Near Birmingham Kings Heath test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 8 roundabouts and 21 turns across 31 navigation steps.
This is an independent 45.1 km practice route near Birmingham Kings Heath 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 Maypole. 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, 20 mph zones, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads 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 named junctions, schools, pubs 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 102-step drive on real, named roads (about 45.0 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 Road114 m
Turn right onto Stotfold Road.
Stotfold Road302 m
Turn left onto A435/Alcester Road South.
A435195 m
Enter The Maypole and take the 5th exit onto A435/Alcester Road South.
The Maypole143 m
Exit the roundabout onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A4351.8 km
Turn right.
25 m
Turn left.
20 m
Turn left.
25 m
Turn left onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A435720 m
Turn left onto Warstock Road.
Warstock Road611 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Warstock Road.
Warstock Road600 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A435337 m
Turn left onto Broad Lane.
Broad Lane767 m
Turn left onto Poston Croft.
Poston Croft48 m
Turn left to stay on Poston Croft.
Poston Croft87 m
Turn left to stay on Poston Croft.
Poston Croft48 m
Turn right onto Broad Lane.
Broad Lane767 m
Turn left onto A435/Alcester Road South.
A435784 m
Turn right onto Taylor Road.
Taylor Road201 m
Turn right onto May Lane.
May Lane865 m
Move right onto Warstock Lane.
Warstock Lane720 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Warstock Road.
58 m
Exit the roundabout onto Warstock Road.
Warstock Road518 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Warstock Road.
Warstock Road303 m
Turn left onto Stanbury Road.
Stanbury Road236 m
Turn left onto Warstock Lane.
Warstock Lane671 m
Turn left onto Haunch Lane.
Haunch Lane464 m
Turn left onto Brentford Road.
Brentford Road555 m
Turn left onto Warstock Lane.
Warstock Lane65 m
Turn right onto Haunch Lane.
Haunch Lane204 m
Turn left onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road1.2 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Yardley Wood Road.
98 m
Exit the roundabout onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road343 m
Turn left onto Trittiford Road.
Trittiford Road1.1 km
Turn right onto Highfield Road.
Highfield Road156 m
Turn right onto School Road.
School Road1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto School Road.
76 m
Exit the roundabout onto School Road.
School Road127 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Warstock Road.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto Warstock Road.
Warstock Road840 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A435337 m
Turn left onto Broad Lane.
Broad Lane1.1 km
Turn right onto Brandwood Road.
Brandwood Road1.2 km
Move left onto Grove Road.
Grove Road660 m
Turn left onto Vicarage Road/A4040.
Vicarage Road488 m
Turn right onto Priory Road.
Priory Road327 m
Turn right onto Cartland Road.
Cartland Road225 m
Turn left onto Vicarage Road/A4040.
Vicarage Road239 m
Turn right onto Howard Road/A4040. Continue on A4040.
A4040981 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Haunch Lane.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto Haunch Lane.
Haunch Lane1.3 km
Turn right onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road788 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Yardley Wood Road.
58 m
Exit the roundabout onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road1.1 km
Turn left onto High Street.
High Street946 m
Turn left onto Acheson Road.
Acheson Road674 m
Turn right.
24 m
Turn right onto Delrene Road.
Delrene Road93 m
Turn right onto Watwood Road.
Watwood Road486 m
Turn left onto Stroud Road.
Stroud Road594 m
Turn right onto Delrene Road.
Delrene Road124 m
Turn right onto Haslucks Green Road.
Haslucks Green Road420 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Horrell Road.
52 m
Exit the roundabout onto Horrell Road.
Horrell Road113 m
Turn left onto Stroud Road.
Stroud Road318 m
Turn left onto Acheson Road.
Acheson Road94 m
Turn right onto Colebrook Road.
Colebrook Road1.4 km
Turn right onto Greenslade Road.
Greenslade Road360 m
Turn right to stay on Greenslade Road.
Greenslade Road74 m
Turn left onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road652 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Yardley Wood Road.
70 m
Exit the roundabout onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road2.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Yardley Wood Road.
98 m
Exit the roundabout onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road2.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Yardley Wood Road.
58 m
Exit the roundabout onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road284 m
Turn right onto Prince of Wales Lane.
Prince of Wales Lane289 m
Turn right.
101 m
Turn right.
32 m
Turn left.
9 m
Turn left onto Prince of Wales Lane.
Prince of Wales Lane367 m
Turn left onto Yardley Wood Road.
Yardley Wood Road287 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto School Road.
47 m
Exit the roundabout onto School Road.
School Road127 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Warstock Road.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto Warstock Road.
Warstock Road840 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A435337 m
Turn left onto Broad Lane.
Broad Lane767 m
Turn left onto Poston Croft.
Poston Croft48 m
Turn left to stay on Poston Croft.
Poston Croft87 m
Turn left to stay on Poston Croft.
Poston Croft48 m
Turn right onto Broad Lane.
Broad Lane767 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A435612 m
Turn left onto Glenavon Road.
Glenavon Road743 m
Turn right onto Highters Heath Lane.
Highters Heath Lane317 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Highters Heath Lane.
50 m
Exit the roundabout onto Highters Heath Lane.
Highters Heath Lane317 m
Turn left onto Glenavon Road.
Glenavon Road743 m
Turn right onto A435/Alcester Road South. Continue on A435.
A435751 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Birmingham Kings Heath · 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.
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 5.3 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.
Maypole
Start near Maypole.
Millpool Campus - City of Birmingham School
Continue to Millpool Campus - City of Birmingham School.
Horseshoe
Continue to Horseshoe.
Screwfix
Continue to Screwfix.
Kings Arms
Continue to Kings Arms.
Mei Garden
Continue to Mei Garden.
Community of Christ
Continue to Community of Christ.
Full Gospel Tabernacle
Continue to Full Gospel Tabernacle.
Our Lady of Lourdes
Continue to Our Lady of Lourdes.
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary School
Continue to Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary School.
Christ Church
Continue to Christ Church.
Broad Lane Chippy
Continue to Broad Lane Chippy.
Co-operative Food
Continue to Co-operative Food.
Red Lion
Continue to Red Lion.
Busy Bees Nursery
Continue to Busy Bees Nursery.
Yardley Wood Baptist Church
Continue to Yardley Wood Baptist Church.
Drinks Express
Continue to Drinks Express.
Colebrook Inn
Continue to Colebrook Inn.
Glenavon Motor Co
Continue to Glenavon Motor Co.
Romeo & Juliet
Finish back near Romeo & Juliet, completing the loop.
3 roundabouts · 18 turns
5 roundabouts · 20 turns
9 roundabouts · 19 turns
4 roundabouts · 17 turns
This route is 45.1 km and takes about 45 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.