Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · IELTS Complete Catalyst · 2026-10-15

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The bar charts and line graph below show the results of a survey conducted over a three-year period to discover what people who live in London think of the city.

Write a report for a university lecturer describing the information below.

What are the best things about living in London?

Student answer (Band 5.5)

The bar charts and line graph compares the outcomes of a survey conducted to know people perspective of london who are living there, over a three-year period.

Overall, first year demonstrates highest in range of shops while lowest in terms of night life. Similarly, in case of worst things, year 1 had the highest cost of living and lowest in case if cost of housing. The line graph shows litter as the major problem in London while noise being the minor one.

In terms of best things first year was the clear winner with 45% in range of shops, followed by the second and third year with almost equal percentage for the same. For other categories such as, job opportunities, night life and transport the initial year suffered a sharp decline while the rest two years saw some extent of rise and fall. Second year had the least percentage with 21% in transport category.

Similarly, in terms of the worst experiences included cost of living, traffic congestion, crime and transport. First year had the most percentage of crime and was high in cost of living with 58%. For cost of housing and transport, both 1st and 2nd year were equal with 35% and for transport, the last two years wre the same with less than 30% of the total.

The line graph displays the highest percentage of people agreeing with the major issues was litter which rose sharply, reached a peak and then declined ending at 65%. This was followed by the air quality with 60% and the least problematic problem was noise with less than 60% individuals saying yes

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AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the three-year period and provide an overview of the main patterns, including shops as a leading positive feature and litter as the most serious problem. However, some comparisons are inaccurate or unclear: Year 1 was not the lowest for nightlife (Year 1 was 22%, compared with 23.5% and 24.5%), and the claim that Year 1 had the highest crime figure is incorrect (it fell from 56% to 38% and then rose slightly to 40%). The statement that the first year was the “clear winner” for shops also overlooks that Year 3 was close behind. Several trends are described vaguely, and the positive-feature overview misses the stable or rising categories. Select the key highs, lows and changes more accurately, then support them with precise comparisons.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable report structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs for the positive features, negative features and line graph. This helps the reader follow the broad categories. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes difficult to track. For example, “the initial year suffered a sharp decline” does not clearly identify which categories or how the figures changed, while “For cost of housing and transport, both 1st and 2nd year were equal” is confusing because the following clause shifts back to transport. Linking phrases such as “Similarly” are repeated without always showing a precise relationship. Group the data by meaningful trends and use clear references to categories and years so each comparison follows logically.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant chart vocabulary, including “percentage,” “declined,” “reached a peak,” and “major problem,” so the reader can generally understand the report. However, the range is limited and several choices are imprecise or unnatural for describing survey data. “First year was the clear winner” is informal and overstates the comparison, while “the initial year suffered a sharp decline” uses an unsuitable verb and does not specify what declined. Phrases such as “people perspective” and “least problematic problem” are awkward, and “some extent of rise and fall” is vague. Aim for accurate collocations such as “the proportion of respondents,” “remained broadly stable,” and “increased slightly,” and check spelling and word forms such as “London” and “were.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “while” and “which,” and the overall meaning is usually recoverable. However, errors occur often enough to make some sentences awkward or unclear. The opening has subject–verb disagreement in “The bar charts and line graph compares,” and “to know people perspective” lacks the necessary possessive structure. Other examples include “year 1 demonstrates highest,” “lowest in case if cost of housing,” and “both 1st and 2nd year were equal,” where articles, prepositions or sentence construction need attention. Punctuation is also uneven, including the final full stop appearing on a separate line. Practise accurate comparisons and check agreement, articles and complete sentence patterns.

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

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