Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-19

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 Sir,

I hope you are doing well. Recently, we organized an all-day meeting at your hotel and our client felt so happy for the services which your staff provided to us. Moreover, most of the services were excellent such as, heating and cooling system in the meeting room, swimming area, yoga classes and many more. This all services made our participant day as well as they gave good feedback for the hotel.

On the other hand, only they were dissatisfied about the food because food contain too much oil. Therefore, your hotel should maintain the level of oil in cooking. In addition, you can improve this with the help of right measurement spoon. There are many modern spoon available in the market which helps to preparing dishes. Hope you will focus on this are in upcoming days.

Thanks for your time and support.

Best regard,

Riya Patel.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The letter addresses all three bullet points: the positive aspects of the hotel, the issue with the food, and suggestions for improvement. However, the response is slightly under the 150-word minimum, which limits the depth of development. The suggestion regarding 'measurement spoons' is somewhat simplistic and lacks the professional tone expected in a formal letter to a manager. To improve, you should expand on the impact of the food quality on your event and provide more sophisticated, professional suggestions for improvement, such as reviewing the catering menu or hiring a new head chef.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the flow of ideas. You use basic cohesive devices like 'Moreover', 'On the other hand', and 'In addition' to connect your thoughts. However, the transition between the positive feedback and the complaint is a bit abrupt. To reach a higher band, ensure that your sentences flow more naturally into one another and use a wider variety of linking words to create a more cohesive narrative throughout the letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but remains quite basic. Phrases like 'felt so happy' and 'many more' are repetitive and lack the precision required for a formal complaint. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'maintain the level of oil' and 'modern spoon available'. To improve, focus on using more formal, precise vocabulary appropriate for a business context, such as 'unsatisfactory', 'excessive', or 'culinary standards'. Expanding your range of descriptive adjectives will also help convey your message more effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The letter contains several grammatical errors that affect the clarity of your writing. For example, 'This all services' should be 'All these services', and 'food contain' should be 'food contained'. There are also issues with article usage and pluralization, such as 'helps to preparing dishes'. While you attempt some complex structures, they are often inaccurate. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and consistent tense usage, as the event took place in the past. Proofreading for basic errors will significantly improve your score.

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

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