Driving Test Preparation

By the time you take your test, you should be able to drive without relying on your instructor to tell you what to do. Your preparation should be about developing a consistent standard of driving that you can maintain throughout the test.

Make Sure You’re Ready

Completing a lesson without making a serious mistake doesn’t necessarily mean you’re ready for your driving test. You should be able to produce a consistent standard of driving across different roads, traffic conditions and situations.

You should be comfortable with:

• Moving off and stopping safely
• Junctions and crossroads
• Roundabouts
• Meeting and passing traffic
• Changing lanes
• Using an appropriate speed
• Following road signs and markings
• Independent driving
• Driving test manoeuvres
• Show Me, Tell Me questions

The important word is consistency. You need to demonstrate these skills throughout your test, not just get them right occasionally.

Independent Driving

Part of your practical test involves approximately 20 minutes of independent driving. You’ll normally be asked to follow directions from a sat nav, although you may be asked to follow traffic signs instead.

Don’t worry if you take a wrong turn. The examiner is assessing how safely you drive, not whether you have a perfect sense of direction.

If you’re unsure about an instruction, you can ask the examiner to repeat it. Concentrate on the road and make safe decisions rather than worrying about taking the correct route.

Don’t Try to Drive Differently on Test Day

Your driving test isn’t the time to suddenly change the way you drive. Trying to impress the examiner by driving differently from how you’ve been taught can create unnecessary mistakes.

Drive the way you’ve practised during your lessons. Use your normal observations, routines, and judgement, and concentrate on what is happening around you.

If You Make a Mistake

Making a mistake doesn’t automatically mean you’ve failed your driving test. If something doesn’t go exactly as planned, deal with the situation safely and then continue with your drive.

Don’t spend the next five minutes thinking about what happened. You may think you’ve made a serious mistake when the examiner has recorded only a driving fault, or perhaps no fault at all.

Deal with it, forget about it and concentrate on what happens next.

The Day Before Your Driving Test

Avoid trying to learn lots of new things immediately before your test. Instead, concentrate on the driving skills you’ve already developed and make sure you understand anything you’ve recently been working on with your instructor.

Make sure you know where and when you’re meeting your instructor, what time your test starts and what you need to bring with you.

Most importantly, bring your UK provisional driving licence on the day of your test.

On the Day of Your Test

Treat your driving test as another drive. Listen carefully to the examiner’s instructions and concentrate on one situation at a time.

Your job is to demonstrate that you can maintain control of the vehicle, make safe decisions and deal appropriately with situations as they develop.

Use the NSOM Academy

As your driving test gets closer, take time to review the skills you’ve learned during your lessons. The NSOM Academy contains guides designed to help you revise important driving techniques away from the car.

Use the Academy to refresh your knowledge of subjects you’re less confident with and then put them into practice during your next lesson. It’s particularly useful if there has been a gap between lessons or you want to revisit something your instructor has already covered.

Practise Between Your Driving Lessons

When you’re travelling as a passenger, watch how the driver approaches right turns. Notice when they begin slowing down, where they position the vehicle, and how long they wait for oncoming traffic.

Ask yourself: would I turn now, or would I wait? You can then practise the technique during private practice with an appropriate supervising driver between your professional driving lessons.