Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-17

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You recently organised an all-day meeting for your company, which took place in a local hotel. In their feedback, participants at the meeting said that they liked the hotel, but they were unhappy about the food that was served for lunch.

Write a letter to the manager of the hotel. In your letter

• say what the participants liked about the hotel
• explain why they were unhappy about the food
• suggest what the manager should do to improve the food in future

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear manager,

i am writing about the complaints of food restaurants where i held company meeting. I visited in five star restaurant for business purpose where my colleagues and manager also visited there because we celebrated the manager promotions. So, that time we arranged different kind of things there like dancing, music and food. On that time me and my other colleagues enjoy a lot with dancing and music however, they do not like food due to neither fresh or nor hot. That time, they felt disappointed in turn of which whole party would spoiled.

So, i will write a letter to 5 star restaurant owner regarding the worse quality of food. so he take an effective action to improve it by hiring better chef and hygienic. i will wait for your further action to solve that problem so everyone can enjoy our party and make feel proud to organise party in five star restaurant.

Your faithfully,

Gagan

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all three bullet points of the prompt: the positive aspects of the hotel, the issues with the food, and suggestions for improvement. However, the development is somewhat limited. The explanation of why the food was poor ('neither fresh or nor hot') is brief, and the suggestions for improvement are quite general. The tone is also inconsistent; while it is a formal letter, the narrative about 'dancing and music' is slightly irrelevant to the core task of providing feedback on a business meeting. To improve, ensure that the content remains focused on the specific requirements of the prompt and provides more detailed, professional suggestions for the manager.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The letter is divided into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is mechanical and sometimes inaccurate, such as the repetitive use of 'that time' and 'so'. The logical flow between sentences is occasionally disrupted by awkward phrasing, such as the transition from the positive aspects of the hotel to the complaint about the food. The referencing is sometimes unclear, making it difficult to follow the sequence of events. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that each paragraph has a clear, singular focus would significantly enhance the coherence of the writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is limited and repetitive. There are several instances of word-choice errors, such as 'in turn of which whole party would spoiled' and 'make feel proud to organise party'. The student relies on basic vocabulary and struggles with collocations, such as 'hygienic' used as a noun instead of 'hygiene'. While the meaning is generally clear, the lack of precision and the frequent errors in word formation prevent the response from reaching a higher band. Expanding the range of vocabulary to include more formal, business-appropriate terminology would be beneficial.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains frequent grammatical errors that affect the fluency of the text. There are consistent issues with article usage ('in five star restaurant'), verb tense consistency ('i will write a letter... so he take an effective action'), and sentence structure. The use of 'neither... or nor' is grammatically incorrect. While the student attempts some complex structures, they are often faulty, leading to confusion. To improve, the student should focus on basic sentence construction, subject-verb agreement, and the correct use of articles and prepositions. Proofreading for these common errors would help improve the overall accuracy.

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

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