Are you still struggling to get a high score in IELTS?

Free tips, advice, and lessons for the IELTS exam.

Hi, I’m Ray and I run a small English school in Kyushu, Japan (London Language Lounge). I have been teaching IELTS here since 2009. I founded IELTS Focus in 2016 to help my students hit their target score in the IELTS exam.

This website contains free materials, tips, strategies and free lessons to help you on your IELTS journey. I also have an online writing correction service and one to one IELTS speaking sessions online.

There is so much bad advice online regarding IELTS and many students are completely misinformed or simply confused. The aim of this website is to clear up confusion and show you clearly what you need to do to get a Band 7 or more.

Take a look at the testimonials page to see what my students have said.

Is writing stopping you from hitting your target score?

Take a look at the writing correction service here or click the banner below to access the page.

Recent free lessons and blog posts

IELTS discussion essays: expressing others opinions

How to write about people's opinions in IELTS discussion essays. Updated: April 2023 When writing a discussion essay in IELTS ...

IELTS writing task 2: How to write a causes solution essay

Step by step guide to writing a causes solution essay. Updated: August 2022. A common type of IELTS task 2 ...

IELTS Problem Solution Essay: Writing an effective introduction

Writing a good introduction to a problem solution essay. One of the main skills for getting a good band score ...

British and American English in IELTS

Should you use British or American English in IELTS? Updated: July 2022 Some people are confused about whether to use ...

How to paraphrase in IELTS writing

Paraphrasing in IELTS essays. Updated: August 2022 An important skill in IELTS writing is being able to paraphrase the task ...

Structure and tips for IELTS speaking part 3

In IELTS Speaking part 3 you need to give longer answers. The main focus of this part of the test ...

Identifying the 5 types of IELTS essays

Get familiar with the different types of IELTS essays. Updated: August 25th 2023 Among IELTS teachers there are often considered ...

IELTS writing task 1: Language for describing trends

Vocabulary and grammar for IELTS graphs with a trend. Updated: September 2023 In IELTS writing task 1 academic you need ...

IELTS advantage disadvantage essays

Three types of advantage disadvantage essays Updated: June 2022 Not only are there 5 types of essay questions in academic ...

IELTS speaking sessions online.

I offer 30-minute IELTS mock speaking sessions online covering part 1 to 3 of the speaking exam. Full feedback is given to help you find what is stopping you from getting a higher band score in your speaking. This is a one to one session on Skype or Zoom. Click here for more details.