General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · complaint

Letter to Museum Manager regarding accessibility concerns

You visited a museum recently with an elderly relative. However, he or she had difficulty walking around the museum.

Write a letter to the manager and say. In your letter:

whom did you visit the museum with
what problems did he or she face
suggest a solution that will improve the museum visit experience for an elderly person

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 share feedback regarding a visit to the City History Museum last Saturday, which I attended with my eighty-year-old grandfather.

While we were impressed by the exhibits, my grandfather faced significant physical challenges navigating the building. The primary issue was the lack of seating areas in the long transition corridors between galleries. Given his limited mobility, he struggled to walk the distance between displays without resting, and the absence of benches forced him to cut our visit short before we could see the entire collection.

To improve the experience for elderly visitors, I suggest installing foldable wall-mounted seats at regular intervals throughout the halls. Additionally, providing a small number of lightweight, portable folding stools at the entrance would be a simple yet highly effective solution for those who cannot stand for extended periods.

I hope you will consider these adjustments to ensure the museum remains accessible to all age groups. Thank you for your time and for the work you do in preserving our local history.

Yours faithfully,

Arthur Pringle

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

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response fully addresses all three bullet points with a professional, consistent tone and clear, logical paragraph structure. The most common mistake at Band 6 is failing to provide a specific, actionable solution, instead offering only vague complaints about the museum's layout.

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

transition corridors: The hallways connecting one exhibit room to another.
limited mobility: Difficulty in moving around or walking easily.
cut our visit short: Left the location earlier than originally planned.
foldable wall-mounted seats: Chairs attached to walls that can be collapsed.
extended periods: A long duration of time.
accessible: Easy for people with disabilities to use.

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.