Preparing to drive

While many people still chose to start lessons before booking the theory test I always recommend trying to book it ASAP.  I’m sure you’ve seen in the news or heard from family or friends how hard it is to book a driving test at the moment. The waitlist for driving tests in many driving test centers, including in Swansea is currently maxed out at 24 weeks. That means that if you do a 2-hour lesson a week and had booked a practical test on the day of your 1^st lesson you could easily fit in the 40 hours of tuition needed to get ready to pass. As such it makes sense to pass the theory test before starting your driving lessons with a test date 24 weeks away to work towards.

The gov.uk website has a fantastic step by step guide on everything that you need to do to get your driving licence, from applying for your provisional to booking and passing the theory and practical driving tests. I will go through the basics of this here, but I highly recommend taking a look at their guide through this link: https://www.gov.uk/learn-to-drive-a-car

Applying for a provisional licence

From the age of 15 years and 9 month a person can apply for a provisional licence online:

https://www.gov.uk/apply-first-provisional-driving-licence?step-by-step-nav=e01e924b-9c7c-4c71-8241-66a575c2f61f

The application costs £34 and your licence should be with you within 7 days, it can take longer if the DVSA has to make any extra checks.

Booking the theory test

You can sit your theory test on or after your 17^th birthday. The test costs £23 and can be booked through this link once you have your provisional:

https://www.gov.uk/book-theory-test

Other websites will try to sell tests at an elevated cost for a profit. Always be sure to book any theory or driving tests directly through the .gov.uk website.

I would allow yourself a month to prepare (maybe more if you know you won’t have much free time in the run up to the test).

Preparing for the theory test

The theory test consists of 2 sections. A multiple choice section and a hazard perception test. It is important that you prepare for both.

The first step would be to download an app to help you prepare. I always recommend the DVSA official theory revision app which you can easily find in your relevant App store but other apps are similarly priced and just as good.

Once you have the app you should read the Highway code in it’s entirety. This can seem a little dull at first as the first sections have a lot of obvious information in them and some of it may seem like it doesn’t relate to you as a driver. However if you know this thing inside out you will not only find the multiple choice section a breeze, but you will also be able to keep yourself much safer on the road.

Once you’re familiar with the highway code the revision app you downloaded will likely have the topics for the test split into sections. I would read through each section before trying your 1st mock test.

The last step is practice practice practice. Once you’ve read all the information you should be doing plenty of mock tests on your app, including the hazard perception section. If you get any questions wrong be sure to look back at why you were wrong and learn from the mistakes. The first test you do might take some time but the more you do the quicker you’ll get through them.