Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-10

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 graph compares data in percetage of households owned and accomodation that are rented in England and Wales between 1918 and 2011. Overall, the households in owned accomodation were lower in 1918 compared to households in rented accomodation whereby for owned accomodation was 25 % in 1918. Between 1939 and 1953 the owned accomodation were of the same level with 33% but it continued to rise drastically and in 1971 they were of the same level both household in owned accomodation and households in rented accomodation with 50%. in 2001 the owned accomodation was the highest with 79% and later declined to 65% in 2011 but remained the highest compared to rented accomodation of 35%.

On the other hand, households of rented accomodation were the highest in 1918 with 78% later between 1939 and 1953 it declined and remained the constant with 68%. For rented accomodation it continued to decline upto 2001 whereby in 2011 it rose from 32% to 36% in 2011. In summary, household in rented accomodation declined from the start of 1918 to end of 2011 whereas the households in owned accomadation rose drasitcally from 1918 to 2001 but later slightly declined in 2011 but remained at the top compared to rented accomodation.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You identify the main contrast and broad pattern: ownership rises over most of the period while renting generally falls, and the two are equal at 50% in 1971. You also note the late reversal in 2011. These relevant features support a clear overview. However, several figures are inaccurate: ownership in 2001 was about 69%, not 79%, and the 1918 ownership figure was about 23%, rather than 25%; rented accommodation in 1991 was about 32%, not 32% as implied for the later rise from 2001. The statement that renting declined throughout to 2011 also conflicts with the final increase. The response covers the task, but some comparisons and stages need more precise reporting to make the overview fully reliable.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an opening overview, a discussion of ownership, a contrasting paragraph on renting, and a concluding summary. Linking phrases such as “On the other hand” help signal the comparison, and the chronology is generally easy to follow. However, the first paragraph combines overview and detailed figures, while the final “In summary” largely repeats earlier points rather than adding a clear synthesis. Some connections are awkward or unclear, particularly “whereby for owned accommodation was 25%” and “it rose from 32% to 36% in 2011,” which makes the starting point of the change uncertain. Grouping the early years and later years more deliberately, and using clearer references, would improve progression.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant task vocabulary, including “declined,” “remained constant,” “rose,” and “compared to,” so the main trends are usually understandable. However, the range is limited and several expressions are repeated, especially “owned accommodation” and “rented accommodation.” Some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “the owned accommodation were of the same level,” “declined and remained the constant,” and “remained at the top.” Spelling errors, including “percetage,” “accomodation,” “accomadation,” and “drasitcally,” also reduce accuracy. Aim for more precise trend language and check spelling carefully; this would make the description clearer and more natural without changing its basic meaning.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including clauses linked with “whereby,” “but,” and “whereas.” The meaning is generally recoverable, but grammatical control is uneven. For example, “the owned accommodation were” has a subject–verb agreement problem, while “both household in owned accommodation and households in rented accommodation” has faulty number and sentence construction. There are also tense and punctuation issues, such as the lowercase “in” after a full stop and the awkward construction “it rose from 32% to 36% in 2011.” Several sentences run together or contain incomplete grammatical patterns. Build shorter, accurate sentences first, then add subordinate clauses with clear subjects and verbs.

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