Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-31

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 show a colleage cafe before and after redsigned. Overall, the new cafe has more spaces to eat. Outdoor seating area and barbecue area were newly added, while staff dining rooms replaced with take away food and coffee bar.

Before the redesigned, cafe reserved large are for tables and chairs, while two dining rooms were located in the middle of that. Inside the kitchen there was serving area.

After redesigned, bin was replaced by recycle bins, whereas ne salad bar was added inside the tables and chairs area.Kitchen, tables and chairs are and toilents were remained unchanged. Most considerable change was that, outdoor seating was newly added to make large number of students can be served.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the main overall change—new outdoor seating and a barbecue—and note that the former staff dining rooms became takeaway and coffee areas. You also correctly mention the recycling bins and that the toilets remain. However, the account is partial and some details are inaccurate or unclear: the salad bar is described as being “inside” the seating area, although it is along the western wall, and the kitchen’s hot-meal counter is not clearly reported. The changes to the north side and the new southern doors and outdoor tables could be described more precisely. The response is also below the required 150 words, limiting the detail available to summarise the plans fully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic overall structure: an opening overview followed by descriptions of the earlier and current layouts. This helps the reader distinguish the two plans, and contrast markers such as “while” and “whereas” show some awareness of comparison. However, the progression is brief and not always clear. For example, the sentence beginning “After redesigned” combines the bin change, salad bar, and unchanged facilities without a clear spatial sequence. The final sentence repeats the outdoor-seating point from the overview rather than adding a distinct comparison. Organise the details by location—north, central area, and south—and use clearer links between each set of changes.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant plan vocabulary, including “layouts,” “serving area,” “tables and chairs,” and “outdoor seating,” and you attempt to describe change with “replaced” and “newly added.” This gives the response a minimally adequate range for the task. However, noticeable spelling and word-choice errors reduce precision, including “colleage,” “redesigned,” “recycle bins,” and “toilents.” Some phrases are also unnatural or vague, such as “large are for tables” and “large number of students can be served.” Use accurate labels from the plans and more precise expressions for location and change, such as “along the western wall” or “was converted into.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a comparison with “while” and a contrast with “whereas.” However, errors occur frequently in basic sentence patterns and verb forms, sometimes making relationships difficult to follow. Examples include “Before the redesigned,” “After redesigned,” and “Kitchen, tables and chairs are and toilents were remained unchanged.” The sentence “Most considerable change was that, outdoor seating was newly added to make large number of students can be served” has problems with articles, clause structure, and verb construction. Practise forming complete past-tense sentences, using articles consistently, and checking that each clause has a clear subject and verb.

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

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