A formal letter or email appears on almost every Level 2 writing paper, and the format marks are the easiest in the exam to bank – if you know the layout. This free writing frame shows both layouts side by side, gives you an exam-style complaint task with a planning grid and lined answer space, and finishes with a model answer written to a Level 2 pass standard, annotated to show why it scores.
Free to download, print and share for personal or classroom use. Answers included.
What’s in this worksheet
- How a letter or email is marked (27 marks: SPaG, communication, form and structure)
- Layout 1 – formal letter, with the sincerely/faithfully rule
- Layout 2 – formal email, including what makes a strong subject line
- Exam-style task: a complaint about a first-aid course that didn’t match its advert
- Planning grid, bank of formal phrases and a twelve-point self-marking checklist
- A full page of lines to write your answer
- 231-word model answer with commentary
Common mistakes on this topic
From our tutors’ marking and the most recent examiner reports – check your work against these:
- Mixing up the sign-offs: ‘Yours sincerely’ goes with a named person, ‘Yours faithfully’ with ‘Dear Sir/Madam’. Examiners notice.
- Writing an email as if it were a text message – no subject line, no greeting, one long paragraph. Emails are marked exactly like letters.
- Answering only part of the task. If the question says ‘explain what went wrong, how it affected you and what you want’, that is three paragraphs, not one.
How to use it
- Read the format guide and template so you know exactly what the examiner expects to see on the page.
- Fill in the planning grid for the exam-style task (five minutes), then write your answer in the lined space, timed at 20 minutes.
- Mark yourself against the checklist, then compare your answer with the model answer paragraph by paragraph. Where does yours fall short – format, detail, tone or SPaG?
Related free resources
- Plan a Functional Skills Writing Task in 5 Minutes – Free Planning Sheet
- Functional Skills Level 2 Article and Report Writing Frame (with Model Report)
- Functional Skills English Level 2 Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar Worksheet
- All free Functional Skills English Level 2 resources
Frequently asked questions
How do you lay out a formal letter for Functional Skills?
Your address top right, the date underneath, the recipient’s name and address on the left, a greeting (Dear Mr Okafor / Dear Sir or Madam), an optional subject line, four or five paragraphs, and a sign-off. The frame shows the exact layout.
Yours sincerely or Yours faithfully?
Yours sincerely when you used the person’s name (Dear Ms Shah). Yours faithfully when you wrote Dear Sir or Madam. Never Kind regards, Thanks or Yours truly in a formal letter.
How long should a Level 2 letter or email be?
Follow the suggested word count in the task – usually 200–250 or 250–300 words. Answers that fall well short lose marks in every strand, because there is not enough content to show your skills.
Want a tutor to mark your work? Not sure where you stand? Take the free 15-minute mini mock test. Ready to get qualified? Our live 10-week Functional Skills Level 2 English course runs in small groups with a mock exam included, and the 5-day revision course is there if your exam is close.