Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-24
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 plan illustrates a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now. It shows significant changes, particularly with the introduction of new food and dining facilities add major importance to its layout. In addition, "Staff dining rooms" turn into "take away food and coffee bar". Meanwhile, "Serving area" evolves into "Hot meals" because it has popularity throughout the year. At the Western side, construction of "Salad Bar" creates a more enhancement. There is also a new added area at the outdoor , "barbecue and outdoor seating" making it more convenient and reliable. In the east, "bin" is replaced by "recycling bins" that are required according to the situations. Although "toilets" are roughly placed at the same place. In the South west corner, "kitchen" is also having its own place with just minor changes. Now, the college cafe layout enumerates every location visible to the visitors and it is sufficient to all members.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
The candidate attempts to address the task by describing the main features of the college cafe before and after the redesign. However, the response falls short of a fully developed overview. While some key changes are noted—such as the conversion of the staff dining rooms into a takeaway food and coffee bar, the addition of a salad bar, and the new outdoor seating area with a barbecue—the analysis lacks clear, cohesive comparisons between the two layouts. Furthermore, the response is relatively brief at 155 words and includes some extraneous commentary and minor inaccuracies regarding the layout positions, which limits the depth of task fulfillment. Therefore, it fits comfortably within Band 5.0.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
The response demonstrates some basic organization, progressing from general observations to specific areas of the cafe such as the western and eastern sides. However, the overall progression is disjointed, and paragraphing is poorly handled, as the entire text is lumped into a single block of text rather than distinct paragraphs for an introduction, overview, and body details. Cohesive devices are used awkwardly in places, such as 'In addition', 'Meanwhile', and 'At the Western side', and referencing is occasionally unclear or mechanical. This lack of a clear structural framework keeps the response at Band 5.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully incorporating specific terms directly from the prompt and visual data, such as 'take away food', 'coffee bar', 'salad bar', and 'recycling bins'. However, attempts to use less common or academic vocabulary lead to awkward collocations and lexical errors, such as 'add major importance', 'turn into', and 'makes it more enhancement'. There are also minor awkward phrasings like 'has popularity'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the basic meaning, the noticeable errors and limited precision restrict the score to a Band 5.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response features a mix of simple and attempted complex sentence structures. However, grammatical accuracy is weak, with frequent errors in prepositions, article usage, and verb forms (e.g., 'at the outdoor', 'kitchen is also having its own place', 'are roughly placed at the same place'). Clauses are sometimes strung together or incorrectly structured, causing occasional difficulty for the reader. The control over complex structures is inconsistent, and punctuation is basic. These persistent grammatical inaccuracies place the writing at a Band 5.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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