Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-09

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 plans illustrate how a coffee cafe got redisgned over time. Cafe had only indoor architechture before redesign.

Overall, the cafe got expanded a little over time. Also, some of the places got replaced by other places. Some new place were added.

At first picture, cafe area was divided in six areas. They were: kitchen, serving area(all food and drink), staff dining rooms, tables and chairs, bin, and toilets. Cafe was mostly occupied with tables, and chairs.

After redesign, staff dining rooms were replaced with take away food area, and coffee bar. Again, the serving area was replaced by hot meals area. Bin area got expaned. A new work station, called salad bar, was installed in tables and chairs area. Other things remained same. The later design had also an outdoor area consisting barbecue area, and outdoor sitting. Toiltes were at same place in both designs.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important changes, including the replacement of the staff dining rooms with takeaway and coffee areas, the change from a general serving area to hot meals, and the addition of outdoor seating and a barbecue. You also note correctly that the toilets remain in the same place. However, the overview is vague, and some details are inaccurate: the café did not expand “a little” in its indoor area; outdoor seating was added to the south. The bin was replaced by recycling bins, not enlarged, and the salad bar was added along the western wall rather than within the seating area. The response is also four words below the required minimum. Include the main spatial changes accurately and develop the comparison more fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and descriptions of the original and redesigned layouts. This helps the reader follow the basic comparison. However, progression within the body is limited, and the list-like sentence “They were: kitchen, serving area… staff dining rooms…” gives little sense of how the spaces relate to one another. Some linking is also mechanical, particularly “At first picture” and “After redesign,” while “Other things remained same” is too broad to connect clearly to the details that follow. Grouping changes by location—north wall, western and eastern walls, then the new southern outdoor area—and using clearer references would make the comparison more coherent.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary such as “replaced,” “serving area,” “staff dining rooms,” and “outdoor area,” so the main changes are generally understandable. However, the range is limited and several choices are imprecise or unnatural: “got expanded a little,” “new work station,” and “outdoor sitting” do not describe the plan as accurately as “outdoor seating area” or “salad bar.” There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “redsign,” “architechture,” “expaned,” and “Toiltes,” which reduce the overall accuracy. Aim for precise map vocabulary and check spelling carefully; for example, describe the recycling bins as replacing the original bin rather than saying the bin area expanded.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You communicate the basic comparison using simple past forms and some passive constructions, as in “staff dining rooms were replaced” and “was installed.” However, the range of sentence structures is limited, and errors recur in articles, agreement, and sentence construction. For example, “Cafe had only indoor architechture” needs an article and a more suitable grammatical construction, while “Some new place were added” has a singular/plural agreement error. “Other things remained same” is missing an article, and “At first picture” uses an incorrect preposition and article pattern. Practise accurate noun phrases and vary sentence structures to describe locations and changes; careful proofreading would also help make the comparisons easier to read.

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

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