Near Barnet test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 19 turns and 1 signalled junction across 22 navigation steps.
This is an independent 22.7 km practice loop near Barnet 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 national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads, independent driving 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, pubs, churches and stations, 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 Barnet 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 57-step drive on real, named roads (about 22.6 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast on Western Parade.
Western Parade23 m
Turn right onto Raydean Road.
Raydean Road110 m
Turn right to stay on Raydean Road.
Raydean Road157 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Raydean Road.
Raydean Road157 m
Turn left to stay on Raydean Road.
Raydean Road105 m
Turn right onto Great North Road.
Great North Road219 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road65 m
Turn right to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road15 m
Turn left onto Pricklers Hill/A1000. Continue on A1000.
A1000379 m
Turn right onto Station Road/A110.
Station Road694 m
Turn left onto Plantagenet Road.
Plantagenet Road141 m
Turn left onto Leicester Road.
Leicester Road322 m
Turn right onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road414 m
Turn left onto Potters Lane.
Potters Lane703 m
Turn right onto Barnet Hill/A1000.
Barnet Hill87 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Barnet Hill/A1000.
Barnet Hill92 m
Turn left onto Potters Lane.
Potters Lane585 m
Turn left onto King Edward Road.
King Edward Road256 m
Turn left onto Meadway.
Meadway503 m
Turn left onto Barnet Hill/A1000.
Barnet Hill550 m
Make a sharp left onto Barnet Hill/A1000. Continue on A1000.
A10002.3 km
Turn left onto Hadley Highstone.
Hadley Highstone1.8 km
Turn right onto Dancers Hill Road.
Dancers Hill Road1.6 km
Turn right onto Barnet Road/A1000. Continue on A1000.
A10005.0 km
Turn right onto Great North Road.
Great North Road15 m
Turn left to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road65 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road65 m
Turn right to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road15 m
Turn left onto Pricklers Hill/A1000. Continue on A1000.
A1000379 m
Turn right onto Station Road/A110.
Station Road421 m
Turn left onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road269 m
Turn right onto Bulwer Road.
Bulwer Road175 m
Turn left onto Hadley Road.
Hadley Road568 m
Turn left onto Tudor Road.
Tudor Road89 m
Turn left onto Woodville Road.
Woodville Road600 m
Turn left onto Bulwer Road.
Bulwer Road277 m
Turn left onto Potters Road.
Potters Road95 m
Turn left onto Hexham Road.
Hexham Road143 m
Turn left onto Hadley Road.
Hadley Road90 m
Turn right onto Bulwer Road.
Bulwer Road175 m
Turn right onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road151 m
Turn left onto Prospect Road.
Prospect Road118 m
Turn left onto King Edward Road.
King Edward Road245 m
Turn left onto Leicester Road.
Leicester Road108 m
Turn right onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road135 m
Turn left onto Station Road/A110.
Station Road271 m
Turn left onto Plantagenet Road.
Plantagenet Road141 m
Turn left onto Leicester Road.
Leicester Road322 m
Turn left onto Warwick Road.
Warwick Road135 m
Turn right onto Station Road/A110.
Station Road371 m
Turn left onto Great North Road/A1000. Continue on A1000.
A1000403 m
Turn right onto Great North Road.
Great North Road15 m
Turn left to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road65 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Great North Road.
Great North Road219 m
Turn left onto Raydean Road.
Raydean Road105 m
Turn right to stay on Raydean Road.
Raydean Road76 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Barnet · Route 4 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.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 40, 60 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.
Green Hill
Start near Green Hill.
Weavers
Continue to Weavers.
New Barnet Friends Meeting House (Quakers)
Continue to New Barnet Friends Meeting House (Quakers).
Containersafe
Continue to Containersafe.
Vale Drive Primary Care Centre
Continue to Vale Drive Primary Care Centre.
Fitzjohn Avenue
Continue to Fitzjohn Avenue.
King's Head
Continue to King's Head.
Susi Earnshaw Theatre School
Continue to Susi Earnshaw Theatre School.
High Barnet Baptist Church
Continue to High Barnet Baptist Church.
High Barnet Islamic Centre
Continue to High Barnet Islamic Centre.
Duke of York
Continue to Duke of York.
Hadley Highstone
Continue to Hadley Highstone.
St John the Baptist Church
Continue to St John the Baptist Church.
Waterstones
Continue to Waterstones.
Barnet Church
Continue to Barnet Church.
Barnet High Street / Barnet Church
Continue to Barnet High Street / Barnet Church.
John's Cycles
Continue to John's Cycles.
Queens Arms
Continue to Queens Arms.
St Mark
Continue to St Mark.
Eviglam's
Finish back near Eviglam's, completing the loop.
2 roundabouts · 12 turns · 1 set of lights
3 roundabouts · 9 turns · 2 sets of lights
2 roundabouts · 19 turns · 1 set of lights
1 roundabout · 16 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 22.7 km and takes about 30 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Barnet test centre, not an official DVSA route.