Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-08-26

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The table below gives information about the five small companies in Britain that came top in a survey of staff conducted by a national newspaper to find out which companies are the best to work for.

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

THE FIVE BEST SMALL COMPANIES TO WORK FOR

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The table compares five small British companies in Britain that achieved the top five ranking in a staff conducted by a national newspaper to find out which companies are the best employers.

Overall,the 5th ranked company had the largest workforce by far,while the 3rd ranked companies the highest female staff and high income earners.in conranst the company ranked 1st had the fewest high earners.

Regarding workforce size and companies employees the 5th company employed 190 staff members,whereas the 1st company had the fewest with only 56.female employees outnumbered males in almost all companies,with the 3rd companies recording the highest female ratio 74% and the 4th company showing the highest male percentage 13% further more young workers under 35 formed the vast majority in all companies,paking at 93% in the 5th company and 82% in the 3 rd company.workers over55 represent a negligible percentage reaching a meximum of only 1% in the 2nd company.

Looking at employe retention and income the 1st company achieved the highest retention with tournover rate of just5% compared to 33% in the 5th company,however the 3rd company boasted the highest share of high-income brackets staff at 74% while 5th company had the lower at just 2%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response successfully identifies the main features of the data, such as workforce size, age demographics, and retention rates. You have made relevant comparisons between the companies, which is essential for Task 1. However, the report contains some inaccuracies in data interpretation; for instance, you mention the 4th company has the highest male percentage at 13%, but the table shows the 4th company has 26% male staff. Additionally, some data points are slightly misstated. To reach a higher band, ensure that all figures are transcribed accurately from the source text and that the overview clearly highlights the most significant trends rather than just listing details.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The response is organised into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs focusing on specific categories. Cohesive devices such as 'whereas', 'however', and 'in contrast' are used to link ideas. However, the flow is occasionally disrupted by punctuation errors, such as missing spaces after commas and periods (e.g., 'Overall,the', '3rd companies the', 'in conranst'). Improving the consistency of your punctuation and ensuring that cohesive devices are used to create a smoother transition between sentences would enhance the overall coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'workforce', 'retention', 'turnover rate', and 'negligible'. There are some spelling errors, such as 'conranst' instead of 'contrast', 'paking' instead of 'peaking', and 'meximum' instead of 'maximum'. While these errors do not impede communication, they do affect the overall impression. To improve, focus on proofreading for common spelling mistakes and try to incorporate more precise academic collocations to describe trends, such as 'a significant proportion' or 'a marginal percentage'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the use of 'whereas' and 'compared to' to make comparisons. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly regarding subject-verb agreement (e.g., '3rd ranked companies the highest') and missing articles. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with several instances of missing spaces after punctuation marks. While the meaning remains clear, the frequency of these errors prevents the response from reaching a higher band. Focusing on basic sentence construction and proofreading for punctuation will significantly improve your accuracy.

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