General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · giving information

Letter to conference manager enquiring about training facilities

The company you work for is planning to provide special training for staff. Your duty is to find out if the local conference center has suitable facilities in order to hold the training.

Write a letter to the manager of the conference center. In your letter:

give some details about the training course
describe what kind of equipment you will need for the course
ask some questions about the facilities at the conference center

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 enquire about the potential use of your conference center for an upcoming professional development program my company is planning to host. We are looking for a suitable venue to accommodate our staff training during the final week of next month.

The course is a three-day intensive workshop focused on advanced project management software for approximately forty employees. It is essential that the environment is conducive to focused learning, as the sessions will be highly interactive and require collaborative group work.

Regarding equipment, we will require a high-definition projector, a reliable wireless internet connection for all participants, and a sound system with microphones. Furthermore, we need sufficient whiteboard space and flipcharts to facilitate brainstorming exercises throughout the workshops.

Could you please confirm if your center has a room available for these dates that meets our technical requirements? Additionally, I would appreciate it if you could provide details regarding catering options for lunch and whether there are breakout areas available for smaller group discussions. I look forward to receiving your quotation and any further information you can provide.

Yours faithfully,

Jonathan Sterling

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

Why this scores well

This response achieves Band 8 by addressing all bullet points with professional, specific detail and maintaining a consistently formal tone. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to ask specific questions about the facilities, instead providing only vague requests for information.

Write to an organisation or someone you do not know: open with Dear Sir or Madam, close with Yours faithfully.
If you know the person's surname, use Dear Mr or Ms and close with Yours sincerely.
No contractions, no slang; polite indirect requests such as I would be grateful if you could.

Useful phrases from the letter

enquire: To ask for information about a specific service.
conducive: Making it easy or possible for something to happen.
interactive: Involving active participation and communication between the users.
facilitate: To make a process or action easier to complete.
quotation: A document stating the estimated cost for a service.
breakout areas: Small spaces designated for informal meetings or discussions.

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

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Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Formal. Write to an organisation or someone you do not know: open with Dear Sir or Madam, close with Yours faithfully.

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.