Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-15

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 layouts illustrates a college cafe how it looked before and how it looks after renovation.

Overall, after redesign, the cafe expanded it's activity to outdoor with seating arrangements and barbecue. Conversely, staff dinning rooms has been replaced by take away food and coffee bar. Also, two new doors has been added to reach outdoor seating area and barbecue.

Previously, the cafe had less food options and seats, after renovation the main change was in the outdoor area, where they arranged seats. Now, the cafe has different food sections, including salad bar, barbecue, hot meals. However, they used to serve all the food from one place.

They also added recycled bins in place of bins.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the broad changes, including the new outdoor seating and barbecue, the replacement of the staff dining rooms with takeaway and coffee facilities, and the change from one general serving area to separate food options. However, the report covers the plans only partially: it gives little detail about where features are located or what remains unchanged, such as the kitchen, central tables and chairs, and toilets. The overview is also imprecise when it says the café has “less food options and seats” before renovation; the plans do not establish a reduction in indoor seating. The response is 35 words below the required minimum, which limits the detail available. Develop the main comparisons with accurate spatial information and avoid unsupported claims.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic, readable structure: an introduction, an overview, and short paragraphs describing changes. Linking expressions such as “Overall,” “Conversely,” and “However” help signal comparisons. However, progression is limited because several points are repeated—for example, outdoor seating and the barbecue appear in both the overview and the next paragraph—while other changes are left unexplained. The final sentence about recycling bins feels detached from the preceding discussion. Group the information more clearly, perhaps by describing the northern and western changes together, then the central and outdoor areas. Use references such as “these facilities” only when their meaning is clear, and connect each detail to the relevant part of the plan.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant vocabulary for describing a redesigned café, including “renovation,” “outdoor seating area,” “food sections,” and “recycled bins.” This gives the reader a general understanding of the changes. However, the range is limited, and several choices are inaccurate or awkward: “expanded it's activity to outdoor” and “they arranged seats” do not express the changes naturally, while “recycled bins” refers to bins made from recycled material rather than bins for recycling. Spelling and word-form errors in “dinning” and “take away” also reduce precision. Build a more accurate set of plan-description phrases, such as “was converted into,” “was added along the western wall,” and “recycling bins,” and use them to report specific changes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a few complex structures, including the contrast in “Previously …, after renovation …” and the relative clause “where they arranged seats.” However, most sentences rely on simple patterns, and errors in agreement, articles, possessives, and verb forms are frequent enough to make the writing less controlled. For example, “The layouts illustrates” should have a plural verb, “staff dinning rooms has been replaced” needs plural agreement, and “two new doors has been added” also requires a plural verb. The phrase “it's activity” uses the wrong possessive form, and “a college cafe how it looked” is not a complete, well-formed opening. Practise accurate past and present passive forms for map changes, alongside subject–verb agreement.

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