Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-12

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

There have been several complaints about the reception area where visitors to your company arrive. Your manager has asked you to suggest how the reception area could be improved.

Write a letter to your manager. In your letter

• describe the complaints that have been made
• say why the reception area is important
• suggest how the reception area could be improved

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ................. ,

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am writing this letter to address the complaints regarding the reception area and to provide possible solutions on how to resolve them.

Several visitors have complaint that there is not enough space at reception area for waiting. Also, very limited seating space is available. In addition, people have observed the lack of guidence from the receptionist.

As the major clients visit our office for various important deals, we should provide them with the proper service. Because first impression is the last impression and if we fail to impress our clinets then we may lose a high value deal. Therefore, it is significantly important to address our customers diligently.

To resolve customer complaints, I would like to suggest some resolutions. We can extend our waiting area arrangemnet for proper seating of clients. Additionaly, we can provision some extra chairs in the reception area. Furthermore, our receptionist should be aware of basic company details, policies and must be able to guide customers properly. Hence, we should take a basic training session with her regarding the same.

I hope these actions will help to reduce client complaints and it will help to gain their trust back.

Regards,

John.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address all three points: you report complaints about limited waiting space, insufficient seating and inadequate receptionist guidance; explain that clients’ first impressions can affect important deals; and propose more space, extra chairs and staff training. This covers the task clearly and gives a relevant purpose for the suggestions. The explanation of why reception matters is persuasive, but the proposed changes are not equally developed: for example, “extend our waiting area” is not explained in practical terms, and the training suggestion could specify what guidance visitors need. The letter also uses a suitably formal opening and closing. To strengthen the response further, develop each recommendation with a brief, concrete detail and make the relationship between the complaints and solutions explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter is organised in a clear sequence: purpose, complaints, importance of reception, proposed improvements and closing. Paragraphing helps the reader distinguish these functions, and signposts such as “In addition,” “Therefore” and “Furthermore” make the progression easy to follow. The ideas are generally connected logically, particularly when you move from the effect of first impressions to the need for attentive service. Some linking is a little formulaic, however, and “Hence” before the training suggestion does not add much to the connection already made by “Furthermore.” The final paragraph also repeats the aim of reducing complaints and rebuilding trust without adding a new point. More varied, precise links between each complaint and its corresponding action would make the flow more natural.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range for a formal workplace letter, including phrases such as “possible solutions,” “first impression,” “high value deal” and “basic training session.” These choices communicate the main ideas, and the tone is mostly appropriate. However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or awkward, including “have complaint,” “extend our waiting area arrangemnet,” “provision some extra chairs” and “gain their trust back.” There are also spelling errors in “guidence,” “clinets,” “arrangemnet” and “Additionaly.” These do not prevent understanding, but they reduce precision and control. Aim for natural combinations such as “have complained,” “expand the waiting area,” “provide additional chairs” and “regain their trust,” and proofread carefully for spelling.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including the conditional structure “if we fail to impress our clients then we may lose a high value deal” and the reason clause beginning “As the major clients visit our office.” Most sentences are understandable, and the grammatical errors rarely obstruct the message. Some errors remain in sentence construction and grammatical forms: “there is not enough space at reception area” needs an article, while “Several visitors have complaint” uses the wrong verb form. In “our receptionist should be aware of basic company details, policies and must be able to guide customers,” the parallel structure is awkward. The sentence beginning “Because first impression is the last impression” is also a fragment as written. Review articles, verb forms and complete sentence structure, while continuing to use varied sentence patterns.

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