Near Blyth test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 9 roundabouts, 12 turns and 4 signalled junctions across 25 navigation steps.
This is an independent 22.7 km practice loop near Blyth 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.
On this route you’ll practise multiple roundabouts, national-speed roads, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, 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 stations, 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 Blyth 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 86-step drive on real, named roads (about 22.7 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast on Freehold Street.
Freehold Street39 m
Turn right onto Carlton Street.
Carlton Street62 m
Turn right onto Percy Street.
Percy Street94 m
Turn left onto Bridge Street/B1328.
Bridge Street239 m
Keep left to take Waterloo Road/B1328.
Waterloo Road339 m
Turn left onto Cypress Gardens.
Cypress Gardens379 m
Turn left onto Princess Louise Road.
Princess Louise Road121 m
Turn right onto William Street.
William Street121 m
Keep left to stay on William Street.
William Street117 m
Turn left onto Plessey Road/B1327.
Plessey Road41 m
Turn right onto Plessey Avenue.
Plessey Avenue143 m
Turn right onto Hunter Avenue.
Hunter Avenue213 m
Turn right onto Shotton Avenue.
Shotton Avenue73 m
Turn right onto Hedley Avenue.
Hedley Avenue194 m
Turn left onto Plessey Avenue.
Plessey Avenue74 m
Turn left onto Plessey Road/B1327.
Plessey Road399 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Plessey Road/B1523.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto Plessey Road/B1523. Continue on B1523.
B15231.9 km
Turn right onto Delaval Crescent.
Delaval Crescent529 m
Turn left onto Newcastle Road/B1523. Continue on B1523.
B1523127 m
Turn right onto Plessey Road/B1523.
Plessey Road930 m
Turn right onto Fenwick Avenue.
Fenwick Avenue60 m
Turn left onto Barras Avenue.
Barras Avenue235 m
Turn left onto Plessey Road/B1523.
Plessey Road1.6 km
Turn right onto Laverock Hall Road.
Laverock Hall Road233 m
Turn left onto Benridge Park.
Benridge Park32 m
Turn right to stay on Benridge Park.
Benridge Park42 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Benridge Park.
Benridge Park42 m
Turn left to stay on Benridge Park.
Benridge Park32 m
Turn right onto Laverock Hall Road.
Laverock Hall Road233 m
Turn right onto South Newsham Road/B1523. Continue on B1523.
B1523624 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
83 m
Exit the roundabout onto Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road424 m
Keep right to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road183 m
Keep right to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road202 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road102 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road107 m
Keep right to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road167 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road103 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road174 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road166 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road108 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road143 m
Keep left to stay on Laverock Hall Road/A1061.
Laverock Hall Road250 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A192.
133 m
Exit the roundabout onto A192.
A192652 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Horton Road/B1505.
335 m
Exit the roundabout onto Horton Road/B1505.
Horton Road99 m
Keep left to stay on Horton Road/B1505.
Horton Road1.7 km
Keep left to stay on Horton Road/B1505.
Horton Road202 m
Turn right onto Bebside Road/A193.
Bebside Road1.4 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A193.
94 m
Exit the roundabout onto A193.
A193131 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Cowpen Road/A193.
24 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cowpen Road/A193.
Cowpen Road49 m
Keep right to stay on Cowpen Road/A193.
Cowpen Road1.3 km
Keep left to stay on Briardale Road.
Briardale Road440 m
Turn left onto Tynedale Drive.
Tynedale Drive222 m
Keep left to stay on Tynedale Drive.
Tynedale Drive121 m
Keep left to stay on Tynedale Drive.
Tynedale Drive37 m
Turn left onto Brierley Road.
Brierley Road544 m
Turn right onto Dene View Drive.
Dene View Drive958 m
Turn right onto Cowpen Road/A193. Continue on A193.
A193530 m
Turn left onto Marine Terrace.
Marine Terrace172 m
Turn left onto Cypress Gardens.
Cypress Gardens115 m
Turn right onto Waterloo Road/B1328.
Waterloo Road171 m
Turn left onto Wanley Street.
Wanley Street27 m
Turn left.
79 m
Turn left onto Thoroton Street.
Thoroton Street141 m
Turn left onto Marine Terrace.
Marine Terrace243 m
Turn right onto Croft Road.
Croft Road60 m
Turn right onto Middleton Street.
Middleton Street125 m
Keep left to stay on Middleton Street.
Middleton Street16 m
Turn left onto Coomassie Road.
Coomassie Road47 m
Turn left onto Aldborough Street.
Aldborough Street206 m
Turn right onto Union Street/B1327.
Union Street60 m
Turn left onto Coburg Street.
Coburg Street97 m
Turn left onto Beaconsfield Street.
Beaconsfield Street154 m
Turn right onto Carlton Street.
Carlton Street119 m
Turn left onto Percy Street.
Percy Street94 m
Turn left onto Bridge Street/B1328.
Bridge Street27 m
Turn left.
98 m
Turn left onto Carlton Street.
Carlton Street28 m
Turn left onto Percy Street.
Percy Street43 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Blyth · Route 15 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.
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.
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.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 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.
Blyth Bus Station
Start near Blyth Bus Station.
Dinotots
Continue to Dinotots.
Masons Arms
Continue to Masons Arms.
Pampered Paws
Continue to Pampered Paws.
Plessey Chippy
Continue to Plessey Chippy.
Congregation Of Yahweh
Continue to Congregation Of Yahweh.
St Bede Church
Continue to St Bede Church.
Sea Horse
Continue to Sea Horse.
Saint Mary The Virgin
Continue to Saint Mary The Virgin.
Bebside Van Centre
Continue to Bebside Van Centre.
Bebside Inn
Continue to Bebside Inn.
King's Arms
Continue to King's Arms.
St Cuthberts Church
Continue to St Cuthberts Church.
Cowpen Methodist Church
Continue to Cowpen Methodist Church.
Percy Arms
Continue to Percy Arms.
SureStart Centre Blyth Central Children's Centre
Continue to SureStart Centre Blyth Central Children's Centre.
Headway Arts
Continue to Headway Arts.
St Mary
Continue to St Mary.
Tattooland
Continue to Tattooland.
Central Methodist Church Blyth
Finish back near Central Methodist Church Blyth, completing the loop.
11 roundabouts · 15 turns · 1 set of lights
8 roundabouts · 17 turns · 1 set of lights
10 roundabouts · 16 turns · 1 set of lights
9 roundabouts · 12 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 22.7 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Blyth test centre, not an official DVSA route.