Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-09

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 6.0)

Dear Sir,

I am writing this letter to grab your attention towards the problem I am facing due to improper rubbish collection in the my aea

My name is Gurpreet kaur and I am a resident of Willowbrook community. From the last month, me and all residents are facing problem of accumulation of garbage in the street area. The rubbish collectors are coming once a week therefore, the waste remained on streets with overloaded bins. Sometimes, while collection, they leave some houses as well as spill portions of litter on the streets.

There are lot of problems faced by people of the locality as delay in collection lead to occurence of foul smell from that area which make residents uncomfortable in passing from that street. Along with it , garbage attract flies which results in spread of diseases.

I want to suggest some solutions including increasing the collection days in the week . Also , any person responsible for not doing his duty carefully should be called off.

Hoping for your prompt action.

Yours sincerely,

Gurpreet

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have addressed all three bullet points in the prompt effectively. You described the collection issues, explained the impact on the community, and suggested actionable solutions. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a council. To improve, you could provide more specific details about the 'foul smell' or the 'diseases' to further develop your ideas, as the current descriptions are somewhat brief. However, the response clearly communicates the purpose and covers all required aspects of the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter follows a logical structure with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a closing. You use some cohesive devices like 'Along with it' and 'Therefore' to link ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and the paragraphing could be more distinct. The referencing is generally clear, though there are minor issues with sentence flow, such as the transition between the description of the problem and the impact. Overall, the message is easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your meaning, such as 'accumulation', 'uncomfortable', and 'prompt action'. There are some minor errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'called off' (which usually means cancelled, rather than dismissed) and 'grab your attention' (which is slightly informal for a formal letter). Spelling errors like 'aea' (area) and 'occurence' (occurrence) are present. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise collocations and ensuring accurate spelling of common words.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are several grammatical inaccuracies, such as 'From the last month' (should be 'For the last month'), 'me and all residents' (should be 'all residents and I'), and 'the waste remained' (should be 'remains'). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with spacing around commas. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and preposition usage will help improve your accuracy.

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

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