Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-09-27
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The charts below give information about a public library in a town called Little Chalfont.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The three charts provide the information regarding library memberships, borrowing categories and total number of loans at Chalfont Library.
Overall, one of the most striking features is that when looking at the data majority of the library members were adult aged (18-65). In addition, expect the first years, this library had around 20,000 loan annually, while most of the total loan by children and adults fiction especially in 2016.
Looking at age breakdown membership in 2016, adults aged (18-64) dominating at 51%, followed by children at 21%. However, young adults (13-17) accounted for 15% membership and adults and over make the smaller group with 12% only.
In the term of total loans by categories, children and adult fiction were by far the most borrowed item, which is responsible 38% for both. On the other hand, adults or children non-fiction were represented much smaller share respectively 13% and 6%. The remaining categories such as Children DVDs, audio books and young adults make up 2% or less which show insignificant in comparison.
In the regard of overall loans from 2007 to 2016, that indicates clear upward trend. Loan rose from 2007 approximately 16000 to peak 21,500 by 2016, with most noticeably increase occurring between 2009 and 2010. When loan jumps from 18,000 to 20,000. After that, figure relatively stable and fluctuating only slightly, before continue to climb in the final two year shown.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0
The response covers all parts of the task well, providing an overview of the charts and reporting key features and comparisons. The student successfully highlights the dominant age group (adults 18-64 at 51%) and the primary borrowing categories (children's and adult fiction both at 38%). Furthermore, the overall upward trend in total loans from 2007 to 2016 is accurately described. However, there are minor inaccuracies in data reporting, such as stating children's membership was 21% instead of 22%, and minor generalisations in the overview. Despite these slight flaws, the core information is effectively extracted and presented.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is logically organised into clear paragraphs, starting with an introduction and overview, followed by body paragraphs dedicated to age breakdown, loan categories, and overall loan trends respectively. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader, such as 'Overall', 'In addition', 'Looking at', and 'On the other hand'. However, referencing and cohesion are occasionally clunky or mechanical, as seen in phrases like 'In the term of total loans' and 'In the regard of overall loans'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate different aspects of the visual data.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'striking features', 'dominating', 'accounted for', and 'upward trend'. However, there are several word choice and collocation inaccuracies throughout the text, such as 'adult aged' instead of 'adults', 'most of the total loan by children and adults fiction' (ungrammatical), and 'make the smaller group'. Spelling is generally accurate, but lexical control lacks the precision required for higher bands.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, incorporating relative clauses ('which is responsible 38% for both') and prepositional phrases. However, there are frequent grammatical errors and awkward phrasing that persist, such as 'expect the first years' (except for), 'most noticeably increase', 'When loan jumps' (fragment/tense issue), and 'before continue to climb in the final two year'. While these errors do not severely impede communication, they lower the proportion of error-free sentences.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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