Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-16

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 7.0)

Dear Sir,

I hope this letter finds you well.

I am writing in response to a news of closing of the leisure centre in my town. I have been living here for fifteen years and we spent a lot of time there. Since my student life, I used to visit the sport centre with my friends; additionally, whenever my cousins visited us we used to play tennis there. It was like our second home where we created a lot of memories. Even now every weekend I take my children there to spend some quality time.

I believe that the sport and leisure centres are of paramount importance for any local community. They give the opportunity to the people to unwind, spend good time with their friends and family and involve in a healthy activity. Furthermore, they are beneficial for the children by involving them in a physical activities.

If you close the centre then there will be detrimental effects on the people of local community. They will not have any good place to visit and they have to travel to another town to do physical activities that a sports centre is offering. I advise you to take measures for the betterment of centres instead of closing them. I hope you will consider my advice. I am looking forward to hearing from you.

Thank you in advance.

Yours sincerely,

Zara Shaikh.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

The letter addresses all three points and maintains a clear, persuasive position in favour of keeping the centre open. Personal examples—visiting with friends as a student, playing tennis with cousins, and taking your children there at weekends—make your use of the facility clear. You also explain its community value through exercise and socialising, and identify travel to another town as a likely consequence of closure. These ideas are relevant and supported, though the effects on different groups could be developed further, for example by explaining how closure might affect children, older residents, or people without transport. The recommendation to improve the centre rather than close it gives the letter a clear purpose throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter is organised in a clear sequence: personal use, the centre’s wider value, and the consequences of closure, followed by a recommendation. Paragraphing supports this progression, and linking expressions such as “additionally,” “Furthermore,” and “If you close the centre” help connect the ideas. The opening and closing also suit a formal letter. Cohesion is generally effective, although some transitions are a little formulaic, and the final paragraph moves quickly from the effects of closure to advice. A more explicit link between the community benefits and the specific harms of losing the centre would make the progression even smoother. Overall, the reader can follow the argument easily.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

You use a suitable range of vocabulary for a formal letter, including “paramount importance,” “unwind,” “detrimental effects,” and “betterment.” These choices communicate your position clearly and show some awareness of formal style. However, several phrases are not fully natural or precise: “a news of closing,” “spend good time,” and “involve in a healthy activity” weaken fluency. “Sport centre” and “sports centre” are also used inconsistently. To strengthen this area, focus on accurate collocations and natural phrasing, such as “news about the proposed closure,” “spend quality time,” and “take part in physical activities.” The vocabulary is adequate and occasionally ambitious, but control is not yet consistently flexible.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

The response includes a useful mix of simple and more complex sentences, including the time clause “whenever my cousins visited us” and the conditional “If you close the centre.” Most meaning remains clear, and the letter’s sentence structures are varied enough to explain personal experience and consequences. Some grammatical errors persist, however: “I am writing in response to a news” needs an article or different construction, “the people of local community” needs a determiner, and “involving them in a physical activities” has a number-agreement problem. In “they have to travel,” the tense could also be made consistent with the hypothetical closure. Review articles, plural forms, and tense choices in conditional contexts to improve accuracy.

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.