Near Ashfield test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 6 roundabouts, 10 turns and 8 signalled junctions across 21 navigation steps.
This is an independent 26.3 km practice route near Ashfield test centre, taking roughly 30 min to drive. It is NOT an official DVSA examiner route, the DVSA does not publish those, but it uses the same local roads and junction types an examiner is likely to choose.
On this route you’ll practise roundabout approach & exit, dual-carriageway joins, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and sustained concentration. Driving it a few times before your test builds the muscle memory that frees up attention for observation and decision-making on the day.
The loop is anchored by 20 catalogued landmarks, including pubs, churches, schools and shops, so you can navigate it from recognisable features rather than a memorised turn list. Rehearsing it in this way means that on test day the area already feels familiar, and your attention is free for the traffic rather than the map.
Whatever the route, your practical test follows the same national shape: an eyesight check, a couple of vehicle-safety questions, around forty minutes of general driving, one reversing manoeuvre chosen by the examiner, and roughly twenty minutes of independent driving following signs or a sat-nav. Practising on roads like these is how you make each of those elements feel routine rather than new.
Treat this route as practice, not a script. The value is not in repeating one fixed sequence but in getting comfortable with the road types, speed changes and junction patterns of the area around Ashfield test centre, so that whatever order your examiner chooses on the day, none of it is unfamiliar. Drive it a few times, focus on smooth observation and planning, and it becomes one more stretch of road you already know, which is exactly the kind of preparation that turns nerves into confidence.
If you are practising with a supervising driver rather than an instructor, take it steadily: agree the manoeuvre spots in advance, keep to a comfortable pace, and stop to talk through anything that felt rushed. And remember the basics that apply on every road, mirrors before any change of speed or direction, signals in good time, and a following distance that gives you room to react. Those habits travel with you long after the test is passed.
What you’ll actually do on this loop, counted from its turn-by-turn directions.
This route helps you practise:
Road mix
The full 61-step drive on real, named roads (about 26.3 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast.
4 m
Turn right.
17 m
Turn right onto B6139.
B6139709 m
Move right onto Eastfield Side.
Eastfield Side487 m
Turn right onto Mansfield Road/B6023.
Mansfield Road504 m
Turn left onto Hill Crescent.
Hill Crescent59 m
Turn right onto Lawrence Crescent.
Lawrence Crescent195 m
Turn left onto Roosevelt Road.
Roosevelt Road48 m
Turn left onto Hill Crescent.
Hill Crescent155 m
Turn right onto Mansfield Road/B6023.
Mansfield Road851 m
Move left onto Outram Street.
Outram Street577 m
Turn left to stay on Outram Street.
Outram Street200 m
Move left onto Forest Street.
Forest Street162 m
Turn right onto High Pavement.
High Pavement689 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Spring Road.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto Spring Road.
Spring Road218 m
Turn right onto Brook Street.
Brook Street233 m
Turn right onto Woods Hill.
Woods Hill82 m
Turn right.
155 m
Make a right U-turn.
155 m
Turn left onto Woods Hill.
Woods Hill82 m
Turn right onto Brook Street.
Brook Street60 m
Turn right onto Langton Road.
Langton Road207 m
Turn left onto High Pavement.
High Pavement380 m
Turn right onto Station Road.
Station Road662 m
Turn left onto A38.
A38901 m
Move left to stay on A38.
A38748 m
Take the A38 exit on the right towards Mansfield Road.
113 m
Turn right onto A38/Mansfield Road. Continue on A38.
A381.4 km
Make a right U-turn at B6014 to stay on A38.
A381.6 km
Turn left onto Unwin Road.
Unwin Road527 m
Turn right onto Tom Stimpson Way.
Tom Stimpson Way138 m
Turn right.
40 m
Make a right U-turn.
40 m
Turn left onto Tom Stimpson Way.
Tom Stimpson Way138 m
Turn right onto Unwin Road.
Unwin Road94 m
Turn left onto Coxmoor Road.
Coxmoor Road480 m
Turn right onto A38.
A382.5 km
Turn left towards B6018/Sutton Road.
Sutton Road1.5 km
Turn left onto Chapel Street/B6020. Continue on B6020.
B6020560 m
Turn right onto Wheatley Avenue.
Wheatley Avenue219 m
Turn left onto Chestnut Avenue.
Chestnut Avenue314 m
Turn left onto Regent Street.
Regent Street186 m
Turn left onto Victoria Road/B6020. Continue on B6020.
B6020533 m
Turn right onto Southwell Lane.
Southwell Lane1.1 km
Turn right onto Southwell Close.
Southwell Close160 m
Turn right to stay on Southwell Close.
Southwell Close35 m
Turn right.
7 m
Make a right U-turn.
7 m
Turn left onto Southwell Close.
Southwell Close35 m
Turn left to stay on Southwell Close.
Southwell Close159 m
Turn right onto Southwell Lane.
Southwell Lane325 m
Turn right onto Lowmoor Road/B6021.
Lowmoor Road506 m
Turn left onto Gladstone Street.
Gladstone Street244 m
Turn left onto Marlborough Road.
Marlborough Road95 m
Turn left onto Milton Street.
Milton Street281 m
Turn right onto Lowmoor Road/B6021.
Lowmoor Road1.3 km
Turn left towards B6021.
Penny Emma Way901 m
Turn right onto A38/Kings Mill Road East. Continue on A38.
A381.8 km
Turn left towards Coxmoor Road.
Coxmoor Road364 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Ashfield · Route 15 loop. Always drive to the road and conditions you see, not the list — signs, signals and other traffic take priority.
These are the real named features along the loop, straight from our route catalogue. Use them to recognise where you are and to anticipate the hazard each one brings, not to memorise a fixed order.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near these.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Roundabout
Approach in the correct lane, signal on the exit before yours, and keep checking your mirrors as you leave.
Dual-carriageway join
About 7.9 km of this loop is dual carriageway. Build your speed on the slip road, take an effective rearward observation, and merge without forcing other traffic to brake.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 40, 50 mph). Watch for repeater signs and adjust early, examiners mark you down for carrying the wrong speed into a new limit.
Residential streets
Narrow residential roads mean parked cars, pedestrians and reduced visibility. Cover the brake, keep your speed down and be ready to give way.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Speed The Plough
Start near Speed The Plough.
Bridge Baptist Church
Continue to Bridge Baptist Church.
Resurrection Mixed Martial Arts Academy
Continue to Resurrection Mixed Martial Arts Academy.
St Joseph the Worker
Continue to St Joseph the Worker.
Sutton Community Academy
Continue to Sutton Community Academy.
St Johns Methodist Church
Continue to St Johns Methodist Church.
Sutton Christian Fellowship
Continue to Sutton Christian Fellowship.
Sutton-in-Ashfield United Reformed Church
Continue to Sutton-in-Ashfield United Reformed Church.
Sir John Cockle
Continue to Sir John Cockle.
Sutton Road Caravans
Continue to Sutton Road Caravans.
Hillocks Primary Academy
Continue to Hillocks Primary Academy.
Hillocks Primary School
Continue to Hillocks Primary School.
Ashfield Fire Station
Continue to Ashfield Fire Station.
Westfield Prestige Cars
Continue to Westfield Prestige Cars.
Strand
Continue to Strand.
Hill Methodist Church
Continue to Hill Methodist Church.
Marmaris
Continue to Marmaris.
Smart Aluminium
Continue to Smart Aluminium.
Sutton Parkway
Continue to Sutton Parkway.
Vision West Notts College Engineering Innovation Centre
Finish back near Vision West Notts College Engineering Innovation Centre, completing the loop.
4 roundabouts · 10 turns · 11 sets of lights
10 roundabouts · 12 turns · 8 sets of lights
8 roundabouts · 12 turns · 11 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 11 turns · 9 sets of lights
This route is 26.3 km and takes about 30 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Ashfield test centre, not an official DVSA route.