Near Barnsley test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 2 roundabouts, 26 turns and 2 signalled junctions across 34 navigation steps.
This is an independent 29.6 km practice loop near Barnsley test centre, taking roughly 45 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 Barnsley 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, 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 churches, pubs, stations 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 Barnsley 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 89-step drive on real, named roads (about 29.6 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive north.
36 m
Turn left onto West Road.
West Road84 m
Turn left onto Pogmoor Road.
Pogmoor Road386 m
Turn left to stay on Pogmoor Road.
Pogmoor Road1.2 km
Turn right onto Shaw Lane.
Shaw Lane596 m
Turn right onto Racecommon Road.
Racecommon Road179 m
Turn left onto Longcar Lane.
Longcar Lane163 m
Turn right onto Blenheim Road.
Blenheim Road316 m
Turn right onto A6133/Park Road.
A6133291 m
Turn left onto Keresforth Hall Road.
Keresforth Hall Road50 m
Turn left onto Locke Street.
Locke Street61 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Locke Street.
Locke Street61 m
Turn right onto Keresforth Hall Road.
Keresforth Hall Road60 m
Turn right onto A6133/Keresforth Hill Road. Continue on A6133.
A61331.1 km
Turn right onto Warren Quarry Lane.
Warren Quarry Lane353 m
Turn right onto Warren Crescent.
Warren Crescent101 m
Turn left onto Dickinson Road.
Dickinson Road94 m
Turn left onto Highstone Road.
Highstone Road65 m
Turn left onto Warren Quarry Lane.
Warren Quarry Lane438 m
Turn left onto A6133/Park Road.
A613362 m
Turn left onto Middlesex Street.
Middlesex Street126 m
Turn left onto Essex Road.
Essex Road49 m
Turn right onto Warren Quarry Lane.
Warren Quarry Lane284 m
Turn right onto Highstone Road.
Highstone Road4 m
Turn left onto Lockwood Lane.
Lockwood Lane72 m
Turn right onto Mount Vernon Avenue.
Mount Vernon Avenue49 m
Turn right.
26 m
Turn right onto Highstone Road.
Highstone Road53 m
Turn right.
28 m
Turn left onto Lockwood Lane.
Lockwood Lane32 m
Turn right onto Highstone Road.
Highstone Road4 m
Turn left onto Warren Quarry Lane.
Warren Quarry Lane261 m
Turn right onto Cope Street.
Cope Street186 m
Turn right onto Dillington Road.
Dillington Road98 m
Turn left onto Hibbert Terrace.
Hibbert Terrace19 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Hibbert Terrace.
Hibbert Terrace19 m
Turn right onto Walnut Close.
Walnut Close272 m
Turn right onto A6133/Park Road.
A6133119 m
Take the A61 exit.
A61454 m
Enter Alhambra Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A61/Harborough Hill Road.
Alhambra Roundabout108 m
Exit the roundabout onto A61/Harborough Hill Road.
A61939 m
Enter Old Mill Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A635/Old Mill Lane.
Old Mill Roundabout55 m
Exit the roundabout onto A635/Old Mill Lane.
A635119 m
Move left onto Eldon Street North.
Eldon Street North216 m
Turn left onto James Street.
James Street143 m
Turn left onto Vernon Street.
Vernon Street95 m
Turn right onto Denton Street.
Denton Street49 m
Continue on A61/Harborough Hill Road.
A61177 m
Enter Old Mill Roundabout and take the 6th exit onto A61/Harborough Hill Road.
Old Mill Roundabout252 m
Exit the roundabout onto A61/Harborough Hill Road.
A611.0 km
Enter Alhambra Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A61/Sheffield Road.
Alhambra Roundabout16 m
Exit the roundabout onto A61/Sheffield Road.
A61143 m
Keep right to stay on A61/Sheffield Road.
A61313 m
Turn left onto A6133/Cemetery Road.
A6133546 m
Turn right onto A635/Doncaster Road.
A6351.8 km
Enter Stairfoot Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A635/Doncaster Road.
Stairfoot Roundabout216 m
Exit the roundabout onto A635/Doncaster Road.
A6352.3 km
Turn right onto Oakwell Lane.
Oakwell Lane296 m
Turn right onto A628/Pontefract Road.
A6282.1 km
Turn left onto Rotherham Road/A633.
Rotherham Road79 m
Keep left to stay on Rotherham Road/A633.
Rotherham Road115 m
Make a sharp right to stay on Rotherham Road/A633.
Rotherham Road73 m
Turn right to stay on Rotherham Road/A633.
Rotherham Road137 m
Turn right onto A628/Pontefract Road.
A6282.3 km
Move left onto Lambra Road.
Lambra Road286 m
Turn left onto Wesley Street.
Wesley Street97 m
Enter Alhambra Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A628/West Way.
Alhambra Roundabout116 m
Exit the roundabout onto A628/West Way.
A628207 m
Keep left to stay on A628/West Way.
A628479 m
Enter Townend Roundabout and take the 6th exit onto A628/West Way.
Townend Roundabout171 m
Exit the roundabout onto A628/West Way.
A628405 m
Turn left onto Wellington Street.
Wellington Street249 m
Move right onto Peel Square.
Peel Square36 m
Turn left onto Peel Street.
Peel Street301 m
Enter Townend Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Summer Lane.
Townend Roundabout120 m
Exit the roundabout onto Summer Lane.
Summer Lane546 m
Turn right onto Victoria Crescent West.
Victoria Crescent West181 m
Turn left onto Gawber Road.
Gawber Road2.1 km
Move left onto A635/Barugh Green Road.
A635147 m
Enter Barnsley Road and take the 4th exit onto A635/Barugh Green Road.
Barnsley Road74 m
Exit the roundabout onto A635/Barugh Green Road.
A635148 m
Move right onto Gawber Road.
Gawber Road782 m
Turn right onto Church Street.
Church Street198 m
Turn left onto Wharfedale Road.
Wharfedale Road657 m
Turn right onto Farm House Lane.
Farm House Lane196 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Farm House Lane.
Farm House Lane283 m
Turn left onto Pogmoor Road.
Pogmoor Road386 m
Turn right onto West Road.
West Road56 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Barnsley · Route 3 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.
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 17.0 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.
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.
Barnsley Muslim Community Centre
Start near Barnsley Muslim Community Centre.
Longcar Inn
Continue to Longcar Inn.
St Edward The Confessor
Continue to St Edward The Confessor.
Silkstone
Continue to Silkstone.
St Luke
Continue to St Luke.
Sheffield Road/Park Road
Continue to Sheffield Road/Park Road.
Prince of Wales
Continue to Prince of Wales.
Sheffield Road/Brinckman Street
Continue to Sheffield Road/Brinckman Street.
St Peter the Apostle & St John the Baptist
Continue to St Peter the Apostle & St John the Baptist.
Dove Inn
Continue to Dove Inn.
Mill
Continue to Mill.
Priory Arms
Continue to Priory Arms.
Bethel Chapel
Continue to Bethel Chapel.
Mount
Continue to Mount.
Holy Rood Catholic Church
Continue to Holy Rood Catholic Church.
Hope House Church
Continue to Hope House Church.
Moulders Arms
Continue to Moulders Arms.
Barnsley Recovery and Wellbeing College
Continue to Barnsley Recovery and Wellbeing College.
New Inn
Continue to New Inn.
Barnsley Road
Finish back near Barnsley Road, completing the loop.
2 roundabouts · 26 turns · 3 sets of lights
2 roundabouts · 23 turns · 3 sets of lights
6 roundabouts · 21 turns · 3 sets of lights
1 roundabout · 25 turns · 7 sets of lights
This route is 29.6 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Barnsley test centre, not an official DVSA route.