Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-18

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

Write a letter to the local council. In your letter

• give details of how you and your friends or family use the centre
• explain why the sports and leisure centre is important for the local community
• describe the possible effects on local people if the centre closes

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I hope you are doing well.

I am writing this letter in response to the news that the town centre will be shut down starting next month.

To commence, I would say that this town centre plays a big role for me, my friends, and my family. Firstly, I often visit the town centre to play various sports like volleyball, tennis, and pickleball with my friends. Secondly, my entire family benefits from the recreational centre by going to the gym.

My family and I personally visit the recreational zone daily to stay fit physically and mentally. Younger people on weekend are going at town centre theatre to watch a movie, and after that they enjoy the food zone in the town centre.

I think there will be a negative impact on the public. Firstly, people do not have any other recreational facilities in the town, so people will be unfit. Secondly, children will be unhappy because they do not have another option for entertainment. Lastly, there will be a huge number of unemployment in the town.

Kindly, I am requesting you to look into the effects of this decision, and I hope you will make a right step.

Sincerely,

Harshil Trivedi

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have addressed all three bullet points required by the prompt. You clearly explained how you use the centre, why it is important, and the potential negative effects of its closure. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a local council. However, some ideas are slightly under-developed; for instance, the claim that there will be a 'huge number of unemployment' is a strong statement that could have been supported with a brief explanation of how the centre provides local jobs. Overall, the response is relevant and covers the requirements well, though further elaboration on the consequences would have strengthened the argument.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs for each point, and a closing. You have used basic cohesive devices such as 'To commence', 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'Lastly' to guide the reader. While these are effective, the transition between the second and third paragraphs is a bit abrupt. The paragraphing is appropriate, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. To improve, try to use a wider variety of linking words and ensure that the connection between sentences within paragraphs is smoother, rather than relying solely on list-like transitions.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your message clearly. You use topic-specific terms like 'recreational facilities', 'unemployment', and 'recreational zone'. However, there are some instances of slightly unnatural word choices, such as 'huge number of unemployment' (which should be 'high level of unemployment') and 'make a right step' (which would be better as 'make the right decision'). The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, but incorporating more precise collocations would help you reach a higher band score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are some grammatical errors, such as 'Younger people on weekend are going at town centre theatre' (should be 'Younger people go to the town centre theatre on weekends') and 'there will be a huge number of unemployment' (should be 'there will be a significant increase in unemployment'). While these errors are noticeable, they do not impede communication. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of prepositions. Increasing the variety of complex sentence structures would also enhance your score.

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

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