Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-07

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 comapres the five small companies in Britain that are highly ranked in survey of staff conducted by national newspaper to discover which companies are most effective to work for .

Overall, it is seen that staff numbers were highest in fifth company, whereas the staff with high income was lowest in same enterprise. The staff turnover was again highest in fitfth company while lowest in first company .

The number of staff workers were highest in fifth business with 190 employees .However, compant 1st had least working members . There was the huge difference in male female ratio of 4th enterprise with 13:87 ,Whereas the trend was opposite in 3rd enterprises with 74:26 ratio of workers as male and female .The staff turnover was lowest in 1st company with 5% ,followed by 3rd business at 8% .The staff turnover for 2nd ,4th and 5th enterprises was 18%,13%and 33% respectively.

The staff numbers were almost equal in 2nd ,3rd and 4th company eith approximately 75 workers . Three companies shared zero percent of older workers and in other two the percentage of old workers was also low.Firth company had highest proportion of young workers with 93%of available workers , while 4th company had lowest figure of teenage workers . The Third company provides maximum income to staff and 5th comapny only gave 2%of income to the employees .Followed by 4th with 5%of income given to staff . 1st and 2nd businesses gave 34%and 48%of revenue to workers respectively.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You provide a relevant overview, identifying the fifth company’s largest workforce and highest turnover, and its lowest share of high earners; you also note the first company’s lowest turnover. Most figures are reported accurately, including the gender ratios and income percentages. This covers the main features, although some comparisons are less fully developed: for example, the age profile is described generally rather than comparing the companies’ exact proportions, and the statement that three companies have no older workers could identify them. Be careful with “teenage workers”: the table refers to staff under 35, not teenagers. Also, “gave 34% and 48% of revenue to workers” misrepresents the high-income-bracket figures; these are proportions of staff, not shares of revenue. Clearer interpretation of the categories would strengthen the report.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has an introduction, an overview and two detail paragraphs, and it groups several related figures together. However, progression within the body is uneven: the third paragraph moves from workforce size to gender and turnover, while the final paragraph returns to staff numbers before discussing age and income. This makes the organisation feel somewhat repetitive rather than consistently grouped by feature. Linking phrases such as “whereas,” “followed by” and “while” help show comparisons, but some are used mechanically or attach ideas unclearly. For instance, “Followed by 4th with 5%...” is a fragment, and “The staff turnover was again highest...” repeats the overview. Organise each paragraph around a clear category, and use explicit references such as “the fifth-ranked company” to make comparisons easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “staff turnover,” “male female ratio,” “proportion” and “high income,” so the reader can generally understand the comparisons. However, the range is limited by repeated use of “company,” “staff” and “workers,” and several choices are inaccurate or unnatural. “Most effective to work for” does not express the intended idea as naturally as “best to work for,” while “gave 2% of income to the employees” incorrectly suggests a payment rather than a proportion of employees in a bracket. “Teenage workers” is also an imprecise label for people under 35. Spelling errors such as “comapres,” “fitfth” and “comapny” are noticeable. Aim for precise terms such as “workforce,” “share of employees” and “high-income bracket.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including comparisons with “whereas” and “while,” and the main message is usually understandable. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with agreement, articles and sentence boundaries. For example, “The number of staff workers were highest” should use a singular verb (“was”), and “in survey of staff” needs an article (“in a survey”). In “There was the huge difference,” the article is also incorrect, and the following capitalised “Whereas” is joined to the preceding sentence with a comma rather than a full stop. The fragment “Followed by 4th with 5%...” is another sentence-structure problem. Check subject–verb agreement and articles, and separate complete sentences with appropriate punctuation; this will make your comparisons clearer.

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