Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-10-06
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Access to clean water is a basic human right. Therefore every home should have a water supply that is provided free of charge.
Do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 6.0)
Some people believe that clean water should be available to everyone for free as this is a human right. I strongly agree, as water is life and if individuals are not able to access it they tend to use unclean sources.This may lead to increase in waterborn infections prevalence rate. Additionally paying for water puts financial pressure on famillies.
One of the reasons both goverment and non-government agencies should ensure free access to clean water is that water is a basic neccesity and if people are not able to access it, they will opt for dirty water. In the long run they may catch waterborne infections. For example, diarrhoea is spread through drinking infected water. Therefore,people who are drinking untreated water may easily catch it.If people are sick the government will spend more money in providing free medication. So, its better to prevent than to cure.
With the rising living cost, it is difficult for an average Malawian to pay for water bills.Free water will relieve the financial budern and money saved can be used for other important household expenses like buying groceries.Moreover, if individuals are not paying for water they will be happy with the government of the day hence they can easily vote for them again.This makes free water a good campaign strategy. For example, if the water bill was 5000 Malawi kwacha, with this amount you can buy cooking oil and sugar.
In conclusion, water is a basic necessity and should be accessed free of charge.Free water contributes to the decrease in waterborn infections and relieve the financial burden on families.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5
Your position is clear from the opening: “I strongly agree,” and the conclusion restates that clean water should be free. You give relevant reasons, including preventing illness and easing household costs, and support them with examples such as diarrhoea and the 5,000-kwacha bill. This fully addresses the question and shows some development beyond simply stating an opinion. However, the health argument is explained more fully than the financial one, and the point about voters supporting the government shifts towards political advantage rather than explaining why free provision is a right or how it could be sustained. To strengthen the response further, develop the practical or social justification for universal free access and explain each example more precisely.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0
The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, two body paragraphs presenting separate reasons, and a conclusion. The progression from health benefits to household finances is easy to follow, and signposts such as “Additionally,” “For example,” and “In conclusion” help guide the reader. At times, however, linking is mechanical or the relationship between ideas is not fully clear. For instance, the move from illness to government medication costs, then to “its better to prevent than to cure,” could be connected more explicitly. The voting point also interrupts the financial argument’s focus. Use referencing and transitions more selectively, and ensure each paragraph develops one central line of reasoning.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
You use enough vocabulary to communicate the main arguments, including topic-related terms such as “waterborne infections,” “untreated water,” “financial burden,” and “household expenses.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “basic necessity” and “provided free of charge.” However, spelling and word-choice errors are noticeable, including “waterborn,” “famillies,” “budern,” and “neccesity.” Some expressions are awkward or imprecise, such as “increase in waterborn infections prevalence rate” and “happy with the government of the day.” These do not prevent understanding, but they limit precision and naturalness. Check spelling carefully and choose collocations that express the intended meaning directly.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0
You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including conditional structures such as “if individuals are not able to access it, they will opt for dirty water” and a reason clause beginning “as water is life.” Most ideas remain understandable, and the response shows some control of longer sentences. Some grammatical and punctuation errors persist, however. Examples include “if people are sick the government will spend” without a comma after the introductory clause, “Free water contributes to the decrease … and relieve” where the verb forms do not match, and missing spaces after full stops in “sources.This” and “Therefore,people.” Review agreement and parallel verb forms, and punctuate sentence boundaries consistently. More accurate control of these patterns would make the argument smoother.
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.