Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-16
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 7.5)
The plans illustrate how a college café has changed since it was redesigned. Overall, the café has undergone significant changes, with several new food and drink facilities being introduced, as well as an outdoor seating area. However, the kitchen, main indoor seating area and toilets have remained largely unchanged.
Before the redesign, the kitchen and serving area were located in the upper-left part of the café, with the latter providing all food and drinks. In the centre, there were two staff dining rooms, while the majority of the café was occupied by tables and chairs. On the right-hand side, a bin was positioned above the toilets, both close to the main entrance.
Today, the former serving area is used specifically for hot meals, while a new salad bar has been installed along the left-hand wall. The two staff dining rooms have been replaced by a takeaway food area and a coffee bar, although the main tables and chairs remain in approximately the same location. The toilets are also unchanged, while the former bin has been replaced by recycling bins. The most noticeable addition is the new outdoor seating area along the bottom of the café, which includes several tables and chairs, as well as a barbecue area in the lower-left corner.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 7.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 7.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 7.5 |
| Overall | 7.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5
The student produces a fully developed response that successfully addresses all parts of the task. An appropriate overview is provided in the first paragraph, highlighting the main trends such as the addition of food facilities and outdoor seating alongside unchanged areas like the kitchen and toilets. Specific details are accurately reported, noting the transition of the staff dining rooms into a takeaway food area and coffee bar, the introduction of the salad bar, and the addition of the outdoor seating and barbecue area. The comparison between the two plans is clear and well-grounded in the visual data, with no significant omissions or inaccuracies.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5
The report is logically organised and easy to follow. Information is grouped sensibly into paragraphs, moving from an introductory overview to a detailed description of the original layout, and finally concluding with the current layout. Cohesive devices are used naturally and appropriately, such as 'Overall', 'Before the redesign', 'In the centre', and 'Today', which guide the reader smoothly through the spatial changes. Paragraphing is used effectively, ensuring each section has a clear, distinct focus.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.5
The student demonstrates a sufficient and precise range of vocabulary suitable for an Academic Task 1 response. Less common items and functional phrases are used effectively to describe spatial relationships and transformations, such as 'undergone significant changes', 'positioned above', 'replaced by', and 'noticeable addition'. Word choice is generally accurate and natural, matching the formal register required for the task with only occasional minor slips that do not impede communication.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5
A wide variety of sentence structures is employed successfully throughout the text. The student expertly combines simple and complex sentences containing relative clauses, passive voice constructions, and prepositional phrases (e.g., 'with several new food and drink facilities being introduced', 'which includes several tables and chairs'). Grammatical accuracy is very high, with the majority of sentences entirely error-free and punctuation used correctly. Control over verb tenses is particularly strong, shifting accurately between the past tense and the present tense to reflect the timeline of the plans.
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