This proposal suggests ways to make an office a healthier place to work. It recommends discouraging bringing in treats for birthdays and instead offering fruit in the kitchen for people to help themselves. It also proposes supplying herbal teas as an alternative to coffee. While the office would need to invest money initially, the reward would be healthier staff members.

1. PHOTOCOPIABLE © Cambridge University Press 2015
Writing practice Unit 3
A proposal
1 Replace phrases 1–14 with alternative phrases a–l.
Introduction
1 The thought of this proposal is to 2 give a plan to make the office a healthier place to work. 3 Also, the main idea is that people
should be encouraged to eat more healthily.
Background
4 Now, we feel that the office does not 5 have enough healthy food, which has led to a lot of people eating unhealthily.
6 There are few healthy options, 7 and it encourages people to bring in sweet treats for birthdays and other so-called special
occasions. 8 But, with the amount of treats on offer it appears that every day is a special occasion.
Proposal
9 We think that people should be discouraged from bringing in treats for birthdays. Instead, the company should offer fruit in the
kitchen from which people can help themselves. 10 And, a selection of herbal teas could be supplied as an alternative to coffee.
Concluding remarks
11 We think this would encourage people to eat more healthily by removing unnecessary temptations and offering alternatives.
12 Sure, the office will have to invest a certain amount of money, but the reward will be healthier staff.
a We feel
b At present
c but it also
d Clearly
e Furthermore
f However
g The aim of
h Not only are there
l offer
j We recommend
k On top of that
l present
2 Write which section of a proposal the lines come from.
introduction background proposal conclusion
1 We suggest that the school offers more events that can be viewed by the parents.
2 The aim of this proposal is to present a plan to make the school offer more extra-curricular activities.
3 The school doesn’t offer very many after-school clubs or activities.
4 Clearly, the school will have to devote some extra time to this, but we feel it would benefit everyone.
3 Choose the best answers to complete the sentences.
1 More healthy options should be provided at lunch. In addition / On top of that, fruit should be available throughout the day.
2 People should be encouraged to cycle to work. Furthermore / Not only that, bicycles should be available to rent in town.
3 The school doesn’t offer many after school events. Not only / In addition does this limit students’opportunities but / however it also
means parents don’t have the chance to see their children perform.
4 Workers should be offered incentives to cycle to work. In addition / On top of, staff should help them with the purchase of bicycles.
Write!Write!
Step 1
Here are three exam questions. Choose one to write. Before you start writing, look at Steps 2–4.
• You work in a café where every dish is accompanied by chips. Write a proposal on how to make the café healthier.
• Write a proposal on how to encourage students at school to eat more healthily.
• You go to the local youth centre where they offer only a few sporting activities. Write a proposal on how to make the youth
centre a more active place to be.
Step 2
Brainstorm your ideas. Order them into the four sections: introduction, background, proposal and conclusion.
Step 3
Make sure you write in a formal style and present your ideas clearly and concisely.
Step 4
Write your proposal. Don’t forget to check your work for grammar and spelling mistakes.