Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-09-13

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 6.5)

Dear Sir,

I am writing to complain about an inconvenience we are facing because of improper litter collection system.

Nowadays, there is just only one truck arrives for garbage collection within a week and sometimes, the truck is taking rubbish from a plenty of houses instead of all even if they have a huge space to put litter in. Due to this, a considerable amount of diseases are spreading around our area, and there is a significant rise in amount of mosquitoes which may affect residences towards spending time in their outer space of the house as well as the rubbish smell is detrimental since it comes even in the home . In addition to that, children are not able to explore physical games which become a major factor behind surge in their screen time.

However, you should either increase the amount of trucks who can collect all the litter regularly or the rise in frequency of from onee to twice in a week may assist us from facing this problems. Moreover, if possible, the sprays which help in killing mosquitos may prevent us from the diseases spread by them.

I hope you will take preventive steps in order to solve our society’s concern.

Kind regards,

Krisha

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response covers all three bullet points required by the prompt in a formal letter format. You successfully describe the issue with the rubbish collection (only one truck arriving per week which misses houses), explain how it impacts you and your neighbours (spread of diseases, mosquitoes, foul smell, and children spending more time on screens), and suggest solutions (increasing trucks or collection frequency, along with mosquito sprays). The tone is appropriate for a council complaint, and the message is fully communicated. To achieve an even higher band, some points could be elaborated with slightly more realistic detail rather than sweeping generalisations, but overall the task is well addressed.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter follows a logical paragraph structure with an appropriate opening greeting, body paragraphs for the problem and solutions, and a polite closing. Cohesive devices such as 'Nowadays', 'Due to this', 'In addition to that', and 'However' are used to guide the reader through your arguments. However, some transitions feel slightly unnatural or awkward, such as 'However, you should either...' where 'Therefore' or 'Consequently' would be more fitting than 'However'. Paragraphing is handled well, ensuring each major topic is separated into its own block of text.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common phrases such as 'considerable amount of diseases', 'detrimental', and 'preventive steps'. However, there are noticeable lexical inaccuracies and awkward collocations throughout the letter. For instance, writing 'improper litter collection system' lacks an article and sounds slightly unnatural compared to 'inadequate waste collection'. Similarly, phrases like 'a plenty of houses' (grammatically incorrect) and 'explore physical games' (incorrect collocation for playing outdoor games) limit your lexical score. Spelling and word choice are generally clear enough not to impede communication.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The letter contains a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating your ability to link clauses using relative pronouns ('which may affect residences', 'which become a major factor'). However, there are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasing issues. For example, 'there is just only one truck arrives' contains a double verb structure, 'a plenty of houses' should be 'plenty of houses', and 'the rise in frequency of from onee to twice in a week' contains typographical and prepositional errors. Furthermore, 'prevent us from the diseases spread by them' should use 'protect' rather than 'prevent' in this context. While these errors do not impede overall communication, they prevent the grammar score from reaching a higher band.

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

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