Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-15

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 6.5)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am an employer from XYZ Company and I organized a meeting at your hotel. This letter is to provide you with the employee feedback about their likes and dislikes in your service.

All the participants from the meeting were impressed by the service your staff delivered. They were not only present physically but also were happy to assist someone in need. Additionally, everyone appreciated the spacious and well-organized place which was clean and looked inviting.

Despite the pleasing experience with the staff the participants showed their dissatisfaction with the food served at lunch. Undoubtedly, all food items were presented as requested by the company but it was cold and stale. Due to this the attendees could enjoy the lunch and satisfy their hunger and complained about it.

I would like to suggest you provide your kitchen staff with food warmers which would keep food hot and fresh until it’s served. By providing this you can elevate your customer service.

I hope you would take this complaint into consideration and do something to reduce complaints in the future.

Yours faithfully,

Suman

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.0

You address all three required points and maintain a clear, appropriately formal purpose. The positive feedback is specific: participants valued the staff’s helpfulness and the hotel’s spacious, clean, well-organised setting. You also explain that lunch was cold and stale, then recommend food warmers. These relevant details make the letter complete and support its main message. Some development is less precise, however: “Due to this the attendees could enjoy the lunch” appears to contradict the complaint, and the suggestion focuses only on keeping food warm rather than addressing freshness or the menu more broadly. Clarifying the impact and adding a practical measure, such as reviewing preparation and serving times, would make the ideas more fully supported.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The letter is organised in a clear sequence: purpose, positive comments, complaint, recommendation, and closing. Paragraphing helps the reader distinguish each function, while transitions such as “Additionally,” “Despite,” and “I would like to suggest” guide the progression. The overall structure is effective and the message is easy to follow. Some linking is less successful: “Despite the pleasing experience with the staff” narrows the contrast to staff, although the paragraph also refers to the food, and “Due to this” introduces a sentence whose meaning is unclear. Make the relationship between ideas explicit and use pronouns or linking phrases only when their reference is unmistakable to strengthen the flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range for a formal complaint, including “dissatisfaction,” “spacious,” “well-organized,” “stale,” and “elevate your customer service.” These choices communicate the main points and show some willingness to use less common vocabulary. However, several expressions are imprecise or unnatural: “present physically” does not clearly convey that staff were attentive, “food items were presented as requested” is vague, and “reduce complaints” sounds less appropriate than focusing on improving the meal experience. “Satisfy their hunger” is also an awkward fit in this context. Aim for precise collocations such as “attentive and helpful staff,” “served as requested,” and “the food was cold and no longer fresh.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.5

You use a mix of simple and more complex structures, including “They were not only … but also …” and the relative clause “which would keep food hot and fresh.” Most sentences communicate the intended meaning, and punctuation and paragraphing are generally controlled. Some grammatical errors remain. In “Due to this the attendees could enjoy the lunch,” the modal and meaning conflict with the complaint; “could not enjoy” would express the intended point. “Despite the pleasing experience with the staff the participants…” needs a comma after the introductory phrase. The construction “not only present physically but also were happy” is not parallel; use “not only present but also willing to help.” Greater consistency in parallel structures and careful proofreading would improve accuracy.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.