Band 8.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 8.0 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-07-25

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The chart below shows the percentage of households in owned and rented accommodation in England and Wales between 1918 and 2011.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 8.0)

The bar chart illustrates the percentages of households living in owned and rented accommodation in England and Wales between 1918 and 2011.

Overall, the highest percent of households in owned accommodation was found in 2001 at approximately 69%. It gradually increased over the years from 1918 to 2011. However, in 1918 rented accommodation became more popular at around 78%, and it was declined over the years.

In 1918, only 22% of households owned their homes, whereas the remaining 78% lived in rented accommodation. Home ownership then increased gradually to 31% in 1939 and 32% in 1953, before rising more significantly to 42% in 1961. By 1971, the proportions of owned and rented housing had both reached 50%.

After 1971, home ownership continued to grow, and then reached 60% in 1981 and approximately 68% in 1991. It peaked at around 69% in 2001, while rented fell to its the lowest level of 31%. In 2011, however, the percentage of owner homes declined slightly to 65%, whereas the proportion of rented accommodation rose to 36%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 8.0

The response effectively addresses the task by summarizing the main trends and providing relevant comparisons. You have clearly identified the starting points, the crossover point in 1971, and the peak/end figures. The overview is concise and highlights the key inverse relationship between the two categories. To reach a higher band, ensure that all data points are described with complete accuracy; for instance, stating that rented accommodation 'declined over the years' is a good summary, but ensure the specific data points mentioned (like 31% in 2001) are consistently accurate to the provided chart. Overall, the response is well-focused and covers all requirements of the prompt.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 8.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs that group information chronologically. The progression of ideas is smooth, and you make good use of cohesive devices such as 'whereas,' 'before,' and 'however' to link sentences and clauses. Paragraphing is used effectively to separate the general trends from the specific data analysis. The referencing is generally clear, though the flow could be slightly improved by ensuring that the transition between the general overview and the detailed body paragraphs feels more integrated. Overall, the structure is logical and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey information with precision. Phrases like 'proportions of owned and rented housing,' 'reached 50%,' and 'declined slightly' are used appropriately. There is an attempt to use less common vocabulary, though some word choices could be more sophisticated. For example, 'rented accommodation became more popular' is clear, but could be enhanced with more academic terminology. There are no significant spelling or word-choice errors that impede communication. To improve, try to incorporate more varied synonyms for 'increase' and 'decrease' to avoid repetition.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

The response displays a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You use subordinate clauses effectively, such as 'while rented fell to its the lowest level.' There are a few minor grammatical slips, such as 'it was declined' (passive voice error) and 'to its the lowest level' (article/determiner error). However, these errors are infrequent and do not impede the reader's understanding. The majority of your sentences are error-free, and your control over punctuation and tense usage is generally strong. Continuing to practice complex sentence construction will help you achieve even greater accuracy.

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