Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-16

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 given illustrate a difference between college cafe now and before.The main sturcture of the bulding remained same while some things in the cafe is replaced by time.Kitchen in the cafe remained same while the serving area is replaced with hot meals, and the salad bar is added on the left side of the main entrance, tables and chairs are still in the middle of the cafe but the additional outdoor seating is added infront of cafe.The toilets are still on there place where they were before redesigning the cafe. Bin is replaced with the Recycling bins. At last, the staff dinning rooms are replaced with the take away food room and the coffe bar have it separated room they both are partitioned.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify several important changes, including the kitchen remaining in place, the serving counter becoming a hot-meals area, the addition of a salad bar and outdoor seating, and the replacement of the bin with recycling bins. You also note that the toilets remain in the same location. However, the report is brief and does not fully describe key features such as the barbecue, the two new southern doors, or the central seating area’s continuity. The overview that the main structure stayed the same is useful, but the changes are not developed or compared in enough detail. The response is also 27 words below the required minimum, which limits the coverage of the plans. Add a fuller overview and describe the main changes more completely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response follows a generally understandable order, moving from the kitchen and serving area to the seating, toilets, bins, and former staff rooms. This gives the reader a basic sense of the comparison. However, nearly all the information is compressed into one paragraph and several long sentences, so the progression is difficult to follow. Linking is limited and sometimes awkward: “At last” does not naturally introduce the final change, while repeated use of “while” makes relationships between features less clear. Organise the report into a short overview and separate paragraphs for internal changes and outdoor additions. Use clear references such as “In the redesigned café” to guide the comparison.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant plan vocabulary, including “serving area,” “hot meals,” “salad bar,” “outdoor seating,” and “recycling bins,” so the main changes can be understood. However, the range is limited, and some wording is imprecise or repetitive. For example, “some things in the cafe is replaced by time” is vague, and “the additional outdoor seating is added” repeats the same idea. There are also spelling errors such as “sturcture,” “bulding,” “dinning,” and “coffe,” which reduce accuracy. Aim for precise verbs and collocations commonly used to describe plans, such as “was converted into,” “was added,” and “remained unchanged.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt to combine several comparisons in longer sentences, but control is inconsistent and the response relies heavily on simple present-tense forms. Errors in agreement and sentence construction occur in examples such as “some things in the cafe is replaced” and “the coffee bar have it separated room.” The opening also lacks a clear grammatical structure: “The given illustrate a difference…” In addition, punctuation is weak, with no space after the first full stop and several ideas joined by commas. Practise accurate passive forms for describing changes, for example, “The serving area was replaced by a hot-meals counter,” and use shorter, correctly punctuated sentences alongside more complex comparisons.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.