Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-16

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 or madam

I am writing to let you know that my colleagues are not happy with the food you served for lunch. Although they liked the hotel but not food

All participants liked the hotel facilities, and the hosts' service was very quick. Apart from that, the staff of the hotel was very quiet and helpful throughout the whole stay

The lunch that you served was cold and the items that our team ordered that was not up to mark; some of the dishes are missed ,along with that our team asked for mild spice and it was too spicy .

For future orders I request you to make sure the items that are ordering and it should be followed with instructions , so that guests could not dissatisfied with your food . It will help you to know about the taste of the guests what they are expecting from you

I request you to consider my request . I hope to hearing from you soon

Yours faithfully

Ramandeep Kaur

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers all three bullet points required by the task prompt. You successfully mention what participants liked about the hotel, explaining that they appreciated the facilities, hosts' quick service, and the helpfulness of the staff. You also explain why they were unhappy about the food, noting that it was cold, incorrect items were served, and the spice level was too high. Finally, you provide suggestions for improvement, asking the manager to ensure future orders follow instructions carefully. However, some ideas are slightly repetitive and under-developed, particularly in the conclusion. Despite these minor limitations, the overall purpose of the letter is clearly conveyed, fulfilling the requirements for Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter maintains a clear overall progression from the opening statement through to the closing remarks. Paragraphing is used to separate the introduction, the positive aspects, the complaints, the suggestions, and the sign-off, which gives the letter a structured appearance. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Although', 'Apart from that', and 'along with that', although some transitions feel a bit mechanical or unnatural. Referencing is generally clear, though occasional awkward phrasing makes the flow slightly choppy in places. Overall, the organisation is coherent and easy to follow, supporting a Band 6.0 score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is adequate for the task, with terms like 'facilities', 'participants', and 'instructions'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are noticeable word choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'the staff of the hotel was very quiet' (likely intended to mean quiet or unobtrusive, but contextually odd) and 'guests could not dissatisfied'. You also make repetitive use of basic vocabulary. While communication is not impeded, the frequent lexical inaccuracies and lack of sophisticated phrasing prevent the response from reaching a higher band. This performance aligns best with Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The response includes a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'Although they liked the hotel but not food' and 'For future orders I request you to make sure the items that are ordering and it should be followed with instructions'. There are several grammatical errors and awkward structures, including double connectors ('Although... but'), incorrect verb forms ('are ordering' instead of 'are ordered'), and punctuation issues. These errors cause some difficulty for the reader and indicate a lack of reliable control over complex structures. Therefore, a score of 5.0 is appropriate.

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

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