Near Basingstoke test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 20 roundabouts and 13 turns across 46 navigation steps.
This is an independent 15.6 km practice loop near Basingstoke test centre, taking roughly 18 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 Kempshott Roundabout and Woods Lane Roundabout. 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 roundabout approach & exit, 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 12 catalogued landmarks, including churches, named junctions, shops and pubs, 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 Basingstoke 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:
The full 46-step drive on real, named roads (about 15.6 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive northeast on Brighton Hill.
Brighton Hill11 m
Turn left onto Sullivan Road.
Sullivan Road119 m
Turn right onto Brighton Way.
Brighton Way303 m
Keep right to stay on Brighton Way.
Brighton Way108 m
Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Winchester Road/A30.
Brighton Hill Roundabout15 m
Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road1.8 km
Enter Kempshott Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Heather Way.
Kempshott Roundabout153 m
Exit the roundabout onto Heather Way.
Heather Way613 m
Turn left onto Kempshott Lane.
Kempshott Lane109 m
Keep left to stay on Kempshott Lane.
Kempshott Lane162 m
Turn left onto Aster Road.
Aster Road95 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Aster Road.
Aster Road95 m
Turn right onto Kempshott Lane.
Kempshott Lane272 m
Turn right onto Heather Way.
Heather Way610 m
Enter Kempshott Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Winchester Road/A30.
Kempshott Roundabout18 m
Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road1.8 km
Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Winchester Road/A30.
Brighton Hill Roundabout124 m
Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road715 m
Enter Winchester Road Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Winchester Road.
Winchester Road Roundabout131 m
Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road.
Winchester Road539 m
Turn left onto Pittard Road.
Pittard Road72 m
Turn right onto Padwick Close.
Padwick Close103 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Padwick Close.
Padwick Close103 m
Turn left onto Pittard Road.
Pittard Road72 m
Turn right onto Winchester Road.
Winchester Road533 m
Enter Winchester Road Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road Roundabout123 m
Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road716 m
Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.
Brighton Hill Roundabout154 m
Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road36 m
Keep right to stay on Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road100 m
Keep left to stay on Winchester Road/A30.
Winchester Road1.6 km
Enter Kempshott Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Woodbury Road.
Kempshott Roundabout27 m
Exit the roundabout onto Woodbury Road.
Woodbury Road127 m
Turn right to stay on Woodbury Road.
Woodbury Road266 m
Keep right to stay on Woodbury Road.
Woodbury Road743 m
Keep right to stay on Woodbury Road.
Woodbury Road36 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Cliddesden Lane.
11 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cliddesden Lane.
Cliddesden Lane154 m
Keep right to stay on Cliddesden Lane.
Cliddesden Lane657 m
Keep left to stay on Cliddesden Lane.
Cliddesden Lane848 m
Enter Woods Lane Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Brighton Way.
Woods Lane Roundabout43 m
Exit the roundabout onto Brighton Way.
Brighton Way137 m
Keep left to stay on Brighton Way.
Brighton Way1.0 km
Turn right onto Sullivan Road.
Sullivan Road119 m
Turn right onto Brighton Hill.
Brighton Hill11 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Basingstoke · Residential practice loop 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.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Roundabout
Watch your lane discipline and signalling at Kempshott Roundabout, Woods Lane Roundabout. Get into the correct lane early and check your exit mirror before leaving.
Navigate by these 12 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
West Basingstoke Baptist Church
Start near West Basingstoke Baptist Church.
Kempshott Roundabout
Continue to Kempshott Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Axminster Tools
Continue to Axminster Tools.
King of Wessex
Continue to King of Wessex.
King's Furlong
Continue to King's Furlong.
Coral
Continue to Coral.
Greggs
Continue to Greggs.
HSS Hire
Continue to HSS Hire.
McDonald's
Continue to McDonald's.
Optiplan Kitchens
Continue to Optiplan Kitchens.
Portsmouth Arms
Continue to Portsmouth Arms.
Woods Lane Roundabout
Finish back near Woods Lane Roundabout, completing the loop.
30 roundabouts · 24 turns
24 roundabouts · 4 turns
35 roundabouts · 7 turns
20 roundabouts · 19 turns
This route is 15.6 km and takes about 18 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Basingstoke test centre, not an official DVSA route.