Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 13 · 2026-10-31

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 and Madam,

I am writing to show my dissatisfaction towards garbage collection system. We are facing saveral issues due to inappropriate service provided by the authorities. While, It affects our health and causing serious illness, in both me and my neighbor's family.

First of all, I am disgraceful with weekly service. The rubbish pickup staff come once in a week, that becomes quite stressful and it makes hard to manage it whole week. Additionally, The garbage spread out here and there by the public and animals such as cow and dogs taking into their mouth, due to plastic waste, it affects health issues in them. They are not change the bins, it looks really dirty and smells very strong around the area.

However, it becomes more problematic for us because our house is front of the trash bins. So, we have to see dirty scenario in the morning and breathing dirty smell instead of fresh air. Due to overflow bins, some trash came to house by the flow of air, it feels so bad. We have children in the house and because of this situation they oftenly get ill. We have to spend lot of money and time in the hospital.

I really would like to give suggestions of this serious situation. The garbage pickup service should come twice in a week, also they should advise people to divide the trash according to an organic and a general waste. So, bins never get overflow.

I hope for the prompt action.

Yours faithfully,

Vidhi

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

You address all three requested points and maintain a clear, appropriately formal complaint throughout. The collection schedule is described as weekly, and you explain the consequences with relevant details: overflowing bins, animals scattering rubbish, unpleasant smells, and illness among children. Your proposed twice-weekly collection and separation of organic and general waste are practical and directly related to the problem. These details give the letter a clear purpose and support its main points. To make the response more fully developed, clarify the collection failure beyond its frequency—for example, whether pickups are missed or bins are left unemptied—and explain how the council should implement or monitor the changes. The main ideas are clear, though some claims, such as illness being caused by the situation, could be supported or phrased more carefully.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The letter has a clear overall structure: it introduces the complaint, describes the collection problems, explains their effects, and ends with suggestions and a request for action. Paragraphing helps the reader follow these stages, and transitions such as “First of all,” “Additionally,” and “However” signal relationships between points. This gives the response a coherent progression. Some linking is mechanical or not quite logical, however: “However” introduces further consequences rather than a contrast, and “While” at the end of the opening paragraph leaves an awkward connection to the preceding sentence. Several details are also crowded into long sentences. Use fewer formulaic transitions and connect each cause and effect more directly to make the flow smoother and referencing clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the complaint, including “garbage collection,” “rubbish pickup,” “overflow bins,” and “organic” waste. There are also attempts at more specific language, such as “dissatisfaction” and “prompt action.” However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or unnatural, which makes parts of the letter less clear or less formal. Examples include “disgraceful with weekly service,” “dirty scenario,” and “taking into their mouth”; “oftenly” and “saveral” also show spelling or word-form problems. Aim for standard collocations and check spelling carefully. A more precise range of natural expressions would help you describe the service and its effects without relying on repeated general words such as “problematic” and “bad.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including cause-and-effect structures with “because” and “due to,” and the main message is generally understandable. However, complex sentences are often not controlled accurately, and errors in sentence structure, verb forms, agreement, and articles recur. For example, “While, It affects our health and causing serious illness” is an incomplete and incorrectly joined construction; “They are not change the bins” has an incorrect verb form; and “our house is front of the trash bins” is missing a grammatical element. Capitalisation after commas is also inconsistent. Practise building complete sentences with one clear main clause, then add subordinate clauses accurately. Review articles, subject–verb agreement, and verb patterns to improve reliability.

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