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 presented layouts of a cafe building are illustrating the design of cafe before and after redesign.

Starting from the kitchen area, the serving area is now converted into hot meals counter. Staff dining rooms are now allocated for takeaway food and coffee bar counters, which is depicting the advanced feature to take your food yourself. Bin is transformed into recycling bin, which is giving a touch of more sanitation and less pollution. Where few new features are added, the salad bar area is removed permanently.

A new door is being inserted next to toilet, which leads to the new extension of the cafe named outdoor area. Many pairs of new tables and chairs are being arranged for outdoor seating. Another new door has been inserted near the previous salad bar section which opens towars outdoor seating and a new counter is made named barbecue, for serving new dishes introduced.

Overall, The renovation seems benefecial in account of both advancement and versatility. Eco frindly tools are also introduced, ensuring the social responsibility towards environment.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important changes, including the conversion of the serving counter to hot meals, the replacement of staff dining rooms with takeaway and coffee facilities, and the addition of outdoor seating and a barbecue. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the salad bar was added along the western wall, not removed, and the new southern doors are described as being beside the toilet and near the former salad-bar section. The overview focuses on benefits such as “advancement and versatility” rather than clearly summarising the main physical changes. To develop the response further, accurately describe the salad bar and the location of the outdoor access, and note that the central seating area and toilets remain.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a generally coherent sequence: it begins with changes inside the café and then moves to the outdoor extension, with a concluding overview. Paragraphing helps distinguish these stages, and phrases such as “Starting from the kitchen area” and “Overall” signal the direction of the response. However, some connections are mechanical or unclear. For example, “Where few new features are added” does not clearly link the preceding changes to the next point, and “Another new door” is difficult to follow because the locations of the doors are not accurately established. Organise the description by area and use clear comparisons such as “whereas” or “in contrast” to make the before-and-after relationships easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of terms for describing the redesign, including “serving area,” “recycling bin,” “outdoor seating,” and “extension.” Some attempts at more formal vocabulary show ambition, but several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for a plan description: “allocated for takeaway food,” “advanced feature,” and “a touch of more sanitation” do not express the changes precisely. There are also spelling errors, including “benefecial,” “frindly,” and “towars,” which reduce the accuracy of the vocabulary. Prefer direct, conventional language for map changes, such as “was replaced by,” “was added,” and “is located,” and check spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, and the overall meaning is usually understandable. However, some sentence structures and verb forms are inaccurate. For example, “The presented layouts … are illustrating” uses an awkward progressive form; “the serving area is now converted” needs a more suitable passive construction; and “which is depicting” does not agree naturally with the clause it refers to. The sentence beginning “Where few new features are added” is also incomplete or poorly formed. Use consistent past and present forms to compare the plans—for example, “The serving area has been replaced by a hot-meals counter”—and check articles, agreement, and sentence boundaries. These corrections would make the comparisons clearer.

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

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