Drivetime School of Motoring

03/12/2021

Driver testing services – face covering legal requirements in England
Face coverings are now mandatory for you and your pupils during professional driving lessons and practical tests in England, unless you are exempt under new temporary regulations.

This follows the Government’s announcement to make face coverings a legal requirement in a range of indoor public settings in England to respond to the emergence of UK cases of the Omicron variant of coronavirus (COVID-19).

Wearing a face covering can reduce the risk to others and yourself against the spread of infection because they cover the nose and mouth, which are the main confirmed sources of transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19 infection (COVID-19).

The full list of exemptions is on GOV.UK.

Driving lessons in England
It is a legal requirement for you and your pupils to wear a face covering during a driving lesson unless you or your pupil is exempt. You need to let your pupils know about this change.

You should also ensure good ventilation during lessons and clean your vehicles before each lesson to help prevent the spread of the virus. Regular hand hygiene is also recommended.

Face coverings are not required for private practice with family or friends. Your candidates can check the advice on keeping themselves and others safe in the coronavirus (COVID-19) guidance.

Driving tests in England
Your pupils must continue to tell us if they are exempt from wearing a face covering when they book their test. This will allow us to arrange for their test to be carried out by an examiner who has volunteered to test candidates who are exempt from wearing a face covering. If you have made the booking on behalf of your pupil you will need to do this if required.

Your pupil’s test will not take place without a face covering if they do not tell us they are exempt ahead of their test.

We will be contacting candidates with a practical test booking in England to confirm this. If you booked a test for your pupils, you need to let them know about these changes.

You should also wear a face covering when travelling with a pupil to a driving test, unless you are exempt. We will not allow the test to take place if we see an instructor or their pupil not wearing a face covering whilst sharing a vehicle before the test.

The DVSA requirement to present a clean car that has been ventilated also remains.

Instructor tests in England
You must continue to tell us if you are exempt from wearing a face covering when you book a practical instructor test.

Your test will not take place without a face covering if you do not tell us you are exempt ahead of your test.

We will be contacting everyone with a practical instructor test booking in England to confirm this.

As with driving tests you must also wear a face covering when travelling to a driving test, unless you are exempt.

Test centre waiting rooms in England
In general, the risk of catching or passing on COVID-19 is higher:

in crowded spaces, where there are more people who might be infectious
in enclosed indoor spaces where there is limited fresh air
We continue to encourage you to keep your distance, wear face coverings and practice good hand hygiene in our waiting areas in England to help reduce the spread of the virus.

Taking rapid lateral flow tests
We continue to encourage your pupils to take a rapid lateral flow test in the 48 hours before their driving test.

Rapid lateral flow testing is currently being offered in England to people who do not have symptoms. You may wish to use regular rapid testing to help manage periods of risk, such as close contact in a car or when spending prolonged time with a person at higher risk.

Around 1 in 3 people with COVID-19 do not have any symptoms. This means they could be spreading the virus without knowing it. Testing twice a week increases the chances of detecting COVID-19 when a person is infectious – helping to make sure you do not spread COVID-19 to others.

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06/09/2021

For your information

New theory test service goes live today, Monday 6 September
The new theory test service and new location network, for England, Scotland and Wales, starts today, 6 September.

Please continue to remind your pupils, especially those who may have already taken a theory test, that many theory test centre locations have changed.

Your pupils should check the theory test centre address they have been given on their confirmation email so they’re familiar with their test location before travelling to the centre.

Pupils can also check the details of their test online, all they need is their booking reference number.

If they do not turn up for their appointment at the time and location they booked, they will lose their fee and will need to book and pay for a new appointment.

Theory test centres opening soon
We still have more theory test centres to add to our booking system and we’re working closely with the new suppliers to ensure they’re open as soon as possible.

The number of theory test centres in Great Britain will increase from 180 to 202.

We will continue to write to you to let you know when new centres have been added to the booking system.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause you and your pupils as we continue to build the network.

Preparing for the test
Candidates can also practice their theory test free.

Customer enquiries and complaints
If a pupil has a complaint about a test taken on or before 3 September, please contact Pearson VUE:

[email protected]

For booking enquiries and complaints about a theory test from 6 September, please contact DVSA customer service centre.

[email protected]

Telephone: 0300 200 1122

Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm

18/07/2021

For your information

New theory test booking system will go live on 19 July 2021

New theory test booking system goes live on Monday 19 July
The new theory test booking system, for England, Scotland and Wales, will go live at 08:00 on 19 July 2021.

When the new system goes live, all car, motorcycle, lorry and bus theory tests from 6 September 2021 will be available to book.

ADI part 1 and DVSA enhanced rider scheme trainer theory tests will also be available to book.

You can continue to book test dates for on or before 3 September using the current booking system in the usual way.

When you book a test on GOV.UK you will now be asked to choose a date for your test at the start of the booking process. You will automatically be directed to the correct booking system depending on the date you select.

Practical test bookings are not affected by the changes to our theory test booking system.

Booking or changing a test date
You can book test dates from Monday 6 September on the new system. New dates will be added to the booking system each week.

If you want to change a theory test appointment date for a test booked on or before 3 September, to a date on or after 6 September you will need to cancel your current test on GOV.UK and rebook online using the new booking system.

This is because the 2 booking systems are separate. Refunds will be issued for cancelled tests as normal.

Theory test bookings with additional support can only be cancelled or rescheduled by contacting the customer contact centre.

Theory test centre locations
The location of many theory test centres will change from 6 September. Please check the ‘find your nearest theory test centre’ page on GOV.UK to quickly see where your closest centre will be from 6 September.

Unfortunately, some addresses for the new theory test centre locations we shared with you on 12 July are still to be confirmed. This means you won’t be able to book a test at them from 6 September.

We will write to you as soon as we can to let you know the remaining new addresses and when you can book at the new theory test centres.

In the meantime, candidates who want to book a theory test before their closest theory test centre opens can use ‘find your nearest theory test centre’ on GOV.UK to find the nearest alternative centre. We are sorry for any inconvenience this might cause.

Customer enquiries
For booking enquiries about tests due to take place on or before 3 September only, please continue to contact Pearson VUE:

[email protected]
Telephone: 0300 200 1122
Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm
From 19 July, for booking enquiries about tests due to take place on or after 6 September, please contact DVSA customer contact centre as it will be taking over the service from Pearson VUE:

[email protected]
Telephone: 0300 200 1122
Monday to Friday, 8am to 4pm
Letting your pupils know
If any of your pupils are planning to take their theory test on or before 3 September and have to change or retake their test on or after 6 September, they will need to be aware the location of their nearest test centre may have changed.

We would be grateful for your support in reminding any affected pupils.

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06/05/2021

New theory test booking service to go live from 8 July
We wrote to you earlier this year to let you know we are making changes to the theory test service by bringing more parts of it in-house. This includes the theory test booking service.

Launching the new booking service
The new theory test booking service, for England, Scotland and Wales, will be launched on Thursday 8 July 2021 when bookings will be taken online and via the DVSA customer service centre. This service is moving from Pearson VUE to DVSA.

The new online booking system will accept test bookings to be taken from 4 September when the new theory test service begins. Any test bookings for dates before 4 September must be made on the current system.

All theory tests including ADI part 1 and enhanced rider scheme training theory tests are still booked from the current GOV.UK pages. For tests to be taken from 4 September, other than slightly different looking screens you and your pupils will not notice a difference.

We have worked with theory test candidates and the Government Digital Service to improve the booking service by making it easier to use.

Temporary change in the booking window for theory tests
Currently theory tests can be booked 4 months in advance. From 4 May the amount of time that tests can be booked in advance will be reduced by one day. By the time the new booking system opens on 8 July, tests will only be available 2 months in advance.

DVSA has taken action to reduce the theory test backlog by extending opening hours in England and Wales and opening additional temporary theory test centres in England. This has created additional test capacity, so the number of tests available to book should not be affected, just how far in advance you can book them.

Theory test centre locations
The contract for running theory test centres from 4 September has been split into 3 regions. Some existing test centres will change location and we are working with the new suppliers to confirm where the new theory test centres will be. We will share the addresses with you as soon as we can.

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14/04/2021

For your information

Theory test recovery update: increasing the number of tests in England and Wales
New DVSA chief executive, Loveday Ryder, wrote to you on 25 March to set out our commitment to safely reduce the backlog of tests.

Theory tests restarted in England and Wales on 12 April.

Here’s an update on how we plan to reduce the backlog for theory tests in England and Wales.

Extending theory test centre opening hours
From Monday 10 May to Wednesday 30 June, we’ll extend the opening hours at most theory test centres in England and Wales, where conditions allow.

Typically, centres will be open earlier and close later in the evenings. For example, some centres will be open from 8am to 8pm, and some might be open on Saturdays and Sundays where they were previously closed.

This will create 300,000 extra theory test appointments.

Opening 10 temporary larger theory test centres in England
On Monday 12 April, we started to open 10 temporary larger theory test centres.

These 10 temporary centres will create a minimum of 120,000 extra appointments each month. The centres will be in:

Cambridge
Huddersfield
Leeds (there will be 2 temporary centres)
London (Docklands) (there will be 2 temporary centres)
London (Holborn)
Manchester (Salford) (there will be 2 temporary centres)
Wolverhampton
The full addresses for these centres have been added to the find a theory test centre service on GOV.UK

Taking a test at one of these temporary centres
These temporary larger theory test centres will work slightly differently to normal theory test centres.

Some sites will have up-to 25 candidates testing at any one time. Robust covid-secure measures have been put in place to ensure the safety of candidates and staff, including: social distancing at least 1 metre apart from other people
protective transparent screens at reception desks
providing hand sanitiser to use on arrival, during the tests and when candidates leave the test centre
cleaning workstations (including computers and headphones) before every test
staff will wear a face covering (unless there’s a medical reason that it’s not recommended for them) and gloves. Candidates will have to wear a face covering too unless they have notified us in advance that they cannot
candidates must come into the test centre alone to help with social distancing
A full list of the safety measures in place at all theory test centres is available at Coronavirus (COVID-19): driving theory tests - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Your pupils will also notice that:

mobile phones must be turned off before entering the test centre
there are no lockers for personal belongings – they will be given a rigid plastic box to put their belongings in and will need to keep this under their desk while they take the test. These boxes will be cleaned by us after use.
invigilators will be walking around the testing room, monitoring people taking the test, observing social distancing guidelines at all times
These details will also be included in the theory test booking confirmation email.

Non-standard accommodations
We will prioritise candidates requiring special or additional support through dedicated appointments. At all locations, weekly appointments will be reserved to ensure that we have sufficient capacity to help reduce the wait time for these candidates.

What we will do next
We have added new appointments for the extending opening hours and the temporary test centres to the booking service.

We'll contact everyone with a theory test booked in:

England to tell them about the extended opening hours and contact candidates with tests booked at a centre close to the temporary test centres
Wales to tell them about extended opening hours
They will then have the choice to change their theory test appointment to one of the new available appointments.

Preparing for a theory test
The current national average pass rate for a car theory test is under 50%, so it’s important that your pupil is prepared for their theory test.

They can use free practice theory tests on the Safe Driving for Life website to prepare and refresh their theory test knowledge ahead of their test: https://www.safedrivingforlife.info/free-tests

29/03/2021

For your information, latest update from DVSA.
Update on private practice in England
From today (29 March) essential journey guidance is changing in England. This means that learner drivers in England are able to take private practice during non-essential journeys.

The private practice must still be with someone from their own household or support bubble.

Letting your pupils know
We are emailing all theory test and practical test candidates with a test booking to let them know that from today they can practice driving with someone from their household or support bubble on more than essential journeys.

For your pupils with a theory test booked this is a good way for them to put the knowledge and theory they have learnt in to practice. This is particularly important for your pupils who learn whilst doing.

For your pupils who have a practical test booked this is a good way for them to practice their skills before restarting lessons with you. DVSA research with learners found that those who had practice with friends and family were 1.4 times more likely to have passed their test compared to those that didn’t have private practice.

There is guidance on getting the most from private practice in the official learning to drive guide available from TSO Shop.

It’s important that you discuss which areas of driving each of your pupils need to work on during private practice. This will help them cover areas they need to improve on as they prepare for their test. Your pupils can record their private practice using the useful free record which can be downloaded from GOV.UK

10/02/2021

Latest update from DVSA

Continuing national lockdown in England
Further to guidance from government we are cancelling practical and theory tests in England up to and including 24 February 2021.

Mobile emergency worker service tests booked will take place as arranged.

You should continue to follow Government guidance to stay at home except for essential reasons.

You can read more about the lockdown measures on GOV.UK

Driving lessons
Driving lessons, must not take place until the restrictions are lifted. This includes training for ADI part 2 and 3 tests and standards checks.

Driving lessons for your pupils with a confirmed mobile emergency worker test booking can continue.

Driving tests
All driving tests are suspended in England while the restrictions are in place. This includes ADI part 2 and 3 tests and standards checks.

This does not include mobile emergency worker service tests booked which will take place as arranged.

We'll email candidates affected by this to let them know we will reschedule their test.

If you have booked a test for any of your pupils, you will receive an email to let you know it will be rescheduled to a new time and date. You will need to contact your pupil to let them know.

We’ll send you an email with the new time and date as soon as possible; please ask your pupils to be patient.

If the new time and date is not suitable for you or your pupil, you can choose a different time and date on GOV.UK. You will need your pupil’s driving licence number to do this. Your pupil does not need to pay again to do this.

Theory test
All theory tests will be suspended until the restrictions are lifted.

We will email anyone who has booked a test and is affected by this to let them know their theory test is on hold and that they will need to reschedule it by visiting https://www.gov.uk/change-theory-test.

If you booked your pupil’s theory test you will need to log into the booking system and rearrange their test for a new date and time.

This does not include mobile emergency worker service theory tests booked which will take place as arranged.

More information
You can find what financial support is available to you on GOV.UK.

Check GOV.UK for the latest about:

theory tests
driving tests
instructor guidance

Find an earlier driving theory test, move it to a later date, or change the test centre you take it at.

28/01/2021

Here’s the latest update from the DVSA

Continuing national lockdown in England
As a result of the national lockdown in England you should continue to follow Government guidance to stay at home except for essential reasons.

These restrictions in England will remain in place until at least the date of the next review on Monday 15 February 2021.

You can read more about the lockdown measures on GOV.UK

Driving lessons
Driving lessons, must not take place until the restrictions are lifted. This includes ADI part 2 and 3 tests and standards checks.

Driving tests
All driving tests are suspended in England while the restrictions are in place. This includes ADI part 2 and 3 tests and standards checks.

We'll email candidates affected by this to let them know we will reschedule their test.

If you have booked a test for any of your pupils, you will receive an email to let you know it will be rescheduled to a new time and date. You will need to contact your pupil to let them know.

We’ll send you an email with the new time and date as soon as possible; please ask your pupils to be patient.

If the new time and date is not suitable for you or your pupil, you can choose a different time and date on GOV.UK. You will need your pupil’s driving licence number to do this. Your pupil does not need to pay again to do this.

Theory test
All theory tests will be suspended until the restrictions are lifted.

We will email anyone who has booked a test and is affected by this to let them know their theory test is on hold and that they will need to reschedule it by visiting https://www.gov.uk/change-theory-test.

If you booked your pupil’s theory test you will need to log into the booking system and rearrange their test for a new date and time.

More information
You can find what financial support is available to you on GOV.UK.

Check GOV.UK for the latest about:

theory tests
driving tests
instructor guidance
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Find an earlier driving theory test, move it to a later date, or change the test centre you take it at.

05/01/2021

For your information, here’s the latest update from DVSA
Driving and riding lessons and tests – National lockdown
On 4 January, the government announced a new national lockdown to control the spread of coronavirus.

You can read more about the lockdown measures on GOV.UK

Driving and riding lessons
Driving and riding lessons, including CBT must not take place until the restrictions are lifted. This includes ADI part 2 and 3 tests and standards checks.

Driving and riding tests
All driving and riding tests have been suspended from 5 January until the restrictions are lifted.

We'll email candidates who are affected by this to let them know we will reschedule their test.

If you have booked a test for any of your pupils you will receive an email to let you know it will be rescheduled to a new time and date. You will need to contact your pupil to let them know.

We’ll then send you an email with the new time and date as soon as possible; please ask your pupils to be patient.

If the new time and date is not suitable for you or your pupil, you can choose a different time and date on GOV.UK. You will need your pupil’s driving licence number to do this. Your pupil does not need to pay again to do this.

Theory tests
All theory tests will be suspended until the restrictions are lifted.

We will email anyone who has booked a test and is affected by this to let them know their theory test is on hold and that they will need to reschedule it by visiting https://www.gov.uk/change-theory-test.

If you booked your pupil’s theory test you will need to log into the booking system and rearrange their test for a new date and time.

More information
You can find what financial support is available to you on GOV.UK.

Check GOV.UK for the latest about:

theory tests

driving tests

instructor guidance

Find an earlier driving theory test, move it to a later date, or change the test centre you take it at.

01/12/2020

For your information
Driving test centre
Sharing our updated driving test guidance for examiners
We have made some changes to our COVID driving test guidance for driving examiners.

We have made these changes to make it clear to you, your pupils and our examiners of what to expect on test.

Vehicle ventilation
The car must have the windows open throughout the test. Your pupils are advised to wear clothing suitable for the weather.

At least 2 windows on opposite sides of the car must be open throughout the test. Any combination of windows can be opened, for example, one from the front and back.

In bad weather, you do not need to open the windows so far that it makes the inside of your car overly wet.

Vehicle cleanliness
Because of coronavirus (COVID-19), you must clean the inside of your car before your test. This means:

tidying any unnecessary items away from the dashboard, footwells, door pockets, cup holders and seats.
wiping down the dashboard and car controls and touchpoints such as door handles and seat belt controls
The examiner will do an additional clean of some surfaces.

Completing insurance and residency declaration
Your pupils will also be able to fill out an insurance and residency declaration and have their licence checked inside the car in bad weather.

Please tell your pupils to bring a pen with them to complete the paperwork.

Our examiners will only offer a pen if they do not have one, which will be wiped with an anti-viral wipe on return.

Sharing our updated driving test guidance
As with previous guidance, we have shared the updated COVID driving test guidance for driving examiners with the training industry.

We hope this guidance will help you prepare your car and your pupil for their test.

NASP has published our updated guidance on their website where it is available for you to view.

Further information:

01/12/2020

For your information

Driving test centre
Government guidance on driving lessons and driving tests
This is an update about:

how local alert tiers affect driver training and testing
waiting rooms
How local restriction tiers affect driver training and testing
The Government has confirmed that driver training and testing can safely restart as normal in areas in tier 1 and 2 when the current national restrictions end on 2 December.

The Government has also confirmed that driving lessons can restart in all tiers when the current national restrictions end on 2 December.

Additional measures for driving tests in tier 3 areas
Our top priority is to keep you, your pupils and our staff safe.

To allow us to continue testing in tier 3 areas we will restart car practical tests in tier 3 areas from 3 December and will be introducing additional safety measures in these areas.

These include:

reducing the number of car practical tests our examiners carry out per day to 5 in tier 3 areas
anyone who has a car practical test booked in a tier 3 area who is exempt from wearing a face covering may have to delay their test until the area moves out of tier 3. We will reschedule their test if we cannot find a volunteer driving examiner to conduct their test without them wearing a face covering
What this means to you and your pupils
We email everyone in a tier 3 area who has a test booked to let them know about the additional measures.

We’ll also be contacting anyone whose test has been affected by these additional measures to let them know what will happen next.

2 December tests
The Government has clarified that all car practical and theory testing can resume on 2 December in tier 1 and 2 areas.

We previously rescheduled tests booked for this day to a later date.

If you or your pupil had a practical test previously scheduled for 2 December in a tier 1 or 2 area we will be in contact with you today, 1 December, to offer the opportunity to rebook the test for 2 December.

We did not want to automatically rearrange your pupils test to 2 December in case you or your pupil were no longer available or in case your pupil needs refresher lessons with you before your test.

We are very sorry for any inconvenience this has caused for you and your pupils.

Waiting rooms
Following the successful reopening of waiting rooms in a number of locations, we are able to reopen a further 94 waiting rooms in early December.

We’ll be in touch soon with more information about this.

Making sure your candidates are ready
It is important that your candidates are prepared for their test before you present them. Some of your pupils might not feel ready as they have not been able to have any lessons over the previous 4 weeks.

If your pupil feels they are not ready to take their driving test and need more time to practice they can change the date for free by visiting GOV.UK.

If your pupils are unable to find a test slot at their chosen test centre, they should look further afield as they should be prepared to drive in areas they are unfamiliar with.

Further information
theory tests
driving tests
instructor guidance

01/12/2020

For your information

Government guidance on theory tests
The Government has confirmed that theory tests can safely restart in all tiers on 2 December.

2 December
We previously rescheduled tests booked for this day to a later date.

If you or your pupil had a theory test previously scheduled for 2 December we will be in contact with you soon to offer the opportunity to rebook the test for 2 December.

We did not want to automatically rearrange your pupils test to 2 December in case your pupil was no longer available.

Driver and rider training and testing
We’ll update you shortly on how the new local restriction tiers will affect driver and rider training and testing.

We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused.

More information
Check GOV.UK for the latest about:

theory tests
driving tests
instructor guidance