Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-07
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 5.5)
The bar chart illustrates the changes of housing in families: either self-owned or renting across England and Wales between 1918 and 2011.
Overall, the rented accommodation dropped dramatically from 1918 to 2011, contrasting with the owned accommodation, which it surged among these years.
At the start of 1918, renting occupied the highest market, having over 75% of households, but carrying a declining trend, where it intersected with the uprising owning accomodation in 1971; each consisted half of the total household percentage. After 1971, rented accommodation continued decreasing: hitted a low in 2001, with only 32% of households.
On the other hand, owned accommodation started off with 22% of households in 1918, with slightly upward fluctuations up to 1953, then thrived significantly thereafter to the summit of near 70% in 2001.
The changes in housing between 20th and 21st century demonstrated the increased in economic status of the UK, with more families afforded to purchase houses started from 1981 than renting. However, the trend is projected to be reduced in 2011 as the owning accommodation dropped with the in
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers the main features of the chart, identifying the key trends and the point of intersection in 1971. You successfully highlighted the contrast between the two categories. However, the response is incomplete; it ends abruptly mid-sentence in the final paragraph, which prevents a full development of the summary. While the main trends are identified, the lack of a complete conclusion or final overview limits the score. To improve, ensure you complete your sentences and provide a cohesive summary of the data rather than introducing external interpretations about economic status, which are not explicitly supported by the chart provided.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs. You use cohesive devices such as 'On the other hand' and 'After 1971' to guide the reader. However, the abrupt ending of the final paragraph disrupts the flow and coherence of the text. Additionally, some referencing is slightly mechanical. To reach a higher band, ensure that your paragraphing is balanced and that your concluding thoughts are fully articulated to provide a sense of closure to the response.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'intersected', 'fluctuations', and 'thrived'. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'hitted a low' (should be 'hit a low') and 'the increased in economic status' (should be 'the increase in economic status'). These errors do not impede communication, but they do limit the precision of your writing. Focusing on correct verb forms and noun phrases will help improve your lexical score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, which is appropriate for this task. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, such as 'the owned accommodation, which it surged' (unnecessary pronoun 'it') and 'more families afforded to purchase' (should be 'could afford'). The final sentence is incomplete, which is a significant grammatical issue. While you show control over basic structures, the frequency of errors in more complex constructions prevents a higher score. Proofreading for subject-verb agreement and sentence completion is essential.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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