DVSA research with learners found those who had private practice with friends and family in addition to their professional instruction are 1.4 times more likely to pass their test compared to those that do not have private practice.
DVSA encourages pupils to have a combination of driving lessons and private practice with family or friends.
During the pandemic, there were restrictions on who your pupils could have private practice with, and the types of journeys where this could happen.
As restrictions are relaxed, DVSA recommends driver trainers work closely with their pupils’ supervising drivers to help them to be better prepared for their driving test.
In England, your pupils can practice driving with family or friends, but this is restricted to groups of no more than six people, or two households.
In Scotland, there are different rules depending on which area level you are in.
In Wales, your pupils can practice driving with people they live with or those within their support bubble. They do not need to stay in their local council area.
It’s important that you discuss which areas of driving each of your pupils need to work on when they are doing private practice. This will help them cover areas they need to improve as they prepare for their test.
Your pupils can record their private practice using this free record which can be downloaded from GOV.UK.
