Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · IELTS Predictions Nov 2026 · 2026-11-03
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
You take the number 24 bus from Northfield to the city centre several times a week. Recently, you have found it difficult to plan your journeys because you cannot rely on the service. You decide to write to the bus company to explain your concerns and ask it to improve the service.
Write a letter to the bus company. In your letter
- explain why you use this bus service
- describe the problems you have experienced with it
- suggest what changes the company could make to improve the service
You do NOT need to write any addresses.
Begin your letter as follows:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Student answer (Band 6.5)
Dear Sir,
I am writing to express my concern about the poor and unreliable service of the number 24 bus, which operates between Northfield and the City centre.
I use the number 24 bus several times a week. I use it to go to work from Northfield to the City centre. It is affordable and convenient tranporation for me. From few weeks, I have experienced problem with it which put detrimental impact on my work. Sometimes buses do not arrive on time and long waiting times at bus stop. Most of the time buses are overcrowded during peak hours. So, I arrive late at my work and I feel very embarassed when everytime I am giving same reason for late arriving.
I will appreciate it if you increase the number of buses and providing more buses during peak hours. You can also inform passenger about delays and follow the proper timetable.
I am looking forward to your feedback.
Yours sincerely,
Kirandeep kaur
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0
The letter addresses all three points and maintains a clear, appropriate purpose: you explain that you travel to work, describe late and overcrowded buses, and request more services and better delay information. The consequences—arriving late and having to repeat the same explanation at work—help extend the complaint rather than merely listing problems. Your requests are relevant, though the suggestion to follow the timetable could be made more specific, such as monitoring departures or providing a live update system. The opening and closing are suitable for a formal complaint. To strengthen the response further, develop the proposed improvements with a little more detail and make the requested action especially clear.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0
The information follows a clear progression: purpose, reasons for using the bus, service problems and their effects, then suggested improvements. This makes the letter easy to follow, and the paragraph breaks separate the main stages effectively. Linking expressions such as “Sometimes,” “Most of the time” and “So” help show sequence and cause and effect. However, several short sentences repeat “I use” and “buses,” so some connections feel basic rather than flexible. The final paragraph also combines several requests without explaining how they relate. Varying the sentence openings and grouping the proposed changes more deliberately would make the progression smoother while preserving the clear organisation already present.
Lexical Resource: Band 6.0
You use an adequate range of vocabulary for a formal service complaint, including “unreliable service,” “overcrowded,” “peak hours” and “detrimental impact.” These choices communicate the main concerns clearly, and the tone is generally appropriate. Some word-choice and spelling errors reduce precision: “tranporation” is misspelled, “embarassed” is misspelled, and “detrimental impact on my work” is an awkward collocation in this context. “Late arriving” and “inform passenger” are also not expressed naturally. Aim for accurate, conventional phrases such as “disrupt my work,” “arriving late” and “inform passengers about delays.” More precise vocabulary would make the complaint sound more fluent and professional.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The letter uses mostly simple sentence patterns, with some attempts to connect ideas through cause and effect, as in “So, I arrive late at my work.” Meaning remains clear overall, but several grammatical errors show that control is not yet consistent. For example, “From few weeks” needs an article and a different time expression, while “Sometimes buses do not arrive on time and long waiting times at bus stop” joins a complete clause to a fragment. In “I will appreciate it if you increase … and providing,” the verb forms are not parallel. There are also issues with articles and plurals, as in “at bus stop” and “inform passenger.” Practise complete clauses and consistent verb forms in requests.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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