Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-14

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 6.5)

The plan shows how the cafe in a college looked before and how it changed today after redesigning it.

Overall, the cafe has undergone substantial redevelopment with several new facilities that include the outdoor seating area with a barbecue. The staff dining rooms has been replaced by the take away food and a coffee bar.

It is clearly visible that the cafe before had a very simple design with a big seating area indoor that had tables and chairs in it and it has remained the unchanged. Whereas, currently they added an outdoor seating area with a barbecue facility. While kitchen area and the toilet area had no changes.

Additionally, we can also see a salad bar added to the new cafe design in the west of the seating area. Moreover, the serving area was named as the hot meals and the staff dining room was divided into two different areas- The coffee bar and take away food.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The candidate successfully addresses all parts of the task by reporting the main features of the college cafe before and after its redesign. An overview is provided in the second paragraph, highlighting key changes such as the addition of the outdoor seating and the replacement of the staff dining rooms. Key comparisons and specific changes are detailed, such as the transformation of the serving area into hot meals and the introduction of a salad bar. While some minor details could be extended further, the response covers the visual data well and fulfills the requirements of Academic Task 1 effectively, warranting a solid Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is arranged with a clear overall progression, moving from an introductory summary and overview into specific detailed comparisons. Paragraphing is used adequately to separate the general introduction and overview from the detailed body points. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'Whereas', 'Additionally', and 'Moreover' are utilised to connect ideas, though some transitional phrasing feels slightly mechanical. Reference words are generally clear, enabling the reader to follow the structural changes of the cafe easily. Therefore, a Band 6.5 is appropriate for this criterion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating less common lexical items such as 'substantial redevelopment', 'facility', and 'recirculation' (implied via recycling bins). There are some slight inaccuracies in word choice or collocation, such as 'changed today after redesigning it' rather than 'after its redesign', and 'indoor' used as an adjective noun modifier. However, vocabulary errors do not impede communication, and the range is sufficient to convey precise spatial and comparative meanings, supporting a Band 6.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including relative clauses and contrastive structures ('While kitchen area and the toilet area had no changes'). However, there are notable grammatical errors and awkward phrasing, such as 'The staff dining rooms has been replaced' (subject-verb agreement error), missing articles ('the take away food'), and redundant phrasing ('remain the unchanged'). Although these errors do not severely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent the score from reaching Band 6.5. A Band 6.0 reflects this control.

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