Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-13
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 5.0)
The plan illustrates how college cafe used to look earlier before redesign as compared to looks now.
Overall, we can observe a significant development in college cafe as Outdoor seating , Take away food counter, Coffee bar and Salad bar were introduced in cafe. There are no such structural changes but many new things were introduced in the new plan.
Cafe before redesign was simple as it has essential things like kitehen , serving area , toilet and seperate two staff dining rooms which are internally connect.
Today's design do not have staff dining room but have new outdoor seating .The Bin is comparetively la
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0
You identify several important changes, including the new outdoor seating, takeaway counter, coffee bar and salad bar, and note that the staff dining rooms have disappeared. However, the response only partially summarises the plans: it ends mid-sentence at “The Bin is comparetively la…”, so key comparisons and details are missing. The overview also says there are “no such structural changes,” although two doors were added to the southern wall and the outdoor seating and barbecue were created. The kitchen, hot-meal counter, recycling bins and unchanged toilets could also be compared more clearly. The response is 45 words below the required minimum, which limits how fully the main features can be covered. Develop a complete overview and describe the principal changes and unchanged features.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0
There is some basic organisation: an opening statement is followed by an overview and then brief comments on the former and current café. This gives the reader a starting framework, and phrases such as “Overall” and “Today’s design” signal shifts in focus. However, the progression is not sustained because the final paragraph stops mid-sentence, and the comparison between the two plans remains incomplete. Some links are awkward or unclear, as in “as compared to looks now,” while the overview lists new facilities without grouping them or explaining how the layout changed. Use complete paragraphs to compare related features—for example, the former staff rooms with the new takeaway and coffee areas—and connect each point explicitly to its location or function.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The response uses some relevant vocabulary for describing a plan, including “redesign,” “serving area,” “staff dining rooms,” and “outdoor seating.” These choices show awareness of the task’s subject, but the range is limited and several noticeable spelling or word-choice errors make parts difficult to understand. Examples include “kitehen,” “seperate,” “internally connect,” and “comparetively la…”. The phrase “new things” is also too general for a map description, where precise labels are available. Aim to use the plan’s terms accurately, such as “recycling bins,” “hot-meal counter,” and “barbecue area,” and choose clear comparative language such as “was replaced by” or “was added along the southern side.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
You attempt a few longer structures, including “as … were introduced” and “but …,” but the range is limited and errors occur frequently. In “how college cafe used to look,” the article is missing; “as compared to looks now” lacks a clear grammatical structure; and “Cafe before redesign was simple as it has” shifts awkwardly between past and present. There are also agreement and verb-form problems in “Today's design do not have” and “two staff dining rooms which are internally connect.” These errors sometimes make relationships between ideas unclear. Practise accurate past-tense descriptions of the former plan and present-tense descriptions of the current one, while checking articles, subject–verb agreement and complete sentence endings.
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