Practice tests

Each test has all four skills. Choose Academic or General Training for Reading and Writing.

• Practice Test 1

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsNorthfell Holiday Cottages: booking a barn in the Lake District · Ashcombe Hall: a guided visit · Marketing plan for an independent cinema · How honeybee swarms choose a new home

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsHometown, music and the weather · A person you admire · Role models and admiration

  Reading

  Academic ReadingMessengers from Space · Finding the Way · The Trouble with Tree PlantingGeneral Training ReadingShort courses on a community noticeboard · Oil-filled radiator: instructions and guarantee · Staff handbook: annual leave and other absence · Health and safety rules at a garden centre · The cables beneath the sea

  Writing

  Academic WritingChanging household types, 1980-2020 · Studying a subject outside your main fieldGeneral Training WritingComplaint about a damaged desk · Tracking your health with apps and wearables

• Practice Test 2

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsJoining Kingsmere Tennis Club · Millbrook Harvest Festival programme · River invertebrates: field-trip report · The history of the pencil

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsWork or studies, cooking, transport · A place you would like to visit in the future · Travel, tourism and local communities

  Reading

  Academic ReadingThe Vasa: a warship rescued from the sea · Concrete: lessons from Rome · The uses of boredomGeneral Training ReadingChanges to household waste collection · Holiday homes to rent · Halden Water: Customer Contact Advisers · Induction programme for new customer contact advisers · The most precious blue: the story of ultramarine

  Writing

  Academic WritingReported offences, 2005-2025 · Smartphones and tablets in the classroomGeneral Training WritingAsking a landlord for permission to make changes · Problems of desk-based work

• Practice Test 3

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsHartley's Garden Centre – job enquiry · Brackenmoor Nature Reserve – volunteer induction · Seminar presentation: London's coffee houses · Consumer psychology: how shops shape our choices

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsAccommodation, reading, friends · An object that is important to you · Possessions, consumerism and gifts

  Reading

  Academic ReadingOwned by Its Members: the Co-operative Idea · From the Floating World to the Museum Wall · Looking Harder: the Hidden Costs of Medical ScreeningGeneral Training ReadingSummer holiday activities for children · Millbrook Spring Fair · Health and safety rules for warehouse staff · Guide to the staff benefits scheme · The science of lightning

  Writing

  Academic WritingAdvertising spending by medium, 2000 and 2020 · Banning single-use plastic itemsGeneral Training WritingInviting a friend to a housewarming party · Grandparents as childcarers

• Practice Test 4

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsWestbrook College: enrolling on an evening course · The Depot: a bus garage becomes a community hub · Does a phone on the desk affect concentration? Planning an experiment · Barcelona's street grid and the superblock

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsDaily routine, shopping, the sea · A memorable event you attended · Public events, memories and technology

  Reading

  Academic ReadingA Language Born in the Schoolyard · Rivers of Ice: How Glaciers Move · Second Chances: the Limits of De-extinctionGeneral Training ReadingPortable induction hob: instructions and guarantee · Outdoor skills courses at a country park · Training programme for new parcel delivery drivers · Rules for borrowing company equipment · Reading the Rosetta Stone

  Writing

  Academic WritingCommuting in five cities, 2024 · Adults who do not get enough sleepGeneral Training WritingVolunteering at a wildlife rescue centre · Community work instead of prison for young offenders

• Practice Test 5

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsLost property: a bag left on a bus · Fernley Museum reopens · Case study: converting a multi-storey car park · Whale falls: life on a sunken carcass

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsWork or studies, photography, sleep · A time you helped someone · Helping others and volunteering

  Reading

  Academic ReadingHollow Ground: How Limestone Caves Form · Counting Back: Tree Rings and the Dating of the Past · Built to Be Mended: the Engineering Case for RepairGeneral Training ReadingCanal boat holidays · Changes to booking at a medical centre · Guide to an electric car lease scheme for staff · Staff policy on volunteering leave · Rewarding the regular customer: the economics of loyalty schemes

  Writing

  Academic WritingHandling checked baggage at an airport · Changing jobs during a working lifeGeneral Training WritingThanking a friend for looking after your home · Advertising through social media influencers

• Practice Test 6

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsThe Granary Rooms: booking a room for a birthday party · Riverside Library: welcome talk for new members · Lichens as air-quality indicators: a town tree survey · Water in the desert: the Nabataeans of Petra

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsHometown, sport and gifts · A skill you would like to learn · Practical skills and learning as an adult

  Reading

  Academic ReadingNever Forget a Face · The End of Haggling · How Clean Should a Masterpiece Be?General Training ReadingAshford Vale Repair Café · Castleford Leisure Pool: timetable and prices · Using the pool vehicles: rules for staff · Trainee deck crew for a ferry company · Writing at the speed of speech: a short history of shorthand

  Writing

  Academic WritingChanges to a secondary school site, 2005 to today · Young adults living with their parentsGeneral Training WritingApologising to a neighbour for damage by builders · Hiring scooters and bicycles through phone apps

• Practice Test 7

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsBrightway Travel Insurance: a quote for a family trip · Hollins Park Sports Centre: a talk for new members · Media studies project: music magazines in the streaming age · Agrivoltaics: farming under solar panels

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsAccommodation, social media, trees and plants · A piece of technology you use · Technology, older people and electronic waste

  Reading

  Academic ReadingSalt, Sugar and Water: the Story of Oral Rehydration · Remembering by Recalling: the Testing Effect · Out of Step: the Case Against the Leap SecondGeneral Training ReadingAutumn workshops at a community makerspace · Cordless vacuum cleaner: instructions and guarantee · Staff policy on study leave and course fees · Kitchen health and safety rules at a hotel · The quiet carbon store: why peatlands matter

  Writing

  Academic WritingElectric car charging points and sales, 2014-2024 · Declaring a criminal record when applying for jobsGeneral Training WritingComplaint about a delayed coach journey · Global chains and the loss of local high streets

• Practice Test 8

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsHarbourside Lettings: enquiring about a flat to rent · Kelsford's new bus network: what changes in April · Business plan feedback: opening a board-game café · Whistled languages: speech without the voice

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsDaily routine, films, public holidays · A change in your local area · Urban change and local communities

  Reading

  Academic ReadingSleeping Through the Hard Months: How Animals Hibernate · Carried on the Wind: the Long Journey of Desert Dust · Was Farming a Mistake?General Training ReadingHarwick Post Office: moving to a new counter · Glamping and country stays to rent · Receptionist wanted at a veterinary surgery · Training programme for new building society staff · Why waiting feels so long: the psychology of the queue

  Writing

  Academic WritingHousehold waste recycling by material, 2000-2025 · News websites paid for by advertisingGeneral Training WritingAsking a building manager for bicycle storage · Taking a gap year before university

• Practice Test 9

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsElmfield Health Centre: registering as a new patient · Branwell Park Five K: a briefing for charity runners · Trainee teachers review their first school placement · The Bayeux Tapestry: how an embroidered story was made and survived

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsWork or studies, handwriting, parks · A book or film that influenced you · Books, films and the influence of stories

  Reading

  Academic ReadingThe Lens That Lit the Coast · Many Hands, Less Effort: the Puzzle of Social Loafing · Paying for Service: the Case Against the TipGeneral Training ReadingSummer day trips by coach · A dark-sky evening for families · Backstage safety rules at a theatre · Guide to an employee assistance programme · Seeing clearly: a short history of spectacles

  Writing

  Academic WritingAdult physical activity by age group and type of exercise · Delivery vans crowding city streetsGeneral Training WritingInviting a friend to a local festival · Translation apps instead of learning languages

• Practice Test 10

  Listening

  Listening · 4 partsCastlegate Event Hire: equipment for an anniversary party · Kelmouth Harbour: a guided walk · Engineering project: testing a model truss bridge · From luxury to litter bin: the story of aluminium

  Speaking

  Speaking · 3 partsHometown, art, time management · A time you had to wait for something · Waiting, patience and instant gratification

  Reading

  Academic ReadingThe Violin Maker's Craft · Fighting Venom with Venom: the Making of Antivenom · Learning in the Language of HomeGeneral Training ReadingCompact dehumidifier: instructions and guarantee · Autumn cookery courses at a market hall kitchen · Training programme for new care assistants · Print and copy room: rules for staff · Thinking without a brain: the remarkable slime mould

  Writing

  Academic WritingThe life cycle of a worker honeybee · Tourists who prefer familiar experiences abroadGeneral Training WritingEnquiring about a weekend first aid course · Who is responsible for protecting the environment