General Training Writing Task 1 · formal · complaint

Formal Letter of Complaint to Local Council Regarding Noise: IELTS formal letter sample

An IELTS General Training Writing Task 1 formal letter with a Band 8 sample answer, why it scores well and the phrases worth borrowing for your own letter writing.
  • 173 words
  • Formal letters
  • Complaint
  • 20 minutes
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The task

Work is being done on the street where you live. The noise is disturbing you.

Write a letter of complaint to your local council. In your letter:

  • →introduce yourself
  • →explain what the problem is
  • →suggest solutions to the problem

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

Model answer

Band 8 sample letter

Band 8173 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Dear Mr. Henderson,

I am a resident of Elmwood Terrace, writing to formally express my dissatisfaction regarding the ongoing roadwork currently taking place directly outside my home.

While I understand that infrastructure maintenance is necessary, the current situation has become untenable. Since Monday, construction crews have been operating heavy machinery, including jackhammers, as early as 6:30 a.m. The persistent, deafening noise is severely disrupting my ability to work from home, and the vibrations are causing visible cracks in my hallway plaster. The level of disruption is far beyond what is reasonable for a residential area.

I would like to propose that the council restricts the use of heavy equipment to between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Additionally, I suggest that the construction team installs temporary acoustic barriers to dampen the noise. Implementing these adjustments would significantly alleviate the stress placed on local residents while still allowing the project to proceed.

I look forward to your prompt response regarding this matter and hope for a swift resolution.

Yours faithfully,

Arthur Sterling

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.

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Examiner's view

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response clearly addresses all bullet points with specific, logical suggestions and maintains a consistently professional tone throughout. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to provide concrete, actionable solutions, instead merely repeating that the noise is annoying.

  • →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.

6 phrases

Useful phrases from the letter

  • untenable

    unable to be maintained or tolerated any longer

  • infrastructure

    the basic physical systems of a specific area

  • persistent

    continuing firmly in a course of action despite difficulty

  • alleviate

    make suffering or a problem less severe

  • disrupting

    causing a disturbance or interruption in an activity

  • acoustic barriers

    structures designed to reduce the transmission of sound

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 many words 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.

What does the examiner look for?+

A Band 8 response clearly addresses all bullet points with specific, logical suggestions and maintains a consistently professional tone throughout. A common Band 6 mistake is failing to provide concrete, actionable solutions, instead merely repeating that the noise is annoying.

Keep practising

More complaint letters

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