MCP server:

1. Remove from Claude configuration:

claude mcp remove australian-style-manual

2. Uninstall the npm package:

npm uninstall -g mcp-australian-style-manual

How It Works

1. Download Content (One Time Setup)

You: "Download all Australian Style Manual content"

Claude Code: Uses download_all_content({ forceRefresh: false })

Result: Creates global cache with 155+ pages accessible from any project

Cache Location: <mcp-server>/cache/ (automatically managed, no user interaction needed)

2. Daily Usage (Instant Results)

Scenario: "How do I use semicolons in government writing?"

Claude Code: Uses search_style_content({ query: "semicolon" })

Result: Instant search across ALL 155+ cached pages (no network calls)

Scenario: "Show me accessibility guidelines"

Claude Code: Uses search_style_content({ query: "accessibility" })

Result: Comprehensive results from cached accessibility pages

Scenario: "Find all mentions of 'plain English'"

Claude Code: Uses search_style_content({ query: "plain english" })

Result: All relevant content instantly available

3. Targeted Updates

You: "Check the latest grammar guidelines"

Claude Code: Uses fetch_style_page() for just that page

4. Research Queries

You: "Find content about bullet points across multiple pages"

Claude Code: Uses search_style_content() for comprehensive search

5. Document Rewriting

You: "Rewrite this government document to follow Style Manual guidelines"

Claude Code: Uses rewrite_with_style_guide() to apply plain language, active voice, and accessibility improvements

MCP Tools Reference

download_all_content (Primary Tool)

Download all Style Manual pages to permanent global cache.

When to use: Initial setup, or when forcing content refresh

Input:

{ "forceRefresh": false }

Parameters:

• forceRefresh (optional, default: false): Force re-download even if cache exists

Global Cache Structure:

<mcp-server>/cache/
├── index.md                    # Quick reference guide
├── sections/                   # 155+ content pages
│   ├── grammar-punctuation.md
│   ├── accessible-content.md
│   ├── writing-guidelines.md
│   ├── plain-language-and-word-choice.md
│   ├── sentences.md
│   ├── punctuation-and-capitalisation.md
│   ├── apostrophes.md
│   ├── commas.md
│   ├── lists.md
│   ├── headings.md
│   ├── links.md
│   ├── tables.md
│   └── ... (all Style Manual pages)
├── search-index/              # Keywords and topics
└── metadata/                  # Update tracking

fetch_style_page (Targeted Updates)

Fetch individual pages from the Style Manual.

When to use: Getting latest version of specific pages

Input:

{ "url": "https://www.stylemanual.gov.au/grammar-punctuation-and-conventions/" }

search_style_content (Research)

Search across ALL cached content instantly (155+ pages).

When to use: Any content search - automatically uses cache when available

Input:

{ 
  "query": "plain English",
  "urls": ["optional array of specific URLs - falls back to web if cache unavailable"]
}

Cache Behavior:

• ✅ Cache available: Searches ALL 155+ cached pages instantly
• ⚠️ No cache: Falls back to web search with specified URLs
• 🔍 Comprehensive: Searches entire Style Manual when cached

rewrite_with_style_guide (Document Improvement)

Rewrite documents using Australian Style Manual guidelines for clarity, accessibility, and government standards. Supports both direct content and file input/output.

When to use: Improving existing documents, ensuring compliance with government writing standards

Input Options:

Option 1: Direct content

{
  "document": "Your document text here...",
  "outputFile": "optional/output/path.md",
  "focusAreas": ["plain-language", "active-voice", "structure"],
  "targetAudience": "general-public", 
  "explanation": true
}

Option 2: File input/output

{
  "inputFile": "path/to/input.md",
  "outputFile": "path/to/improved.md",
  "focusAreas": ["plain-language", "accessibility", "inclusive-language"],
  "targetAudience": "technical-audience",
  "explanation": true
}

Option 3: File input with console output

{
  "inputFile": "path/to/input.md",
  "focusAreas": ["structure", "plain-language"],
  "targetAudience": "government-staff"
}

Parameters:

• document (optional): Direct text content to rewrite
• inputFile (optional): Path to input file to read and rewrite
• outputFile (optional): Path to save the rewritten content
• focusAreas: Areas to focus on (see full list below)
• targetAudience: "general-public", "government-staff", or "technical-audience"
• explanation: Include explanation of changes made

Note: Either document or inputFile must be provided.

Focus Areas (defaults to comprehensive readability, structure, and formatting areas):

• plain-language: Year 7 reading level, simple words (default)
• active-voice: Convert passive to active voice (default)
• structure: Improve headings, paragraphs, and lists (default)
• accessibility: Optimize for screen readers and disabilities (default)
• inclusive-language: Remove bias and discriminatory language (default)
• structuringContent: Content architecture and organization (default)
• headings: Descriptive, hierarchical heading structure (default)
• links: Descriptive link text and external link handling (default)
• lists: Proper bulleted and numbered list formatting (default)
• paragraphs: Focus and length optimization (default)
• tables: Accessible table structure and headers (default)
• sentences: Clear, concise sentence structure and length (default)
• howPeopleFindInfo: Scanning patterns and cognitive load reduction (default)
• numeralsOrWords: Number formatting and numeral conventions (default)
• currency: Australian currency formats and standards (default)
• dateTime: Clear date and time formatting (default)
• typesStructure: Appropriate content structure selection (default)
• hierarchicalStructure: Overview-to-detail organization (default)
• sequentialStructure: Step-by-step and process structures (default)
• punctuation: Fix punctuation and grammar issues
• grammar: Improve sentence structure and word choice
• spelling: Fix common misspellings and word confusion
• reports: Specific guidelines for government reports and authoritative documents
• government-writing: Government Writing Handbook principles for official documents (default)
• shortened-words: Consistent abbreviations, acronyms, and contractions (default)
• terminology: Proper government, commercial, and geographic terminology (default)
• extended-punctuation: Advanced punctuation (dashes, colons, brackets, ellipses)
• content-types: Format-specific guidelines for blogs, emails, forms, PDFs, social media
• writing-process: Content strategy, user research, and systematic editing approaches

Target Audiences:

• general-public: Simplest language, no jargon (default)
• government-staff: Some department terms acceptable
• technical-audience: Technical terms allowed when appropriate

Example Output:

# Rewritten Document
[Improved document text with Style Manual guidelines applied]

## Style Manual Guidelines Applied
**Target Audience:** general-public
**Focus Areas:** plain-language, active-voice, punctuation

### Key Changes Made:
- Reduced word count by 45 words for clarity
- Converted passive voice to active voice
- Replaced complex words with simpler alternatives
- Shortened average sentence length from 28 to 16 words

### Style Manual Sources:
- https://www.stylemanual.gov.au/writing-and-designing-content/clear-language-and-writing-style/plain-language-and-word-choice
- https://www.stylemanual.gov.au/accessible-and-inclusive-content/literacy-and-access

Usage Examples

Writing a Press Release:

search_style_content({ query: "press release media" })
search_style_content({ query: "tone voice" })
search_style_content({ query: "accessible inclusive content" })

Checking Punctuation:

search_style_content({ query: "apostrophe semicolon" })

Finding Guidelines:

search_style_content({ query: "acronym" })
search_style_content({ query: "accessibility" })

Simple Document Rewrite:

// Direct content rewrite
{
  "tool": "rewrite_with_style_guide",
  "document": "The utilisation of this process will be implemented by the department in order to facilitate improved outcomes for stakeholders.",
  "targetAudience": "general-public"
}

File-to-File Document Processing:

// Read from file, write improved version to another file
{
  "tool": "rewrite_with_style_guide",
  "inputFile": "./documents/draft-policy.md",
  "outputFile": "./documents/draft-policy-improved.md",
  "focusAreas": ["plain-language", "structure", "inclusive-language"],
  "targetAudience": "general-public",
  "explanation": true
}

Batch Document Processing:

// Process file and save improved version
{
  "tool": "rewrite_with_style_guide", 
  "inputFile": "./complex-policy.md",
  "outputFile": "./simple-policy.md",
  "focusAreas": ["accessibility", "plain-language", "structure"],
  "targetAudience": "general-public"
}

Development

yarn dev      # Development mode
yarn build    # Build TypeScript
yarn test     # Run tests

License

MIT