Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-11

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 design outlines the structure of a cafe at college before and after re-furnishing.

Overall, it is clear from the bluprint that few new things in design has been added like outdoor seating , salad bar and barbecue.

In cafe design serving area is replaced with hot meals, staff dining rooms with take away food and coffee bar. Kitchen , tables and chairs area and toilet remains similar. While bin area renamed as recycling bins . Other than this cafe outside area is used for barbecue and outdoor seating.

Cafe before design had six major areas which were kitchen. serving area, staff dining rooms, bin, toilets, and, indoor seating. While in cafe today has 10 major areas which are kitchen, hot meals, salad bar, take away food, coffee bar, recycling bins, toilets, indoor seating , barbecue and outdoor seating.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main redesign features, including the new salad bar, outdoor seating and barbecue, and correctly note that the kitchen, central seating and toilets remain. You also compare the former serving area with hot meals and the staff dining rooms with the takeaway and coffee-bar sections. However, the overview is vague, and several details are only listed rather than described in relation to their positions or changes. For example, the new southern doors and the outdoor tables are omitted, while the count of “10 major areas” is not a useful comparison of the plans. The response is also 11 words below the required minimum. Develop the key spatial changes and provide a fuller overview.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable paragraph structure: an introduction, an overview, a summary of changes and a final inventory of areas. This gives the reader some organisation, and expressions such as “Overall” and “While” attempt to connect ideas. However, progression is limited because the final paragraph largely repeats information already given, and the list of areas does not explain how the layout changed. Some linking is awkward or incomplete, particularly “While in cafe today has 10 major areas,” which does not form a clear contrast. Grouping the changes by location—north, west, east and south—and using clear comparisons would make the progression more coherent and reduce repetition.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant task vocabulary such as “serving area,” “staff dining rooms,” “recycling bins” and “outdoor seating,” so the basic meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at paraphrase, including “re-furnishing” and “structure.” However, the range is limited and some choices are imprecise or unnatural: “few new things in design has been added” and “cafe outside area is used for barbecue” do not describe the changes fluently. “Blueprint” is not the most suitable term for these plans, and spelling errors such as “bluprint” are noticeable. Use precise verbs and collocations for layout changes, such as “was converted into,” “was added along the western wall” and “remained unchanged.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and more complex sentence forms, but control is inconsistent, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences difficult to follow. For example, “few new things in design has been added” has problems with article use, agreement and sentence construction; “Kitchen, tables and chairs area and toilet remains similar” has faulty agreement and number; and “While in cafe today has 10 major areas” is an incomplete clause. Punctuation also makes the lists harder to read. Aim for complete, controlled comparison sentences, such as “The kitchen and toilets remain in the same positions, while the former staff rooms have been replaced by a takeaway counter and coffee bar.”

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