You live in a house opposite a park. A man brings large dogs to the park every day and lets them run free. Write a letter to your local council complaining about the danger. In your letter: - say where the park is. - State how often this happens? - Give a description of the man and the dogs.
Sample Response
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am Ankitha, a software engineer. I am writing this epistle to share the inconvenience faced by most of the dwellers in my vicinity. One of the residents of our community is bringing dogs to the park, which is opposite my residence, and he lets his pets roam freely around.
Furthermore, Main Park is situated beside the central library in Anna Nagar. It comprises a running arena, jogging track, sports activities and meditation area. Children and adults regularly visit this park at dawn and in the evenings.
Moreover, it is tremendously challenging for kids to play as the dogs are barking with loud noise and children are petrified of seeing those creatures. Youngsters are unable to run and jog since the pets start chasing behind them. The owner and these animals visit the park daily at 7 AM and 5 PM.
Let me briefly expound on the man’s physical appearance and his pets for easy identification. He is 5’10 tall, middle-aged, with blonde hair and blue eyes. He owns three dogs belonging to the German Shepherd breed, all of which are brown in colour.
I request you take immediate action on this scenario so that residents spend remarkable time in the park filled with tranquillity. Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use natural register Original: epistle Suggested revision: letter Why it matters: Epistle sounds archaic and overly literary in a council complaint.
- 2. Use precise purpose Original: share Suggested revision: report Why it matters: Report is the natural verb for raising a problem with the council.
- 3. Use concise wording Original: dwellers in my vicinity Suggested revision: residents in my neighbourhood Why it matters: The revision is clearer and more natural in a formal complaint.
- 4. Use habitual present Original: is bringing dogs Suggested revision: brings dogs Why it matters: The simple present is appropriate for an action that happens every day.
- 5. Remove redundancy Original: roam freely around Suggested revision: roam freely Why it matters: Roam already conveys movement around an area.
- 6. Remove mechanical linker Original: Furthermore, Main Park Suggested revision: Main Park Why it matters: The paragraph already progresses logically without this additive linker.
- 7. Correct facility term Original: arena Suggested revision: area Why it matters: Arena is not a natural term for this kind of park facility.
- 8. Name physical facilities Original: activities Suggested revision: facilities Why it matters: A park comprises facilities or areas, not activities themselves.
- 9. Add missing article Original: meditation area Suggested revision: a meditation area Why it matters: The singular countable noun needs an article in this list.
- 10. Remove redundant word Original: chasing behind them Suggested revision: chasing them Why it matters: Chase already means to follow someone, so behind is redundant.
- 11. Keep references clear Original: The owner and these animals Suggested revision: The man and his dogs Why it matters: The revision refers to the people and animals consistently and directly.
- 12. Use direct wording Original: expound on Suggested revision: describe Why it matters: Expound on is unnecessarily elaborate for a factual identification paragraph.
Suggested Rewrites
- epistle letter
- share report
- dwellers in my vicinity residents in my neighbourhood
- is bringing dogs brings dogs
- roam freely around roam freely
- Furthermore, Main Park Main Park
Why this response received Band 7.0
The complaint is fully developed with a precise park location, the daily times, and clear identifying details for both the man and his dogs. Its strongest feature is the practical detail supporting the danger described. The main limitation is frequently over-elaborate or unnatural wording, so the highest-priority improvement is to use direct, conventional formal language that sounds credible in a council complaint.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The letter has a clear formal purpose, covers all three bullet points with relevant detail, and requests appropriate council action.
Make the opening more direct by identifying the dangerous situation immediately and omitting irrelevant personal information.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response is logically sequenced, with well-focused paragraphs for location, danger and frequency, description, and requested action.
Reduce formulaic paragraph openers so the progression feels more natural and less signposted.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is varied and sometimes precise, but conspicuous choices such as 'epistle', 'expound', and 'remarkable time' sound unnatural in context.
Choose straightforward formal collocations, such as 'write to complain', 'describe', and 'enjoy the park safely'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The writer uses varied sentence forms with generally clear control, although several agreement, article, and construction errors remain.
Edit recurring constructions such as 'dogs are barking with loud noise' and 'pets start chasing behind them' for accurate, idiomatic grammar.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You live in a house opposite a park. A man brings large dogs to the park every day and lets them run free. Write a letter to your local council complaining about the danger. In your letter:
- say where the park is.
- State how often this happens?
- Give a description of the man and the dogs.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.