Near Birmingham Kings Heath test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 6 roundabouts and 16 turns across 25 navigation steps.
This is an independent 50.6 km practice loop near Birmingham Kings Heath test centre, taking roughly 35 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 Maypole and Middle Lane. 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, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and independent driving. 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 schools, pubs, 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 Birmingham Kings Heath 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 93-step drive on real, named roads (about 50.6 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive north.
33 m
Turn right onto Hawkhurst Road.
Hawkhurst Road233 m
Turn right onto Henlow Road.
Henlow Road312 m
Turn left onto Maypole Lane.
Maypole Lane152 m
Turn left onto Cotford Road.
Cotford Road340 m
Move left onto Sladepool Farm Road.
Sladepool Farm Road465 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A4351.2 km
Turn right.
25 m
Turn left.
20 m
Turn left.
25 m
Turn left onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A4351.8 km
Enter The Maypole and take the 2nd exit onto Alcester Road South.
The Maypole47 m
Exit the roundabout onto Alcester Road South.
Alcester Road South74 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Alcester Road South.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto Alcester Road South.
Alcester Road South2.1 km
Turn left onto Shawhurst Lane.
Shawhurst Lane94 m
Turn left onto Paddocks Road.
Paddocks Road62 m
Turn left onto Burford Road.
Burford Road76 m
Turn right onto Alcester Road.
Alcester Road67 m
Turn right onto Danford Road.
Danford Road88 m
Turn right onto Paddocks Road.
Paddocks Road146 m
Turn right onto Shawhurst Lane.
Shawhurst Lane94 m
Turn left onto Alcester Road.
Alcester Road218 m
Turn right onto Silver Street.
Silver Street1.1 km
Turn right onto Middle Lane.
Middle Lane1.2 km
Turn left onto Bell Green Lane.
Bell Green Lane159 m
Move right onto Headley Heath Lane.
Headley Heath Lane20 m
Turn left to stay on Headley Heath Lane.
Headley Heath Lane15 m
Turn left onto Bell Green Lane.
Bell Green Lane180 m
Turn right onto Middle Lane.
Middle Lane1.9 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Middle Lane.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Middle Lane.
Middle Lane348 m
Turn right onto Chapel Lane.
Chapel Lane862 m
Turn right onto Hill Lane.
Hill Lane1.4 km
Turn left onto Watery Lane.
Watery Lane74 m
Turn right.
41 m
Turn left onto Watery Lane.
Watery Lane56 m
Turn right onto Hill Lane.
Hill Lane1.7 km
Continue on A435.
A435615 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A435/Hollywood By-Pass.
79 m
Exit the roundabout onto A435/Hollywood By-Pass.
A4353.8 km
Enter The Maypole and take the 7th exit onto A435/Alcester Road South.
The Maypole207 m
Exit the roundabout onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A4353.4 km
Turn left onto Vicarage Road/B4122. Continue on Vicarage Road.
Vicarage Road338 m
Turn right onto Avenue Road.
Avenue Road436 m
Turn right onto Station Road.
Station Road429 m
Turn right onto York Road.
York Road87 m
Turn right onto Grange Road.
Grange Road431 m
Turn left onto Avenue Road.
Avenue Road348 m
Turn right onto Vicarage Road.
Vicarage Road367 m
Turn left onto Howard Road/A4040.
Howard Road652 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A4352.9 km
Enter The Maypole and take the 3rd exit onto A435/Hollywood By-Pass.
The Maypole78 m
Exit the roundabout onto A435/Hollywood By-Pass.
A4353.7 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Alcester Road.
8 m
Exit the roundabout onto Alcester Road.
Alcester Road549 m
Turn right onto Gorsey Lane.
Gorsey Lane655 m
Turn right onto Meadow Road.
Meadow Road742 m
Turn left onto Gorsey Lane.
Gorsey Lane320 m
Turn right onto Alcester Road.
Alcester Road768 m
Turn right onto Shawhurst Lane.
Shawhurst Lane94 m
Turn left onto Paddocks Road.
Paddocks Road62 m
Turn left onto Burford Road.
Burford Road76 m
Turn right onto Alcester Road.
Alcester Road67 m
Turn right onto Danford Road.
Danford Road88 m
Turn right onto Paddocks Road.
Paddocks Road146 m
Turn right onto Shawhurst Lane.
Shawhurst Lane94 m
Turn left onto Alcester Road.
Alcester Road224 m
Turn left onto Houndsfield Road.
Houndsfield Road1.2 km
Turn left onto Hollywood Lane.
Hollywood Lane680 m
Turn left onto Corbett Road.
Corbett Road142 m
Turn right onto Dyas Road.
Dyas Road76 m
Turn left onto Heath Road.
Heath Road222 m
Turn left onto Corbett Road.
Corbett Road399 m
Turn right onto Hollywood Lane.
Hollywood Lane217 m
Turn left onto Truemans Heath Lane.
Truemans Heath Lane1.2 km
Turn left onto Peterbrook Road.
Peterbrook Road527 m
Keep left to stay on Peterbrook Road.
Peterbrook Road798 m
Turn right onto Mountford Road.
Mountford Road105 m
Turn left onto Hargrave Road.
Hargrave Road401 m
Turn left onto Peterbrook Road.
Peterbrook Road1.0 km
Turn left onto Drawbridge Road.
Drawbridge Road177 m
Turn right onto Haslucks Green Road.
Haslucks Green Road671 m
Turn right to stay on Haslucks Green Road.
Haslucks Green Road825 m
Keep left to take Peterbrook Road.
Peterbrook Road1.3 km
Turn left onto High Street.
High Street1.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Maypole Lane.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Maypole Lane.
Maypole Lane291 m
Turn right onto Henlow Road.
Henlow Road312 m
Turn left onto Hawkhurst Road.
Hawkhurst Road293 m
Turn left onto A435/Alcester Road South.
A43576 m
Turn left onto Stotfold Road.
Stotfold Road165 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Birmingham Kings Heath · Route 13 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.
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 17.1 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 (20, 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.
Millpool Campus - City of Birmingham School
Start near Millpool Campus - City of Birmingham School.
Horseshoe
Continue to Horseshoe.
Maypole
Continue to Maypole, taking the junction with good observation.
Packhorse
Continue to Packhorse.
Rose Bank Stores & Saddlery
Continue to Rose Bank Stores & Saddlery.
New Life Church Centre
Continue to New Life Church Centre.
Middle Lane
Continue to Middle Lane, taking the junction with good observation.
Natural Complexions
Continue to Natural Complexions.
Penzer Optician
Continue to Penzer Optician.
Green Oak Academy (Kings Heath)
Continue to Green Oak Academy (Kings Heath).
Lilliput Day Nursery
Continue to Lilliput Day Nursery.
Busy Bears
Continue to Busy Bears.
Kings Heath Mosque
Continue to Kings Heath Mosque.
Birmingham South Christadelphian Meeting Room
Continue to Birmingham South Christadelphian Meeting Room.
Kings Arms
Continue to Kings Arms.
Hair Lounge
Continue to Hair Lounge.
Hair Loft
Continue to Hair Loft.
Drawbridge
Continue to Drawbridge.
Prince of Wales
Continue to Prince of Wales.
Vision Republic
Finish back near Vision Republic, completing the loop.
3 roundabouts · 18 turns
5 roundabouts · 20 turns
9 roundabouts · 19 turns
4 roundabouts · 17 turns
This route is 50.6 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Birmingham Kings Heath test centre, not an official DVSA route.