General Training Writing Task 1 · semi-formal · making arrangements

Letter to business partner rescheduling an upcoming meeting

You have arranged a meeting with a business partner. Unfortunately, you have to change the arrangements.

Write a letter to your partner. In your letter:

explain the new arrangements
apologise for the changes
explain the reasons why the changes were needed

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear ...,

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Mr. Henderson,

I am writing to discuss our upcoming meeting scheduled for next Tuesday at your office. Unfortunately, an urgent matter has arisen that requires me to adjust our plans, and I would like to propose rescheduling our appointment.

Could we move our meeting to the following Thursday at 10:00 am? I remain very keen to discuss the logistics of our joint venture, and I believe this time would allow us to cover the full agenda without any time constraints.

Please accept my sincere apologies for any inconvenience this change may cause you. I understand that your schedule is likely quite busy, and I regret disrupting your existing arrangements at such short notice.

The reason for this sudden change is that a critical issue has surfaced regarding our regional supply chain, which necessitates my immediate presence at our warehouse in Manchester. This situation requires my personal oversight to ensure our distribution targets remain on track for the quarter.

Thank you for your understanding and flexibility regarding this shift. I look forward to our productive discussion later next week.

Best regards,

Arthur Sterling

183 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Why this scores well

This response achieves Band 8 by addressing all bullet points with a professional, consistent tone and clear, logical transitions. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to provide a specific, plausible reason for the change, often resulting in a vague or overly brief explanation.

Write to someone you know but not closely, such as a manager, landlord or neighbour, using their title and surname.
Polite and friendly at once: a few contractions are fine, slang is not. Close with Yours sincerely or Kind regards.
State the purpose in the first two sentences; small talk costs words you need for the bullets.

Useful phrases from the letter

logistics: the detailed coordination of a complex operation
joint venture: a commercial enterprise undertaken by two parties
arisen: emerged or become apparent as a problem
necessitates: makes something necessary as a result
oversight: the action of providing supervision for something
flexibility: the quality of being willing to change

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

Practise IELTS General writing

On your phone? Get the BandLadder app.

Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Semi-formal. Write to someone you know but not closely, such as a manager, landlord or neighbour, using their title and surname.

How long should an IELTS General Training letter be?

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.