Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-19

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show a harbour in 2000 and how it looks today.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

 

 

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The layout illustrates revised picture of Porth Harbour which has been taken place recently and being compared with the previous scenario of the harbour from the year 2000.At a glance,the major alter has been done in the castle area where a hotel has been constructed.

Overall,it is evident that,there are three key changes which has undergone is the castle area where a new hotel has been constructed with a new connected route with a single road which happens to be connected with the main road.Moreover,a beach has been taken privately under the hotel ownership which used to be a public beach.Furthermore,an area has been dedicated for cafe and shopping purpose near the lifeboat area which used to be an open land.Additionally,a new bathroom area has been built near the car park to the west.However,there are some minor relocation took place such as Marina (private yachts) has been swaped with the fishing boats counter.However,there has not been any major changes took place in other areas of the harbour.

In conclusion,the redevelopmental plan of the Porth Harbour consists of less changes through the area except some places.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify several important developments, including the hotel replacing the disused castle, the southern beach becoming private, cafés and shops being added near the lifeboat station, and the marina and fishing-boat areas switching locations. These are relevant comparisons and support a generally clear account of the redevelopment. However, some details are unclear or inaccurate: the route is described as “new” even though the road is shown in both plans, and the added showers and toilets are not clearly distinguished from the existing facilities. The overview also says there were “three key changes” but then lists more, while the final claim that there were “less changes” understates the range of alterations. Group the main changes more precisely and clarify which facilities were added or relocated.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has an identifiable overall structure: an opening statement, a summary of changes, and a concluding sentence. Linking expressions such as “Moreover,” “Furthermore,” and “Additionally” help signal that more information is coming. However, the middle paragraph combines many changes in a long sequence, so the reader has to work to distinguish the major developments from the minor ones. Repeated “However” is not always appropriate, and the conclusion largely repeats the opening rather than synthesising the comparison. Organise the details into clearer groups—for example, changes to the southern area and changes to harbour facilities—and use references such as “the former castle site” to make connections more smoothly.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant topic vocabulary, including “harbour,” “lifeboat,” “Marina (private yachts),” and “public beach,” which makes the subject clear. There are also attempts at more formal wording, such as “dedicated” and “redevelopmental plan.” However, several choices are unnatural or imprecise, including “major alter,” “taken privately,” “open land,” and “fishing boats counter.” Spelling and word-form errors such as “swaped” and “cafe” also reduce accuracy. Aim for standard map-description collocations and precise terms for facilities and locations; this will make the comparisons easier to understand without relying on awkward or overly elaborate phrasing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “where” and “which,” and the main message is generally understandable. However, errors in agreement, tense, articles, and sentence construction occur across the response. For example, “three key changes which has undergone” has faulty agreement and an unclear structure, while “which has been taken place” uses an incorrect verb pattern. The opening also runs sentences together after “2000,” and several clauses are joined with commas rather than being punctuated clearly. Practise accurate past-versus-present forms for comparing plans, and check subject–verb agreement and complete sentence boundaries when editing.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.