You are a student at an English language school in Brighton and are living in private accommodation with other flatmates. You have not had hot water or heating for some time. The landlord's workmen have tried to fix the problem but without success. Write a letter to the landlord. In your letter: - state your reason for writing - describe the problems and explain how you feel propose a solution - ask the landlord to take actions
Sample Response
Dear Mr Smith, I am writing this letter in connection with the faulty heating systemnon-functional heating system in your flat where we currently livehouse where we currently reside in. The heating system has not been working for more than a weekis not working for more than a week and your maintenance teama team of men came to fix it but were unable to repair itcould not do anything. I am hoping you would arrange for a qualified engineercall another expert team to have it fixed immediately. I am a student at the Cherry Blossom Schoolschool in Brighton and have been residing in your flat with three other roommates for the last eleven months. Under our rental agreementAs per our rental agreement, we reported the issue to your designated workmen first. However, they have failed to fix the problem and have made the situation worsehave exacerbated the situation by drilling some holes in the bathroom wall, allowing cold air in and making the flat even colderchannels and the cold air freeze us in this intense winter. Due to the non-functional heating system, we are without hot waterunable to control water temperature, and we are compelled to heat water on the gas hobusing gas burners for our daily domestic use. Similarly, we can't control the room temperature and we are living with thick winter clothesthick winter clothes donned on our bodies round the clock. This is extremely uncomfortable and distressinghighly unpleasant and obnoxious to all of us. In order to fix the issue, once and for all, I suggest engaging a better maintenance service agency with more skilled professionals than your current workmen. You can find many such agencies in a reputable local directorya newspaper's classified section. Considering the severity of the issue, Please arrange a qualified engineer within 24 hoursI expect your immediate action. Yours sincerely, Jonathan Aflex
Why this response received Band 7.0
The letter clearly presents the failed heating and hot-water repairs, explains the serious impact on the residents, proposes a qualified replacement service, and requests urgent action in a suitably firm tone. Several awkward phrases and one overloaded sentence reduce clarity, while the requested action lacks a specific deadline. Focus on concise factual language, the safety consequences, and a time-bound request for a qualified engineer.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The task is addressed with relevant ideas, though development and precision are uneven.
Develop each main point with a specific explanation or consequence.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response is generally organized, though some progression and paragraph focus need improvement.
Give each paragraph one clear controlling purpose.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is sufficient for the task, but inaccurate collocations and word choices recur.
Prefer precise, natural topic vocabulary.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Meaning remains clear overall, but recurring sentence-level errors reduce accuracy.
Proofread agreement, articles, prepositions, and clause structure.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You are a student at an English language school in Brighton and are living in private accommodation with other flatmates. You have not had hot water or heating for some time. The landlord's workmen have tried to fix the problem but without success. Write a letter to the landlord. In your letter:
- state your reason for writing
- describe the problems and explain how you feel propose a solution
- ask the landlord to take actions
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.