Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-14
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 5.5)
Dear manager,
I just wanted to send a quick letter about the reception area. even though, I think your department is a doing a great job and there is no suspious about it. There is, however ,one issue i would like be in your attention regarding the building reception area that we have got many complains about.
As such, issue started from last week that at ground floor where is as the reception area have been not cleaning and main reason is the desk was too short and a single space. i believe it is important to renewed the area. I would like to suggest to do an improvements, such as ,first entrance of the building should be eye caught structure, like fish aquarium and a play around for children.I believe visitor could be happy or benefited.
Anyways, I just figured i would bring this to your attention. Neednessless to improvement of the reception area. However, could you please solve this issue as soon as possible?
Thank you for your understanding and consideration. I look forward to your reply on this soon.
Your faithfully,
Max.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all three bullet points of the prompt: describing complaints, explaining the importance of the reception, and suggesting improvements. However, the development of these ideas is somewhat limited and occasionally unclear. For instance, the explanation of why the area is important is missing, as the text jumps from describing complaints to suggesting improvements. The suggestions, such as a 'fish aquarium' and 'play around for children', are relevant but could be more professionally articulated to suit a formal letter to a manager. The tone is inconsistent, shifting between informal and formal, which affects the overall task fulfilment.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The letter is organised into paragraphs, but the logical flow between sentences is frequently disrupted by grammatical errors and awkward phrasing. While there is an attempt to use cohesive devices like 'As such' and 'However', they are often used incorrectly or in contexts where they do not fit the intended meaning. The transition between the introduction and the body paragraphs is abrupt. The referencing is sometimes unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the progression of the argument. Paragraphing is present but does not always serve to group related ideas effectively.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary is generally limited and repetitive. There are several instances of word-choice errors, such as 'suspious' (suspicion), 'renewed' (renovate), and 'eye caught' (eye-catching). The phrase 'Neednessless to improvement' is unclear and does not convey the intended meaning. While the student attempts to use some descriptive language, the lack of precision and frequent errors in collocation hinder the clarity of the message. To improve, the student should focus on learning standard business collocations and ensuring that words are used in their correct grammatical form.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response contains frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede communication. Issues include incorrect verb forms ('have been not cleaning'), subject-verb agreement errors, and misuse of punctuation, particularly with commas. Sentence structures are mostly simple, and attempts at complex sentences often result in errors, such as 'I would like be in your attention'. There are also persistent errors with articles and prepositions. While the meaning is generally discernible, the high frequency of errors throughout the text prevents it from reaching a higher band score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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