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Practice route
ModerateLoop

Basingstoke · Roundabout practice loop

Near Basingstoke test centre

18.7 km
Distance
18 min
Duration
Moderate
Difficulty
50
Manoeuvres
Difficulty: Demanding

Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 35 roundabouts and 7 turns across 45 navigation steps.

How this route is examined

This is an independent 18.7 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 Hackwood Road Roundabout, Kempshott Roundabout, Hatch Warren Roundabout, Wallop Drive and Thornycroft Roundabout and 1 more named junctions. 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, 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, named junctions 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 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.

Manoeuvre breakdown

What you’ll actually do on this loop, counted from its turn-by-turn directions.

7
Left turns
0
Right turns
35
Roundabouts
0
Traffic lights
45
Total steps

Skills & features

5
Roundabouts
20
Landmarks

This route helps you practise:

  • Multiple roundabouts
  • Independent driving
  • Sustained concentration

Turn-by-turn directions

The full 45-step drive on real, named roads (about 18.7 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.

  1. Depart:

    Drive northeast on Brighton Hill.

    Brighton Hill11 m

  2. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Sullivan Road.

    Sullivan Road119 m

  3. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Brighton Way.

    Brighton Way412 m

  4. Roundabout:

    Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Brighton Hill Roundabout189 m

  5. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road715 m

  6. Roundabout:

    Enter Winchester Road Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Ringway South/A30.

    Winchester Road Roundabout182 m

  7. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Ringway South/A30.

    Ringway South1.6 km

  8. Roundabout:

    Enter Hackwood Road Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Ringway South/A30.

    Hackwood Road Roundabout285 m

  9. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Ringway South/A30.

    Ringway South1.6 km

  10. Roundabout:

    Enter Winchester Road Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road Roundabout13 m

  11. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road716 m

  12. Roundabout:

    Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Brighton Hill Roundabout154 m

  13. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road1.8 km

  14. Roundabout:

    Enter Kempshott Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Kempshott Roundabout82 m

  15. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road798 m

  16. Roundabout:

    Enter Hatch Warren Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Wallop Drive.

    Hatch Warren Roundabout10 m

  17. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Wallop Drive.

    Wallop Drive172 m

  18. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Wallop Drive.

    81 m

  19. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Wallop Drive.

    Wallop Drive166 m

  20. Roundabout:

    Enter Hatch Warren Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Hatch Warren Roundabout92 m

  21. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road798 m

  22. Roundabout:

    Enter Kempshott Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Kempshott Roundabout89 m

  23. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road1.8 km

  24. Roundabout:

    Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Brighton Hill Roundabout124 m

  25. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road715 m

  26. Roundabout:

    Enter Winchester Road Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Ringway West/A340.

    Winchester Road Roundabout18 m

  27. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Ringway West/A340.

    Ringway West1.2 km

  28. Roundabout:

    Enter Thornycroft Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Churchill Way West/B3400.

    Thornycroft Roundabout15 m

  29. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Churchill Way West/B3400.

    Churchill Way West684 m

  30. Roundabout:

    Enter West Ham Roundabout and take the 6th exit onto Churchill Way West/B3400.

    West Ham Roundabout286 m

  31. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Churchill Way West/B3400.

    Churchill Way West91 m

  32. Turn left:

    Move left.

    114 m

  33. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Milestones Road.

    Milestones Road69 m

  34. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Milestones Road.

    32 m

  35. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Milestones Road.

    Milestones Road165 m

  36. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Churchill Way West/B3400.

    Churchill Way West514 m

  37. Roundabout:

    Enter Thornycroft Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Ringway West/A340.

    Thornycroft Roundabout156 m

  38. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Ringway West/A340.

    Ringway West1.2 km

  39. Roundabout:

    Enter Winchester Road Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road Roundabout167 m

  40. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Winchester Road/A30.

    Winchester Road716 m

  41. Roundabout:

    Enter Brighton Hill Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Brighton Way.

    Brighton Hill Roundabout108 m

  42. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Brighton Way.

    Brighton Way425 m

  43. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Sullivan Road.

    Sullivan Road119 m

  44. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Brighton Hill.

    Brighton Hill6 m

  45. Arrive:

    You have arrived at your destination.

Directions for the Basingstoke · Roundabout practice loop loop. Always drive to the road and conditions you see, not the list — signs, signals and other traffic take priority.

Local roads & landmarks

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.

Junctions & roundabouts

Decide your lane and exit on the approach to each of these, get set up early.

  • Hackwood Road Roundabout
  • Kempshott Roundabout
  • Hatch Warren Roundabout
  • Wallop Drive
  • Thornycroft Roundabout
  • West Ham Roundabout

Churches

Useful navigation anchors on the loop.

  • West Basingstoke Baptist Church

Shops & parades

Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.

  • Coral
  • Greggs
  • HSS Hire
  • Optiplan Kitchens

Watch out for

  • Multiple roundabouts

    Watch your lane discipline and signalling at Hackwood Road Roundabout, Kempshott Roundabout, Hatch Warren Roundabout. Get into the correct lane early and check your exit mirror before leaving.

Drive it: landmark by landmark

Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.

  1. West Basingstoke Baptist Church

    Start near West Basingstoke Baptist Church.

  2. Hackwood Road Roundabout

    Continue to Hackwood Road Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.

  3. Coral

    Continue to Coral.

  4. Greggs

    Continue to Greggs.

  5. HSS Hire

    Continue to HSS Hire.

  6. Optiplan Kitchens

    Continue to Optiplan Kitchens.

  7. Kempshott Roundabout

    Continue to Kempshott Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.

  8. Hatch Warren Roundabout

    Continue to Hatch Warren Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.

  9. Timpson

    Continue to Timpson.

  10. Wallop Drive

    Continue to Wallop Drive, taking the junction with good observation.

  11. Axminster Tools

    Continue to Axminster Tools.

  12. Thornycroft Roundabout

    Continue to Thornycroft Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.

  13. J Davey Vauxhall

    Continue to J Davey Vauxhall.

  14. Londis

    Continue to Londis.

  15. Wash Me

    Continue to Wash Me.

  16. Basingstoke Fire Station

    Continue to Basingstoke Fire Station.

  17. iFLY

    Continue to iFLY.

  18. West Ham Roundabout

    Continue to West Ham Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.

  19. KFC

    Continue to KFC.

  20. Screwfix

    Finish back near Screwfix, completing the loop.

More routes at Basingstoke test centre

Route FAQs

This route is 18.7 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.