Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · IELTS General Essentials · 2026-08-27

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

A family member is coming to stay with you. He/she will be arriving by train in the morning, but you won’t be home until the evening.

• explain arrangements you have made for them to have keys and get into the house

• tell your relative how to get from the train station to your house

• say when you will be home and suggest what you could do together that evening

Student answer (Band 7.0)

Dear John,

Firstly, I am extremely happy to see you after a long time. Secondly, I am delighted to host you in my house. It is my pleasure to have you as my housemate.

Due to commitments at work I will not be able to see you when you arrive in town. Hence, I have purchased a key safe box which will be attached to the main door handle. The safe box would require a 4 digit code for you to obtain the key, kindly put the combination 1177 in the front of the box which will unlock the latch. Additionally, I suggest you to find the nearest taxi stand to commute towards the house because booking uber becomes a hassle with everyone trying to book at the same.

I have requested to sign off from work earlier than usual so that I can help you settle in with your luggage and enjoy a good dinner with cold beverages later at night.

Hope to see you soon, safe travels.

Kind regards,

Shrutik

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You clearly explained the key safe arrangement, provided instructions for getting from the station to your house, and specified your arrival time along with a plan for the evening. The tone is appropriate for a letter to a family member, maintaining a friendly and helpful register throughout. The ideas are well-developed and the purpose of the letter is clear from the outset. To reach a higher band, ensure that the instructions for the route are slightly more descriptive, as 'find the nearest taxi stand' is a bit brief, though it remains functional for the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. You use basic cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', 'Due to', and 'Additionally' to link your points. Paragraphing is used effectively to separate the introduction, the body of the instructions, and the closing. While the flow is generally smooth, some of the transitions feel slightly mechanical. To improve, you could experiment with more varied linking phrases or integrate your sentences more fluidly to avoid a list-like structure in the opening paragraph.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for this task, using terms like 'commitments', 'obtain', 'combination', and 'commute'. There are some minor inaccuracies, such as 'sign off from work' (usually 'sign off' refers to a project or a document, whereas 'leave work' or 'finish work' is more natural) and 'in the front of the box' (which should be 'on the front'). Despite these minor slips, the vocabulary is sufficient to convey your meaning clearly and appropriately for the context of a personal letter.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the conditional 'if' or the use of 'so that' to express purpose. There are a few grammatical slips, such as 'I suggest you to find' (the correct structure is 'I suggest that you find' or 'I suggest finding') and 'at the same' (which is missing the noun 'time'). However, these errors are infrequent and do not impede communication. The punctuation is generally accurate, and the overall control of grammar is solid for this level.

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

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