Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-07

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 5.5)

The two diagram show the information about a college cafe before and how it looks now.

Overall, there are many changes take place in the college cofe now. At present, Hot meals, take away food, coffee bar and salad bar include in the college cafe.

In the previous, college cofe consisted only six areas. These areas were divided into kitchen, serving area, staff dining rooms, bin, tables and chairs and toilets. The largest area covered by the tables and chairs for the purpose of sitting. Bin is the smallest area in the cafe.

In the recent time, many changes are redesign in the college cafe. Firstly, serving area is replaced by the hot meals. In addition, take away food and coffee bar is constructed at the place of staff dining rooms. Thirdly, increased the area of receyling bins and reduce the area of tables and chairs. Fourthly, Salad bar is added in the cafe. Similarly, barbecue and outdoor seating are added in the cafe today. In short, cafe is very attractive as compared to past.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main purpose of the plans and give a general overview of the new food facilities, including the hot-meal counter, takeaway food, coffee bar and salad bar. You also report several key changes, such as the replacement of the staff dining rooms and the addition of outdoor seating and a barbecue. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the recycling bins did not increase in area, and the tables-and-chairs area is not stated to have become smaller. The overview that the café is “very attractive” is an unsupported judgement rather than a description of the plans. To strengthen the report, describe the unchanged features too, especially the kitchen and toilets, and explain the new southern access and outdoor seating more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, a description of the former layout and a paragraph on the redesign. This gives the reader a broadly coherent route through the comparison. Linking expressions such as “In addition,” “Firstly” and “Similarly” help signal relationships, but the repeated ordinal sequence (“Firstly,” “Thirdly,” “Fourthly”) makes the final paragraph feel mechanical, and “In short” introduces a conclusion that adds little. Some connections between ideas are also unclear, particularly “Thirdly, increased the area of receyling bins and reduce the area of tables and chairs.” Grouping changes by location or by what was retained versus added would create smoother progression and clearer cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing a plan, including “serving area,” “staff dining rooms,” “recycling bins” and “outdoor seating,” and the reader can generally understand the intended comparisons. However, the range and control are limited by repeated general words such as “area,” “changes” and “added,” as well as inaccurate or awkward choices: “many changes are redesign,” “increased the area of receyling bins,” and “cafe is very attractive.” There are also spelling errors in “cofe” and “receyling.” Use more precise verbs and phrases for spatial changes, such as “was replaced by,” “was converted into,” or “was added along the southern side.” This would make the description more natural and exact.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more developed sentences, and the basic meaning is usually recoverable. However, some errors in sentence structure, verb forms and agreement remain. For example, “The two diagram show” needs plural agreement, while “many changes take place” and “many changes are redesign” do not use appropriate verb forms. In “Hot meals, take away food, coffee bar and salad bar include in the college cafe,” the passive construction is incomplete; these facilities “are included” or “have been added.” The sentence “Thirdly, increased the area…” also lacks a clear subject and finite verb. Practise forming complete clauses with accurate tense and agreement, and check articles and plurals, as in “the café” and “the staff dining rooms.”

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