Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-02

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 6.0)

The table provides the data which shows the five best small companies to work for in britain. A survey of staff was conducted by a national newspaper to find out which companies are the best to work for.

Overall, most of the staff of third company gets paid high income, whereas the fifth company only provide high income to some members of the staff. In contrast, almost none of the companies have aged staff.

On one hand, the most reliable company only has a staff of 56 people, where the male female ratio is 30:70 with no aged employee, even 77% of the staff members are below 35. The staff turnover is 5%, and 34% of member comes under higi income bracket. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th companies have almost similar nomber of staff with 79, 72, and 76 members each, where the male female ratio is, 47:53, 74:26, and 13:87 respectively. Similar to the first company, the 3rd and 4th companies also does not have aged employees, however 2nd company does have few. Staff turnover for these three companies are 18% for 2nd, 8% for 3rd and 13% for 4th, where most of the employees in 3rd company comes under high income bracket with 74%, 48% in 2nd company and only 5% in 4th company.

on the other hand, the company on 5th position has the highest number of employees, 190. Here the male female ratio is almost same with 51:49, with no aged staff and majority of the staff is under 35 years of age. Although it has the highest staff turnover with 33%, the number of staff under high income bracket is quite low, only 2%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully covers all parts of the prompt, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6 and showing features of a Band 7. You have selected and reported the main features of the table, covering staff numbers, male-to-female ratios, age distribution, turnover, and income brackets. An overview is present, highlighting key contrasts such as income distribution and age demographics. However, some areas tend to list data mechanically rather than fully synthesising or comparing the trends across all five companies. To reach the next level, you should ensure that all main features are not only stated but thoroughly integrated into a cohesive comparative overview that draws sharper analytical conclusions about the relationship between company size, staff demographics, and income.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

Your response demonstrates a coherent overall arrangement, which places it securely at Band 6. The information is organized into a clear introductory overview, a body paragraph covering the first four companies, and a final paragraph dedicated to the fifth company. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the groups of data. However, cohesion is sometimes mechanical or relies on simple transitional phrases like 'On one hand' and 'On the other hand' rather than a smoother, more natural flow of ideas. Additionally, referencing could be improved; phrases like 'these three companies' occasionally make tracking the specific data points slightly demanding for the reader. Strengthening logical links between sentences without relying on formulaic transition words would elevate your coherence score.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, achieving a Band 5 while showing occasional elements of Band 6. You attempted less common vocabulary such as 'turnover', 'bracket', and 'ratio', which demonstrates an effort to use precise terms for the visual data. However, there are noticeable spelling and word-choice errors that detract from precision, such as 'britain' (capitalization), 'nomber', and 'higi'. Furthermore, repetitive phrasing like 'male female ratio' and 'high income bracket' limits lexical variety. To improve, focus on eliminating basic spelling mistakes, broadening your range of synonyms for describing statistical trends, and ensuring that word forms and collocations are used accurately.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

Your writing displays a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, placing it at a Band 5 heading towards Band 6. You attempted complex structures with relative clauses and subordinate clauses, such as 'where the male female ratio is 30:70 with no aged employee'. However, there are frequent grammatical errors in subject-verb agreement and prepositions, including 'most of the staff ... gets' instead of 'get', 'third company' lacking necessary articles, and 'companies also does not have' instead of 'do not'. Punctuation and comma splices also require attention. To reach a higher band, you need to increase the proportion of error-free sentences, maintain strict agreement between subjects and verbs, and use articles consistently with singular and plural nouns.

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

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