Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-08-27

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The system used for rubbish/garbage collection in your local area is not working properly. This is causing problems for you and your neighbours. Write a letter to the local council. In your letter

• describe how the rubbish collection system is not working properly
• explain how this is affecting you and your neighbours
• suggest what should be done about the problem

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 am writing this letter on behalf of my neighbors to get your attention towards upscaling the issue owed by local garbage collection in our residential area.

The problem related to rubbish collection has started from the last couple of weeks; the prior reason was with the timing of pick-up days has been rescheduled, and no any official notice was issued. Moreover, the piled up garbage attain a weird smell over time, making the surroundings downgrade. Overall, contributing to the factor of visible pollution .

I firmly belive that not only , the inspection of nearby routes should be conduted but also , warning or new set of rules and regulations should be implemented .

looking for a oromt response.

yours faithfully ,

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The letter covers all three bullet points: describing the issue, explaining the impact, and suggesting solutions. However, the response is significantly under the 150-word minimum, which limits the development of ideas. The description of the problem is somewhat vague, and the explanation of the impact could be more detailed to fully address the task requirements. Because the response is 25 words short, it fails to meet the length requirement, which negatively impacts the overall task achievement score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is logically organized with a clear opening and closing. Paragraphing is present, though the body paragraphs are quite brief. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Moreover' and 'Overall', but the flow is occasionally interrupted by awkward phrasing and punctuation errors, such as the spacing issues around commas. The progression of ideas is clear, but the limited length prevents a more sophisticated development of the argument.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks precision and variety. Phrases like 'upscaling the issue owed by' and 'contributing to the factor of visible pollution' are unnatural and demonstrate a lack of control over collocations. There are also spelling errors such as 'belive', 'conduted', and 'oromt'. While the meaning is generally conveyed, the lexical range is limited, and the errors in word choice occasionally distract the reader.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation. Examples include 'the prior reason was with the timing... has been rescheduled' (incorrect verb tense/structure) and 'not only , the inspection... should be conduted but also , warning... should be implemented' (incorrect use of correlative conjunctions and punctuation). These errors are noticeable and detract from the overall quality of the writing, though they do not completely impede communication.

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

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