Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-27

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 plans illustrate a college's cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.

Overall it is clear that the cafe was built with a basic design then and how it looked fancy today

The key features that is making new design of cafe more aesthetic is the outdoor sitting area and increased counters for different categories of food and drinks. Old design had only one corner for serving it, but looking at the refurbished design it was divided in Take away food, hot meals, coffee bar, salad bar and barbecue which can help staff during crowded hours. Another good change was recycling bin place seems to be wider now, kitchen and toilets were unchanged.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the before-and-after comparison and mention several genuine changes, including the new outdoor seating, additional food and drink counters, recycling bins, and the unchanged kitchen and toilets. However, the report is incomplete: it does not describe important spatial changes, such as the former staff dining rooms becoming takeaway and coffee areas, or the new doors to the outdoor space. The claim that the recycling-bin area “seems to be wider” is not supported by the plans, and the barbecue is outside rather than a food counter within the café. The overview is also vague (“fancy”) rather than a clear summary of the main changes. The response is 106 words, below the required 150; develop the key comparisons with accurate details.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a basic overall order: it introduces the plans, gives a brief overview, and then lists changes. Linking phrases such as “Overall,” “Another good change,” and “but” help signal relationships between ideas. However, the body is compressed into one long paragraph, so the reader has to follow several changes without clear grouping or progression. The sentence beginning “The key features…” combines the design overview, the old serving arrangement, and a list of new facilities, making the comparison difficult to track. Organise the report into distinct paragraphs and group changes by location or function—for example, north-side counters, western and eastern features, then outdoor seating. Use clear references to the old and current plans throughout.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use a reasonable range of task-related vocabulary, including “redesigned,” “refurbished,” “counters,” “recycling,” and “outdoor sitting area,” so the main subject is generally clear. There are also attempts at more descriptive language, such as “aesthetic” and “crowded hours.” However, some choices are imprecise or informal for an IELTS plan description: “fancy” is subjective, “corner for serving it” is unclear, and “outdoor sitting area” is less natural than “outdoor seating area.” “Increased counters” does not clearly express that several distinct service areas were added. Aim for precise labels and neutral language, and avoid adding unsupported interpretations about appearance or staff needs. This would make the vocabulary more accurate and flexible.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including a contrast with “but” and a relative clause in “which can help staff during crowded hours.” The opening sentence is clear, and the reader can understand the broad comparison. However, errors in agreement, tense, and sentence construction are noticeable. For example, “The key features that is making” has a plural subject with a singular verb, while “then and how it looked fancy today” does not form a clear parallel structure. “Old design had” also needs an article, and “recycling bin place seems to be wider now” has an unclear grammatical construction. Practise accurate past-versus-present comparisons and check subject–verb agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries when editing.

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