Use this page when
You understand Task 1 generally but need a practical structure for requests, complaints, apologies, updates, or explanations.
CELPIP wiki
CELPIP Writing Task 1 Email Template
Updated
The safest CELPIP Writing Task 1 template is a flexible email structure: open with the purpose, cover the required details in a clean order, keep the tone matched to the situation, and close clearly.
Quick answer
Use a purpose-first email structure, then fill in the details the prompt actually asks for.
Task 1 is not about sounding formal all the time. It is about writing an email that fits the relationship and solves the task. A useful template keeps the response organized without forcing the same exact wording into every prompt.
Best use: open with purpose, cover every required detail, match the recipient's tone, and close with the next action. Do not memorize one exact email for every prompt.
Do not use this as
A fixed script to memorize. The greeting, register, detail order, and close still need to fit the prompt.
A structure you can adapt
Fill six useful slots, then make the email sound like you
Replace the bracketed text with details from your task. Combine slots naturally; one slot does not have to equal one paragraph.
- Greeting: Dear [title and name / role], or Hi [first name],
- Purpose: I am writing to [request / explain / follow up on] [specific issue].
- Background: I [booked / arranged / noticed] [what] on [when], and [relevant context].
- Task points and support: [What happened]. This means [practical effect], because [specific reason or example].
- Request or solution: Would it be possible to [action]? If [constraint], I could [workable alternative].
- Closing: Please let me know [what you need confirmed] by [reasonable time]. Thank you for [help]. Kind regards, [name].
Original teaching prompt · Task 1
A collection time that no longer works
You volunteer at a neighbourhood history exhibition. You arranged to borrow display boards from a community centre, but the centre has moved your Friday collection time from noon to 5 p.m. The exhibition opens at 4 p.m.
Write an email to the centre coordinator in about 150–200 words. In your email:
- Explain the original arrangement and the change.
- Describe how the new time affects the exhibition.
- Suggest a solution and ask for confirmation.
A complete model email
This is an original teaching example, not an official CELPIP response or a scored Level 9 sample. The greeting and sign-off are part of the email.
Dear Ms. Reid,
I am writing about the collection time for the display boards we are borrowing for Friday’s neighbourhood history exhibition.
When I reserved the six boards last week, we agreed that I would collect them at noon. Your message yesterday moved the collection to 5 p.m. I understand that the storage room is being used for a staff workshop earlier in the day.
Unfortunately, our exhibition opens at 4 p.m., and our volunteers need at least two hours to arrange the photographs. Without the boards, visitors would arrive before the main display was ready. Several contributors have also booked transport specifically for the opening, so postponing it would be difficult.
Would it be possible to leave the boards at reception on Thursday afternoon? I could collect them before the centre closes and store them securely overnight. If that is inconvenient, another volunteer could meet a staff member at noon on Friday instead.
Please confirm which arrangement would work by Wednesday so I can coordinate our volunteers. Thank you for helping us keep the exhibition on schedule.
Kind regards,
Alex Morgan
Where the model answers each point
- Arrangement and change: paragraph 2 names six boards, the agreed noon pickup, and the new 5 p.m. time. The reader can identify the booking without guessing.
- Effect: paragraph 3 connects the 4 p.m. opening to two hours of setup and contributors’ transport. The time conflict has a concrete consequence.
- Solution and confirmation: paragraph 4 proposes Thursday collection and a Friday alternative; paragraph 5 asks for a decision by Wednesday.
Why these sentences fit
- “I am writing about…” gives the coordinator a clear purpose immediately.
- “I understand that…” acknowledges the workshop without giving up the request.
- “Unfortunately…” introduces the problem politely; the next sentences explain it instead of blaming staff.
- “If that is inconvenient…” links an alternative to the coordinator’s constraints.
- “Please confirm which arrangement…” closes with a specific next action, rather than a vague “reply soon.”
Change the wording for a different recipient
- Coordinator you do not know: “Dear Ms. Reid” / “Would it be possible to leave the boards at reception?” / “Kind regards”.
- Colleague you know: “Hi Sam” / “Could we collect the boards on Thursday instead?” / “Thanks for your help”.
- Close friend helping with the event: “Hi Maya” / “Could you pick up the boards on Thursday? I can store them overnight.” / “Thanks again”.
The practical facts stay the same. Change the relationship language; avoid slang in a message to an unfamiliar coordinator.
Try a new prompt yourself
You booked a rehearsal room for a volunteer choir. The venue has changed your booking to a smaller room, and you need space for a keyboard and twenty singers. Write an email to the bookings officer in about 150–200 words: explain your booking, describe why the new room is unsuitable, and propose an alternative arrangement with a request for confirmation.
Draft on your own, then check all three points, the recipient’s tone, and the closing action. This page does not collect or score your draft.
Put the structure into practice
The next link opens the existing Free A Writing Task 1 in the practice interface. It uses its own prompt, not either example on this page. Your draft saves in this browser as you type; sign in to keep submitted results in your account or request AI feedback. Account allowances apply.
Open Writing Task 1 practiceTiming and scoring
The template helps only if it protects task completion and tone
A Task 1 email can look organized and still score weakly if it skips one required point or uses the wrong register. The best template is the one that makes missing details harder, not the one with the fanciest opening line.
Scoring relevance
Task fit, organization, and readability are easier to protect when the purpose and detail order are visible early.
What to check after writing
Can you point to every required prompt point? Did the tone fit the sender-recipient relationship? Did the close match the goal?
Common mistakes
Most Task 1 email problems come from task control, not missing fancy vocabulary
Purpose appears too late
The email sounds polite but the reader still does not know why you are writing after the opening lines.
One prompt point is missing
A neat structure does not save the score if one required detail, request, or explanation never appears.
Register mismatch
The content may be acceptable, but the tone is too casual or too stiff for the relationship and situation.
What to do next
Turn the template into one revision loop
Need scored feedback?
Run one Task 1 draft through the writing feedback workflow, then revise the same prompt once before starting a new email.
Open AI scoringNeed a broader writing route?
If email is only one weak area, build a 7-day or 30-day study sequence instead of practicing Task 1 only.
Build study planFAQ
Task 1 email questions
Should I memorize one Task 1 email template?
No. Use a flexible structure, but change the tone, detail order, and close so they fit the exact prompt.
How many body ideas should a Task 1 email include?
Enough to cover the required task points clearly. The goal is complete task response, not a fixed number of paragraphs.
What should I review after a weak Task 1 response?
Check purpose placement, missing prompt points, and tone before you focus on smaller sentence-level edits.
What is the safest Task 1 email template?
The safest template is purpose first, required details next, matched tone throughout, and a clear closing action.
Should tone change by recipient?
Yes. A friend, manager, landlord, company, or school office usually needs a different level of politeness and directness.
How do I practice the template without memorizing?
Use the same four jobs on different prompts, but change the greeting, detail order, vocabulary, and close each time.