Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

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

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 given plan compares plan of previous college cafe and how it looks now.

Overall, it can be seen that the many new things are added in the cafe after redsigned it.

First of all looking at the previous cafe pla in more details, kitchen was located in north-west and also the serving area of food and drink in the south side of kitchen. Furthermore, staff dining rooms were located in centre of the cafe and some tables and chairs placed just outside of the staff rooms. Toilets located in the corner of south-east and near by toilet bin are also available and entrance of cafe in the east.

There were some new things added and some replace. Serving area converted into hot meals and salad bar new added in the west. Moreover, one staff dining room coverted into take away food and another into coffee bar. Furthermore, simple bin covert into recycling bins and toilet at the same place as previous and two new doors added in the south wall. In addition, barbecue added in the south-west and new outdoor seats placed outside the cafe in south.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You cover the main before-and-after changes and give an overview that the café gained new facilities. Relevant details include the kitchen remaining in the north-west, the serving counter becoming a hot-meals area, the staff rooms being replaced by takeaway and coffee facilities, and the addition of outdoor seating and a barbecue. Some details are less fully reported: the new salad bar and recycling bins are mentioned, but the central tables and chairs are not clearly identified as remaining, and the outdoor area’s four tables are omitted. The description of the original layout is also imprecise when it places the staff rooms “in centre” rather than along the north wall. More precise coverage of locations and retained features would strengthen the summary.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, a brief overview, a paragraph describing the original plan, and a final paragraph covering changes. This gives the reader a generally coherent route through the comparison. Linking expressions such as “Furthermore,” “Moreover,” and “In addition” help connect details, although their repeated use makes the progression somewhat mechanical. Some relationships between features are not clearly expressed; for example, “some tables and chairs placed just outside of the staff rooms” is difficult to interpret, and the final paragraph lists several changes without grouping them by location or type. Organising the changes into interior alterations and additions outside, and using clearer references to the two plans, would make the cohesion more controlled.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of vocabulary for describing a plan, including “north-west,” “south-east,” “serving area,” “recycling bins,” and “outdoor seats.” These terms help communicate the main changes, and the meaning is generally recoverable. However, several spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision, including “redesigned,” “pla,” “coverted,” and “covert.” Some phrases are also unnatural or vague, such as “new things are added” and “near by toilet bin.” Aim for accurate plan-description collocations and consistent spelling; for example, describe facilities as being “added,” “replaced,” or “converted into,” rather than relying on “things.” This would make the account more precise and fluent.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, and the sequence of changes is usually understandable. However, errors in articles, verb forms, and sentence construction are frequent enough to limit accuracy. For example, “compares plan of previous college cafe” needs an article and a more natural noun phrase, while “Toilets located” lacks a finite verb. In “one staff dining room coverted into take away food,” the passive construction needs a form of “be,” and the sentence should make clear that the room was converted. There are also problems with agreement and tense consistency in “many new things are added … after redsigned it.” Practise complete clauses and accurate passive forms when describing changes; these are especially useful for map tasks.

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