Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-20

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 to inform you about improve the quality of the food in your hotel. Because we attended the hotel few weeks ago and we were dissatisfied regarding the lunch food.

Actually, last week I was organized the company event in your hotel and I got positive review about the location and the interior of the hotel. However, one dislike things that I hared from my team was the food was not hot at the time of serving. All employees who participated in the hotel were unhappy for the food that received.

That a reason I also want to add suggestion for maintaining the quality of the food is that to prepare the food on time when ordered do not get ready early or after.

I hope you understand my point and to look towards my suggestion for your better service in future. So we can thing about the upcoming events to celebrate in your hotel.

Your best client

Keyur patel

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The letter addresses all three bullet points of the prompt: the positive aspects of the hotel, the issue with the food, and a suggestion for improvement. However, the development of these points is somewhat limited. The explanation of why the food was unsatisfactory is brief, and the suggestion for improvement is slightly vague. While the purpose of the letter is clear, the tone is occasionally inconsistent with a formal business complaint. To improve, ensure that each point is expanded with more specific detail to fully satisfy the requirements of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is limited and sometimes mechanical. For example, the transition 'That a reason' is grammatically incorrect and does not effectively link the ideas. The progression of ideas is generally logical, but the connection between sentences could be smoother. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring they are used correctly would significantly enhance the flow of the letter.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. There are several instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'one dislike things that I hared' (heard) and 'lunch food'. The word choice is often repetitive, and there are minor errors in word formation and spelling that, while not impeding communication, prevent the response from reaching a higher band. To improve, focus on using more precise collocations and expanding your range of vocabulary related to business and service feedback.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Examples include 'I was organized' instead of 'I organised', 'the food that received' instead of 'the food that we received', and 'we can thing about' instead of 'we can think about'. These errors are noticeable and occasionally distract the reader. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, correct tense usage, and proofreading for basic grammatical slips.

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

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