Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-28

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 image provides the redesigning of the cafe. it provides before the renovation picture and changes they make after the rennovation of the cafe.

Overall, the staff dinning rooms is the most dominat area that have been change during the redesigning. whereas toilet and bin area remain at same location.

To begin with staff dinning room have completly transform to take away food area and coffee bar during the renovation process, therefore salad bar has been added to the dinning area in redesigning. the kitchen area has only being designated to serve hot meals as for drinks there is seperate coffe bar,

In addition, Bin has been replaced with the recycling bin. although a barbecue area is created iutdoor and extra seating area outside the caffe have also added close to the barbecue area. toilet remain at the same location as before and table and chairs inside the caffe is also at same location.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main transformation: the former staff dining rooms become takeaway and coffee areas, a salad bar is added, and outdoor seating with a barbecue is introduced. You also correctly note that the toilets and central tables remain in place and that the bin becomes recycling bins. These details address the task, but some features are reported less fully or clearly. The overview focuses on the staff rooms as the dominant change, yet the substantial addition of outdoor facilities could also be highlighted. The kitchen’s counter changes to hot meals, but the claim that drinks are served at the coffee bar is not stated on the plan. A clearer overview of the major changes, followed by precise comparisons, would make the summary more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs describing changes. This gives the reader a generally coherent route through the information, and phrases such as “To begin with” and “In addition” help signal progression. However, the links between some ideas are awkward or unclear. For example, “therefore salad bar has been added” does not show a clear cause-and-effect relationship, and “although a barbecue area is created” is not followed by a contrasting idea. The final paragraph also combines the bins, outdoor facilities, toilets, and indoor seating in a way that feels list-like. Grouping internal changes together and outdoor additions separately, with more accurate linking phrases, would improve flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for describing a redesigned space, including “renovation,” “replaced,” “recycling bin,” and “outdoor seating.” This gives you enough range to communicate the main changes. However, spelling and word-choice errors are noticeable, including “dinning,” “dominat,” “rennovation,” and “coffe,” and some phrases are not natural for this task, such as “provides the redesigning” and “designated to serve hot meals.” These issues sometimes make the description less precise, even though the intended meaning is usually recoverable. Aim for accurate plan-description collocations and check spelling carefully; for example, use “shows the café before and after its redesign” rather than “provides the redesigning.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “whereas” and a clause beginning “although.” However, grammatical control is uneven, and several errors affect clarity. In “the staff dinning rooms is,” the plural subject requires a plural verb; “have completly transform” also needs a correctly formed passive construction, such as “were completely transformed.” Other examples include “toilet remain” and “tables and chairs inside the caffe is,” where subject–verb agreement is incorrect. Sentence boundaries and punctuation also need attention: the opening “it” should begin with a capital letter, and some long sentences would be clearer if divided. Practise accurate past-tense passive forms and agreement while retaining your attempts at complex sentences.

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