Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-26

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 two maps illustrates a college cafe's layout before and after its renovation.

Overall, the college cafe had undergone significant renovations with many original features being removed or replaced. The most notable changes are the addition of outdoor seating area with a small barbecue counter at left-hand side.

Before the renovation, the kitchen occupied the upper-left corner of the cafe with a serving area with all food and drink. The central portion of the cafe had tables and chairs with two separate dining rooms dedicated for the staff at upper-right side of the cafe. There is a toilet situated at the lower right-hand side of the cafe. A bin was placed near the entrance at the right-hand side.

At present, it is evident that there is a substantial change outside the cafe. A barbecue area was added at the left-hand side and outdoor seating has been arranged. Although, kitchen, toilet and indoor seating area remained at the same place, the serving area was converted into hot meals and the staff dining rooms were transformed to takeaway food and coffee bar. In addition, the salad bar was introduced and former bin area was replaced with recycling bin.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The candidate covers all the key features of the two maps, successfully reporting the layout before and after the renovation. An appropriate overview is provided in the second paragraph, highlighting that the college cafe underwent significant changes with original features being removed or replaced. The candidate accurately details specific alterations, such as the conversion of the serving area into hot meals, the replacement of staff dining rooms with a takeaway food counter and coffee bar, the addition of a salad bar, and the introduction of outdoor seating and a barbecue area. Key comparisons are well made throughout the text. Minor spatial inaccuracies, such as placing the staff dining rooms on the upper-right instead of upper-north, do not detract from the overall clarity. The response meets all requirements for this criterion, demonstrating a clear understanding of the visual data.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The text exhibits a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. The response is divided into logical paragraphs: an introduction, an overview, a detailed description of the past layout, and a detailed description of the present layout. Cohesive devices are used adequately and appropriately, such as 'Overall', 'Before the renovation', 'At present', and 'In addition'. Referencing is generally clear, allowing the reader to follow the spatial and temporal contrasts easily. Paragraphing is used sufficiently to structure the response effectively, maintaining a coherent flow from the past state to the current layout. While cohesion is sometimes standard rather than highly sophisticated, it successfully unifies the text.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

The response demonstrates a sufficient range of vocabulary for the task, allowing for some flexibility and precision in describing changes. The writer successfully uses less common items and functional vocabulary related to spatial descriptions and renovations, such as 'significant renovations', 'transformed', 'converted', and 'substantial change'. There are occasional slight inaccuracies in word choice or collocation, such as 'The two maps illustrates' (subject-verb agreement error affecting a lexical item/verb) and 'counter at left-hand side' (missing article), but these do not impede communication. The vocabulary is generally adequate to convey the intended meanings clearly and effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and transitional prepositional phrases. There are several grammatical errors present, most notably 'The two maps illustrates' where the plural subject takes a singular verb, and minor missing articles like 'with outdoor seating area' and 'at left-hand side'. Despite these errors, many sentences are error-free, and control over grammar and punctuation is generally good enough to ensure that meaning remains clear. The structural variety demonstrates an attempt at complex forms, aligning well with the characteristics of Band 6.5 or a solid Band 6.

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