Near Ashfield test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 10 roundabouts, 12 turns and 8 signalled junctions across 28 navigation steps.
This is an independent 60.7 km practice route near Ashfield test centre, taking roughly 40 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.
Along the way you'll meet Alfreton Road. Knowing the approach, lane and exit at each one before you arrive is the difference between a planned manoeuvre and a last-second reaction, and last-second reactions are where avoidable faults come from.
On this route you’ll practise multiple roundabouts, dual-carriageway joins, national-speed roads, 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 shops, stations, churches and schools, 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 91-step drive on real, named roads (about 60.7 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.
B6139568 m
Turn left onto Lucknow Drive.
Lucknow Drive92 m
Turn left onto Sandown Road.
Sandown Road105 m
Turn left onto Fairfield Road.
Fairfield Road65 m
Turn right onto Coxmoor Road.
Coxmoor Road982 m
Turn right onto Newark Road/B6022.
Newark Road285 m
Turn left onto Searby Road.
Searby Road18 m
Turn right onto Newark Road.
Newark Road650 m
Make a right U-turn onto Kirkby Folly Road.
Kirkby Folly Road178 m
Make a left U-turn at Farndon Road onto Kirkby Folly Road/B6021.
Kirkby Folly Road621 m
Turn right onto Penny Emma Way/B6021.
Penny Emma Way881 m
Turn right onto A38/Kings Mill Road East. Continue on A38.
A381.8 km
Turn left towards Coxmoor Road.
Coxmoor Road551 m
Move right onto Eastfield Side.
Eastfield Side487 m
Turn left onto Mansfield Road/B6023.
Mansfield Road551 m
Turn right onto Stoneyford Road/B6028.
Stoneyford Road659 m
Turn left onto Glen Street.
Glen Street166 m
Turn left onto Haddon Street.
Haddon Street157 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Haddon Street.
Haddon Street157 m
Turn right onto Glen Street.
Glen Street166 m
Turn right onto Stoneyford Road/B6028.
Stoneyford Road660 m
Turn right onto Priestsic Road/B6023.
Priestsic Road737 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Lammas Road/B6023.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto Lammas Road/B6023. Continue on B6023.
B6023571 m
Move right.
32 m
Turn right onto Huthwaite Road.
Huthwaite Road71 m
Move left onto Huthwaite Road/B6026. Continue on B6026.
B60262.6 km
Turn left onto Bonser Crescent.
Bonser Crescent180 m
Turn left onto Little Lane.
Little Lane230 m
Turn left onto Whitegates Way.
Whitegates Way51 m
Turn right onto Blackwell Road/B6026.
Blackwell Road213 m
Turn left onto Main Street.
Main Street127 m
Turn left onto Chesterfield Road.
Chesterfield Road1.7 km
Move right.
452 m
Turn right onto Wild Hill/B6014. Continue on B6014.
B60142.9 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto High Street/B6028.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto High Street/B6028.
High Street277 m
Turn left onto New Lane.
New Lane158 m
Turn left onto Victoria Street.
Victoria Street88 m
Turn left onto Albert Street.
Albert Street100 m
Turn left onto High Street/B6028. Continue on B6028.
B6028672 m
Turn right onto Carsic Road.
Carsic Road1.8 km
Turn right onto Huthwaite Road/B6026. Continue on B6026.
B60261.9 km
Turn left onto Common Road/B6027.
Common Road651 m
Turn right onto Nunn Brook Road.
Nunn Brook Road1.0 km
Turn right onto Blackwell Road/B6026.
B60263.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Priestsic Road.
6 m
Exit the roundabout onto Priestsic Road.
Priestsic Road945 m
Turn left onto Dalestorth Street.
Dalestorth Street474 m
Turn right onto Dalestorth Road.
Dalestorth Road679 m
Turn right onto Mansfield Road/B6014.
Mansfield Road36 m
Turn left towards A617.
A6174.4 km
Turn left onto Prior Square.
Prior Square84 m
Move right onto Station Street.
Station Street321 m
Turn left onto Vale Road.
Vale Road1.2 km
Turn right.
121 m
Make a right U-turn.
121 m
Turn left onto Common Lane.
Common Lane1.2 km
Turn right onto Station Street.
Station Street321 m
Move left onto Prior Square.
Prior Square84 m
Turn right onto Debdale Lane/A6075.
Debdale Lane5.5 km
Move right onto A38.
A386.4 km
Take the B6406 exit.
233 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Berristow Lane/B6406.
64 m
Exit the roundabout onto Berristow Lane/B6406.
Berristow Lane86 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 5th exit.
131 m
Exit the roundabout onto A38/Alfreton Road.
A381.9 km
Turn left towards B6023/Alfreton Road.
Alfreton Road969 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Alfreton Road/B6023.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto Alfreton Road/B6023.
Alfreton Road714 m
Turn left onto Lammas Road/B6023.
Lammas Road675 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Priestsic Road.
6 m
Exit the roundabout onto Priestsic Road.
Priestsic Road423 m
Turn left onto Northern View.
Northern View111 m
Turn left onto Bishop Street.
Bishop Street111 m
Turn left onto Edwin Street.
Edwin Street105 m
Turn right onto Priestsic Road/B6023.
Priestsic Road68 m
Turn left onto Northern Bridge Road.
Northern Bridge Road247 m
Turn left onto Outram Street.
Outram Street327 m
Turn right onto Stoney Street.
Stoney Street47 m
Turn right onto Bowne Street.
Bowne Street214 m
Turn right onto Penn Street.
Penn Street71 m
Turn left onto Outram Street.
Outram Street78 m
Turn left to stay on Outram Street.
Outram Street200 m
Move left onto Forest Street.
Forest Street162 m
Move left onto Station Road.
Station Road662 m
Turn left onto A38.
A38901 m
Turn left towards Coxmoor Road.
Coxmoor Road364 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Ashfield · Route 6 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.
Decide your lane and exit on the approach to each of these, get set up early.
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.
Multiple roundabouts
Approach in the correct lane, signal on the exit before yours, and keep checking your mirrors as you leave.
Dual-carriageway join
About 12.7 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 (30, 40, 50, 60, 70 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.
Flower House
Start near Flower House.
Sutton Parkway
Continue to Sutton Parkway.
Bridge Baptist Church
Continue to Bridge Baptist Church.
Bamboo House
Continue to Bamboo House.
Lammas School
Continue to Lammas School.
NG17 Sandwich Shop
Continue to NG17 Sandwich Shop.
Woodend
Continue to Woodend.
Carnarvon
Continue to Carnarvon.
Rose and Crown
Continue to Rose and Crown.
All Saints Church and Centre
Continue to All Saints Church and Centre.
Alloy Refurbs
Continue to Alloy Refurbs.
Westbourne School
Continue to Westbourne School.
New Cross
Continue to New Cross.
Londis
Continue to Londis.
Nisa Extra
Continue to Nisa Extra.
Rufford
Continue to Rufford.
Greggs
Continue to Greggs.
Duke of Sussex
Continue to Duke of Sussex.
Alfreton Road
Continue to Alfreton Road, taking the junction with good observation.
St Joseph the Worker
Finish back near St Joseph the Worker, completing the loop.
4 roundabouts · 10 turns · 11 sets of lights
8 roundabouts · 12 turns · 11 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 11 turns · 9 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 12 turns · 10 sets of lights
This route is 60.7 km and takes about 40 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Ashfield test centre, not an official DVSA route.