Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-08-15

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

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

The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Student answer (Band 5.0)

The diagram illustrates plan of a college cafe before it was redesigned with new portion.

Overall, it is evident that the staff dining rooms transformed into take away coffee and coffee bar whereas most of the area remained same such as tables and chair area, toilets, kitchen, recycling bin area.

firstly, the serving area (all food and drink) are changed into hot meals station and the new one is salad bar in this cafe almost pattern are same but the salad bar is new for this cafe.

Subsequently, toilets same placed and large as compared to before and as well as bin area also becomes large as compared to past.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, which significantly impacts the ability to fully develop the task. While you have identified some key features, such as the transformation of the staff dining room and the addition of the salad bar, the description is quite brief and lacks a detailed comparison of the layout changes. To improve, you must provide a more comprehensive overview of all structural modifications, including the relocation of specific amenities and the overall flow of the cafe. The current response is too sparse to fully address the prompt's requirements for a detailed summary.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0

The essay lacks a clear structure. While there is an attempt at an introduction and an overview, the body paragraphs are underdeveloped and lack logical progression. The use of cohesive devices is limited and sometimes awkward, such as the repetitive use of 'as compared to' and 'also'. To achieve a higher score, you should organize your response into clear paragraphs, each focusing on a specific aspect of the changes (e.g., seating areas vs. service counters), and use a wider variety of linking words to connect your ideas more fluidly.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

Your vocabulary is somewhat limited and repetitive. Phrases like 'same placed' and 'becomes large' are not natural collocations in this context. You rely on basic descriptors, which hinders your ability to precisely describe the spatial changes in the cafe. To improve, focus on learning vocabulary related to describing diagrams and changes, such as 'relocated,' 'expanded,' 'converted,' or 'partitioned.' Expanding your range of descriptive adjectives and verbs will help you convey the information more accurately and professionally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

There are frequent grammatical errors throughout the text, including issues with subject-verb agreement ('the serving area... are changed') and missing articles ('illustrates plan of a college cafe'). Sentence structures are mostly simple, and there is a lack of complex sentence forms. To improve, focus on ensuring that your verbs agree with their subjects and practice using more complex structures, such as passive voice or relative clauses, to describe the changes in the cafe layout. Proofreading for basic punctuation and article usage will also help improve your accuracy.

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

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