Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-31

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The plans below show the layout of a university’s sports centre now, and how it will look after redevelopment.

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

Student answer (Band 5.5)

After the redevelopment the university's sports center looks even more big than the previous one, as it has more facilites. The area has expanded which includes some more relaxing facilities.It has two dance rooms in the east across the right changing room. now which were absent in the previous one. The outdoor courts are replaced by the sports hall, leisure pool in the west and dance rooms in the east.

The front area has also expanded, it has only reception befoe but now it also consists of a cafe in the east , a sports shop in the west and changings rooms in the extream east and west sides.

The gym that is present in the norts of the sports center has also been expanded up to the dance room by acquiring the area of the previous outdoor court located in the east of sports center.

AI examiner evaluation

CriterionBand
Task Achievement / Task Response5.5
Coherence and Cohesion5.5
Lexical Resource5.5
Grammatical Range and Accuracy5.0
Overall5.5

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main change: the centre expands and gains facilities, and you compare the former outdoor courts with new indoor uses. You also mention the leisure pool, sports hall, dance studios, café and shop. However, some details are inaccurate or unclear: the gym extends eastward, but not “up to the dance room”; the future layout also retains the 25m pool, seating and central reception, which are important features to report. The description of the southern area is difficult to interpret, and there is no clear overview of the overall redevelopment beyond saying it is bigger. The response is also four words below the required minimum. Add a concise overview and describe the retained central facilities and new areas more precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has some organisation: it begins with general changes, then discusses the front area and finishes with the gym. This gives the reader a basic route through the comparison. However, progression is not consistently clear, and the short paragraphs do not fully organise the information by area or by present-versus-future layout. For example, “The outdoor courts are replaced…” is followed by a separate account of the front area, while the gym’s expansion is left until the end. Some references are also unclear, particularly “the right changing room” and “the front area.” Grouping the changes into a clear overview followed by west/central and east/south details would make the relationships easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use some relevant map vocabulary, including “expanded,” “replaced,” “facilities,” and “located,” so the main changes can generally be understood. However, the range is limited and several choices are imprecise or informal for an academic description. “Looks even more big” is an awkward way to describe the larger building, while “relaxing facilities” does not accurately identify the leisure pool or other additions. There are also noticeable spelling errors, such as “facilites,” “befoe,” “norts,” and “extream,” which reduce accuracy. Use precise terms for the facilities and their positions, and check spelling carefully. For example, describe the building as “larger” and the new amenities as “additional recreational facilities.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts some longer structures, such as “The gym … has also been expanded … by acquiring the area…,” and uses present and future comparisons. However, the range is limited, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences awkward or unclear. In “After the redevelopment … looks,” the tense does not clearly distinguish the planned future from the present; “now which were absent” is an incomplete, poorly connected clause. The sentence beginning “The front area has also expanded, it has…” joins two independent clauses with only a comma. Capitalisation is inconsistent, as in “now,” and punctuation spacing is faulty in “facilities.It.” Practise accurate sentence boundaries and use clear future forms such as “will be expanded” when describing the proposed plan.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.