IELTS General Reading Practice Test 07
Passage A
Meadowvale Community Leisure Centre – Membership Guide
Welcome to Meadowvale Community Leisure Centre. Whether you are aiming to improve physical fitness, participate in group activities, or unwind, our facilities cater to all ages and abilities. Please review the following information regarding membership terms, operational rules, and centre policies.
Membership Categories
We offer three main membership options. Standard Adult provides full access to the gym, swimming pool, and thermal suite. Peak Fitness includes all standard facilities plus unlimited entry to group exercise classes and racquet sports. Off-Peak Saver permits access to the gym and pool between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm on weekdays only.
Fees and Cancellation Policy
An initial administration charge of £25 applies to all new memberships, regardless of category. Memberships are billed monthly via direct debit. A minimum agreement period of three months is required upon joining. Thereafter, members may cancel their subscription by providing thirty days' written notice to the membership office. Cancellations submitted via telephone or word of mouth will not be accepted.
Opening Hours
The centre operates from 6:30 am to 10:00 pm Monday through Friday, and 8:00 am to 8:00 pm on weekends. Bank holiday opening times vary and are posted on the centre noticeboard and website seven days in advance.
Concession Eligibility
Discounted rates are available for full-time students, senior citizens aged sixty-five and over, and individuals receiving specific income-support benefits. Applicants must present valid supporting documentation at the main reception desk when applying for a concessionary pass.
Guest Access and Lockers
Members holding a Peak Fitness pass are entitled to bring up to two guests per month free of charge. Guests must register at reception before entering the facility. Lockers in the changing areas operate on a nominal token system. Tokens can be purchased at reception for £1 each or retrieved from previous visits. Items must not be left in lockers overnight; locks will be removed and contents cleared every evening after closing.
Passage B
Highfield District Council – Household Waste and Recycling Services
Highfield District Council provides a comprehensive waste collection service to maintain local public health and support environmental sustainability. Residents must adhere to the following guidelines regarding bin placement, sorting, and special disposal procedures.
Collection Days and Bin Placement
Household waste collections occur on a fortnightly rotation. General waste wheeled bins (grey) are collected one week, while mixed recycling bins (blue) are gathered the following week. Bins must be placed at the boundary of your property by 7:00 am on your scheduled collection day. Wheelie bin handles should face towards the road to assist collection crews.
Accepted Recyclable Materials
The blue recycling bin is designed for clean, loose dry recyclables. Acceptable items include paper, cardboard packaging, clean metal food tins, drink cans, and plastic bottles. Glass jars, food packaging contaminated with grease, and plastic carrier bags must not be placed in the blue bin.
Food-Waste and Garden-Waste Bins
Small green food-waste caddies are emptied weekly. All cooked and raw food scraps, tea bags, and vegetable peelings should be wrapped in compostable caddy liners before disposal. Garden waste collections (brown bin) require an annual paid subscription. The service runs from March to November. Garden waste bins containing soil, turf, or thick tree branches will be tagged as contaminated and will not be emptied.
Bulky-Item Collection and Missed Services
Residents wishing to dispose of large household items, such as furniture or white goods, can book a bulky-item collection service via the council website for a set fee. If your bin was out before 7:00 am but was missed by the collection crew, you must report it within twenty-four hours using the online portal to schedule a return collection.
Questions 1–7
Questions 8–14
Passage C
Apex Logistics Warehouse – Health and Safety Induction Protocol
Ensuring a secure working environment is the top priority for management and staff at the Apex Logistics distribution centre. All employees, agency workers, and site visitors must observe the safety regulations set out below to reduce the likelihood of workplace accidents.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
All personnel entering the active warehouse floor must wear high-visibility vests and steel-toe-capped safety boots at all times. Protective gloves and eye protection are required when handling chemical cleaning agents or unpacking damaged goods. Staff working in high-noise zones, such as the automated sorting bay, must wear ear defenders provided by the company.
Forklift and Pedestrian Zones
To minimise collision hazards, the warehouse floor is clearly partitioned into distinct pedestrian walkways and vehicle operation zones. Pedestrians must remain within designated green painted routes and cross vehicle aisles only at marked zebra crossings. Forklift operators must observe a maximum speed limit of 5 mph within the facility and sound their horn when approaching intersection corners or blind spots.
Manual Handling Standards
Improper lifting techniques represent the primary cause of musculoskeletal injuries on site. Before moving any consignment manually, workers must assess the weight and stability of the item. The maximum allowable weight for a single-person lift is 25 kg. For heavier loads, staff must request a team lift or utilise mechanical lifting aids, such as hydraulic pallet trucks. Always bend from the knees rather than the waist when lifting from floor level.
Accident Reporting and Emergency Protocols
Every incident, regardless of how minor, must be recorded in the site Accident Book located in the First Aid Room. In the event of a medical emergency, trained first aiders can be summoned by dialling extension 4444 on any internal telephone. If the fire alarm sounds, all personnel must immediately stop work, leave machinery in a safe state, and evacuate via the nearest marked fire exit. Assembled staff must gather at Assembly Point B in the northern car park.
Visitor Policies
All contractors and visitors must sign in at the security gatehouse upon arrival and wear a temporary identification badge throughout their stay. Escorts must accompany visitors at all times while they are within operational warehouse zones.
Passage D
Horizon Global – Staff Development and Further Education Policy
Horizon Global is committed to promoting continuous learning and professional growth across its workforce. The company offers structured support for employees who undertake job-related training, professional qualifications, and skill development programmes.
1. Mandatory and Statutory Training
All new employees are required to complete compulsory induction modules—including data protection, workplace equality, and fire safety—within thirty days of commencing employment. In addition, role-specific safety training must be refreshed annually. Time spent completing mandatory modules during regular working hours is fully paid.
2. Course Approval and Financial Support
Employees seeking financial assistance for external courses, academic diplomas, or professional accreditations must submit a Formal Training Request Form to their department head. Applications must demonstrate how the proposed course directly enhances performance in the current role or aligns with agreed career progression goals. Funding requests must be approved at least six weeks prior to the course enrolment deadline.
3. Study Leave Entitlement
Staff undertaking approved external qualifications are eligible for paid study leave. Employees may claim up to five days of paid study leave per academic year to attend mandatory workshops or prepare for examinations. Requests for study leave must be scheduled with line managers at least fourteen days in advance to ensure operational cover.
4. Examination Fees and Retakes
The company covers the initial entry fee for approved professional examinations. If an employee fails an examination on their first attempt, the cost of any subsequent resit must be funded by the individual employee, unless exceptional mitigating circumstances are accepted by Human Resources.
5. Repayment Conditions
To protect the company’s investment in professional development, employees who receive financial sponsorship exceeding £1,000 for external courses are subject to a training repayment agreement. Should an employee voluntarily leave the company within twelve months of completing the course, they must reimburse 100% of the tuition fees. If the employee resigns between twelve and twenty-four months after completion, the repayment obligation drops to 50%.
6. Centralised Training Records
Upon finishing any external training course or receiving a professional certificate, employees must submit a copy of their qualification transcript to the HR Department within fourteen days. Training records are stored on the central staff portal to ensure compliance monitoring and internal talent tracking.
Questions 15–20
Questions 21–27
Passage E
Why Humans Procrastinate: The Science of Delay
Paragraph A
Procrastination is a ubiquitous human trait. Whether it involves postponing a tax return, delaying a medical check-up, or putting off an overdue academic assignment, almost everyone has experienced the irrational impulse to defer a necessary task. Historically, society viewed chronic delay as a simple moral failing—a symptom of laziness, poor time management, or a lack of personal discipline. However, over the past three decades, evolutionary psychologists, neuroscientists, and behavioural economists have dismantled this simplistic view. Modern research reveals that procrastination is not a deficit in time management at all, but rather a complex psychological defence mechanism driven by emotional dysregulation and subconscious conflict.
Paragraph B
To understand why people put things off, one must first distinguish procrastination from mere idleness or intentional scheduling. True procrastination occurs when an individual voluntarily delays an intended course of action despite knowing that the deferral will likely leave them worse off. Laziness, by contrast, implies an apathy toward action and a complete absence of intent; a lazy person feels no internal desire to perform the task in question. The procrastinator, conversely, genuinely intends to complete the action, recognises its importance, and frequently suffers acute psychological distress—including guilt, anxiety, and self-reproach—as a direct consequence of their own deliberate inaction.
Paragraph C
At its core, procrastination is an emotional regulation problem rather than a temporal one. When faced with a task that evokes negative feelings—such as boredom, self-doubt, insecurity, or mental exhaustion—the human brain instinctively seeks immediate emotional relief. Delaying the task offers an instant, short-term escape from uncomfortable emotions. Neuroscientists point to a constant structural tussle between two brain regions: the limbic system and the prefrontal cortex. The limbic system, an ancient and automated neural network, operates on the pleasure principle, seeking immediate comfort and stress avoidance. The prefrontal cortex, the centre of rational planning and long-term goal setting, attempts to keep us focused on future rewards. When a task triggers negative emotional associations, the primitive limbic system frequently overrides the slower, more deliberate prefrontal cortex.
Paragraph D
Among the various emotional triggers that fuel procrastination, fear of failure stands out as particularly potent. For individuals who tie their personal self-worth directly to their achievements, undertaking a challenging assignment creates an existential risk. If they attempt the task and perform poorly, it exposes a lack of capability or intelligence. By postponing the effort until the eleventh hour, the individual creates a convenient psychological safety net: if the outcome is substandard, they can attribute the failure to a lack of time rather than a lack of innate ability. In this way, procrastination acts as an unconscious shield, protecting fragile self-esteem at the expense of performance quality.
Paragraph E
Closely linked to fear of failure is the paradoxical trait of perfectionism. Unrealistic self-imposed standards can paralyse action before it even begins. Perfectionists often operate under an all-or-nothing mindset, believing that if a project cannot be executed flawlessly, it is not worth initiating. This cognitive distortion transforms manageable tasks into monumental hurdles. The overwhelming pressure to deliver flawless results induces severe anticipatory anxiety, leading the individual to seek sanctuary in trivial, low-stakes activities—such as reorganising a desk or checking emails—which offer a deceptive sense of productivity without the risk of falling short of perfection.
Paragraph F
Behavioural economists emphasise another cognitive mechanism known as temporal discounting. This term describes the human tendency to overvalue immediate rewards while heavily discounting benefits that will occur in the distant future. From an evolutionary perspective, our prehistoric ancestors evolved in an environment where immediate survival was paramount; securing food or shelter today was far more critical than planning for months ahead. Consequently, the human brain naturally struggles to weigh future consequences appropriately. The discomfort of working on a complex project right now is immediate and tangible, whereas the reward—a passing grade, a promotion, or a healthy retirement—is abstract and deferred. When immediate relief is weighed against a distant payoff, the immediate relief almost always wins.
Paragraph G
In the modern context, temporal discounting is dramatically exacerbated by the ubiquitous presence of digital technology. Today’s workplace and educational environments place individuals in constant proximity to smartphones, social media platforms, and online entertainment. These digital tools are engineered specifically by software designers to exploit the brain’s dopamine reward pathways, delivering instant, effortless micro-rewards with every notification or scroll. Confronted with a choice between digesting a dense financial report or checking a short video clip, the brain naturally gravitates toward the pathway offering immediate gratification with zero friction, transforming minor delays into hours of wasted time.
Paragraph H
Addressing chronic procrastination requires moving beyond conventional advice about making schedules or constructing to-do lists. Psychological interventions must address the underlying emotional triggers. One highly effective technique involves using “implementation intentions”—structured contingency plans framed as “If... then...” statements (for example, “If it is 9:00 am on Monday, then I will open the document and write for twenty minutes”). By pre-determining the precise time, place, and action, individuals remove the need for real-time decision-making, thereby reducing limbic resistance. Furthermore, breaking daunting projects into micro-steps lowers the perceived emotional barrier to entry, allowing individuals to build momentum through small, manageable victories.
Questions 28–33
Questions 34–37
Questions 38–40
Psychological Dynamics and Practical Solutions
Temporal discounting causes people to favour current comfort over future rewards because long-term benefits feel 38. ______ and distant. Modern digital devices exacerbate this tendency by offering continuous 39. ______ that appeal to the brain's reward system.
Additionally, dividing massive assignments into 40. ______ helps lower psychological resistance and builds positive momentum.
Your Result
Band conversion is approximate and can vary slightly between official IELTS General Reading test versions.
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