When considering which driving instructor to choose, ask family and friends if they know of a good instructor – a recommendation could point you in the right direction. Also compare two or three local driving instructors: check their websites and phone the ones you like best. This initial contact will give you an idea as to whether they are the type of person you will be happy to work with.

When comparing different instructors, consider the following:

1. The qualifications of the driving instructor. An octagonal, green Driving Standards Agency badge on the windscreen indicates that the instructor is an Approved Driving Instructor (ADI). Trainee instructors will display a pink badge. Be aware that some driving schools do not inform pupils that they are having lessons by a trainee instructor and some schools charge pupils the full lesson price even if most – or all – lessons are by trainee instructors.
2. Does the instructor offer a free assessment lesson? This is an ideal way of assessing whether you as a pupil will feel comfortable being taught by a given instructor. Most people thrive best with a competent instructor who is also patient, relaxed, polite and encouraging.
3. The lesson length. Not all driving lessons last the same time – some schools try to reduce costs by offering 50 minute lessons rather than 60 minute lessons. Another important factor when considering how long you want your lesson to be is your own personal attention span: if you can only concentrate EFFECTIVELY for 2 hours, do not book a 3 hour lesson. Whilst intensive courses suit some people, those with low attention spans would be better considering semi-intensive courses with one or two 1-2 hour lessons per day.
4. Will each lesson cover a different route and will these routes cover all the types of driving (for example, town centre, rural, dual-carriage-way and independent) that you will encounter in your driving test? When offering driving lessons Bury St Edmunds, I ensure that each lesson contains a mix of these different types of driving in and around Bury St Edmunds; I also ensure that pupils drive along different test routes in and around Bury St Edmunds.
5. Where will your lesson start and begin? This is especially important for pupils who live some distance from the test centre. If you book a 50-60 minute lesson and spend twenty minutes driving to the town centre along rural roads and twenty minutes driving back again, the amount of town centre driving that each lesson can cover is limited. When I offer driving lessons to pupils living in the Thetford area or in rural villages some distance from Bury St Edmunds, I generally suggest that pupils book a 90-120 minute lesson so that more time can be spent going round the different Bury St Edmunds test routes. (Driving tests are taken in Bury St Edmunds not Thetford.)
6. Will your instructor give you undivided attention for the full lesson or will part of the lesson be spent driving to pick up the next pupil? If the latter is the case, be aware that an additional chunk of each lesson is likely to cover the same route to that next pupil’s house.
7. What percentage of a lesson is spent sitting in the car learning theory and hazard perception? Many driving instructors will ask students to learn theory at home and give just a short briefing when a new subject is introduced and then reinforce the home learning with situations encountered in “real” driving.
8. Is the driving instructor’s car easy to manoeuvre? If so, this ease of manoeuvring can contribute to a reduced number of driving lessons being needed. Also check whether the car is automatic or manual and whether safety features such as dual controls and air bags are present.