Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-11-02

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)

In porth harbour (2000) we can see that there is a dock area, passenger ferries, a marina (private yachts) shower and toilet area and a car parking space. There's also 2 places for access to beach for public. A specific space for fishing boats and a place for lifeboat is also present. There is a a disused castle near the public beach.

As of today, this castle has turned into a private hotel and the public beach has also been privatised by the hotel and is only accessible for the people from the hotel or visiting the hotel. Theres also changes in the number of docks as theres more traffic now than before. Number of cafes and shops have also been built near the hotel area. More showers and toilet place can be seen today but public beach has been reduced to only one which is near the dock area.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify several relevant features, including the dock, marina, fishing boats, lifeboat and the castle’s replacement by a hotel. However, the response only partly summarises the changes and does not give a clear overview of the harbour’s main transformation. Some details are inaccurate: the hotel’s beach is described as a public beach that has been privatised, whereas it is labelled a private beach today; the public beach in the north-east remains, so it has not been reduced to one. The claim that there are more docks is also imprecise: the dock gains an additional jetty and accommodates two boats. Develop the key comparisons more fully, especially the exchange of locations between the marina and fishing boats and the added facilities.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a generally understandable order: it first describes the harbour in 2000 and then moves to changes today. This gives the reader a basic progression, and phrases such as “As of today” help signal the shift. However, the first paragraph is largely a list, while the second combines several changes without grouping them by location or type. The relationship between the beaches is also unclear in the final sentence, which says the public beach has been reduced to one despite mentioning the hotel beach earlier. Organise the comparison into clearer groups—for example, changes to water use, facilities and the southern headland—and use references such as “the northern beach” and “the southern beach” consistently.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of task-related vocabulary, including “passenger ferries,” “fishing boats,” “disused castle,” “privatised” and “accessible.” These terms help communicate the map’s subject, and the meaning is generally clear. Some choices are imprecise or repetitive, however: “number of docks” does not accurately describe the extra jetty, and “place for lifeboat” and “car parking space” are less natural than standard map-description terms. “Public beach has been reduced to only one” also expresses the change inaccurately. Aim for precise location and facility vocabulary, such as “an additional jetty,” “lifeboat station” and “car park,” and distinguish clearly between the two beaches.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use both simple statements and some longer structures, including “As of today, this castle has turned into a private hotel and the public beach has also been privatised…” This shows an attempt to connect related changes, and the main message is usually understandable. However, control is uneven. The opening sentence shifts into a list with inconsistent article use (“a marina … shower and toilet area”), and “There’s also 2 places” has a number-agreement issue. The sentence beginning “Number of cafes and shops…” lacks an article, while “Theres” needs an apostrophe. There is also an unnecessary repeated article in “There is a a disused castle.” Check articles, singular/plural forms and punctuation, and use a wider range of accurately controlled sentence patterns.

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