A formal letter is the most common Level 2 writing task across every awarding body – to a council, an employer, a company. This free pack gives you two tasks written in the layout of the live papers, the marking grids in plain English, and a model answer annotated to show where the marks come from.
Free to download, print and share for personal or classroom use. Answers included.
What’s in this worksheet
- Know-the-format box for this text type
- Task 1 in Pearson exam layout (Information box, bullet points, word count, marks)
- Task 2 in Highfield exam layout (notes stimulus)
- Planning grid and lined answer space for both tasks
- Plain-English version of the official marking grids
- Indicative content list for Task 1
- 292-word model answer with examiner notes
Common mistakes on this topic
From our tutors’ marking and the most recent examiner reports – check your work against these:
- Writing ‘Yours sincerely’ after ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ (or vice versa). Named person → sincerely; Sir/Madam → faithfully.
- Stating an opinion with no supporting detail – ‘the library is important to lots of people’ – and repeating it in every paragraph.
- Missing one of the bullet points entirely. If the task says ‘suggest what the council should do instead’, a paragraph must do exactly that.
- Writing 180 words for a 250–300 word task. Under-length answers cannot reach the top band in either grid.
How to use it
- Read the ‘Know the format’ box, then do Task 1 under exam conditions – 5 minutes planning, the rest writing, timed as the task box says.
- Mark yourself against the grid and the indicative content list. Be honest about which band each strand lands in.
- Read the model answer and its notes, then rewrite your weakest paragraph. Do Task 2 a few days later without looking at the model.
Related free resources
- Letter of Application – Exam-Style Writing Tasks (Functional Skills Level 2)
- Formal Email – Exam-Style Writing Tasks (Functional Skills Level 2)
- Plan a Functional Skills Writing Task in 5 Minutes – Free Planning Sheet
- All free Functional Skills English Level 2 resources
Frequently asked questions
How should I lay out a formal letter in the Functional Skills exam?
Your address top right, the date, the recipient’s role and address on the left, a greeting, an optional ‘Re:’ subject line, four or five paragraphs, and the correct sign-off. If the paper gives a name, use it.
Yours sincerely or Yours faithfully?
Yours sincerely when you have used the person’s name. Yours faithfully when you wrote Dear Sir or Madam. Examiners look for this as part of the format marks.
How long should a Level 2 formal letter be?
Follow the task: Pearson Task 1 is 250–300 words, Task 2 is 200–250; Highfield suggests around 250–300. Aim for the middle of the range – too short cannot score top-band marks.
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.