Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-08

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 images illustrates the changes made in college cafeteria before redesign and the how it is now.

Overall, we can observe several thing that has been change in cafe, many things are added after redesign such as outdoor seating, normal dustbin are replaced by recycling bins, serving are seperated.

Cafe before redesign looks very normal as we can see serving of food and drinks in same place only. Moreover, seating for the people was inside the cafe and there was also a staff dinning room on upper side. Bin was placed beside the entrance and exit follow to that there was toilet in the corner.

Current design of cafe shows a increadible makeover the major change is about seating for people indoor as well as outdoor, two more sections are added that take away food and coffee bar instead of staff dinning rooms. Serving for different food and drinks are seperated like as hot meals in kitchen beside that salad bar and outside we can see barbecue. To add there are multiple entrances that is so convenient.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main transformation: the café gains outdoor seating, the staff dining rooms become takeaway and coffee sections, and the single bin is replaced by recycling bins. You also note that the toilets remain in the corner and describe the new food-service areas, so the response covers the key before-and-after comparison. This meets the task well, with some features more fully reported than others. However, the overview is broad (“several thing[s]” have changed), and some details are unclear or imprecise: “serving are seperated” does not clearly explain the new arrangement, while “multiple entrances” could distinguish the existing east entrance from the new southern doors. A sharper overview and more precise spatial comparisons would make the account more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and separate paragraphs describing the former and current café. This gives the reader a sensible route through the comparison, and phrases such as “Moreover” and “To add” attempt to connect details. However, some links feel mechanical or unclear, particularly “Bin was placed beside the entrance and exit follow to that there was toilet in the corner.” The final paragraph also moves quickly between indoor food counters, the barbecue and entrances without a clear sequence. Use more precise referencing and organise each description by location—for example, north, west, centre and south—to make the progression easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant vocabulary for describing a plan, including “redesign,” “staff dining room,” “outdoor seating,” “recycling bins” and “entrances.” These terms help communicate the main changes. However, the range is limited and several word choices or collocations are inaccurate or informal, such as “normal dustbin,” “increadible makeover,” “seating for the people,” and “serving for different food and drinks are seperated.” Spelling errors, including “seperated,” “dinning” and “increadible,” also reduce precision. Aim for neutral, map-focused language and use the labels shown in the plan where possible. More accurate phrases for the service counters and the café’s layout would make the description clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including “as we can see…” and “two more sections are added… instead of staff dining rooms.” The main meaning is generally recoverable, but errors occur across the response and sometimes make relationships between details difficult to follow. For example, “The images illustrates” has subject–verb disagreement, while “the how it is now” contains an unnecessary article and an awkward clause structure. “Several thing that has been change” also shows problems with plural agreement and verb form. Review articles, agreement, and past-versus-present forms, and punctuate longer sentences so that separate observations are not run together. Building accurate sentences before adding complexity will improve control.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.