Near Buxton test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 31 turns across 33 navigation steps.
This is an independent 14.1 km practice route near Buxton test centre, taking roughly 40 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 Cavendish Avenue. 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, 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 schools, named junctions, churches 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 Buxton 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 73-step drive on real, named roads (about 14.0 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southwest on Green Lane.
Green Lane922 m
Turn right onto Temple Road.
Temple Road90 m
Turn left onto Milldale Avenue.
Milldale Avenue446 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Cavendish Avenue.
36 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cavendish Avenue.
Cavendish Avenue49 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Cavendish Avenue.
47 m
Exit the roundabout onto Cavendish Avenue.
Cavendish Avenue130 m
Turn right onto Macclesfield Road/B5059. Continue on B5059.
B50591.2 km
Turn right onto Dale Terrace.
Dale Terrace55 m
Turn left onto Heath Street.
Heath Street116 m
Turn left onto New Market Street.
New Market Street47 m
Turn right onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road163 m
Turn right onto Heath Park Road.
Heath Park Road477 m
Turn left onto Forest Avenue.
Forest Avenue143 m
Turn left onto Sherwood Road.
Sherwood Road59 m
Turn left onto Heath Grove.
Heath Grove141 m
Turn right onto Kents Bank Road.
Kents Bank Road417 m
Turn left onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road45 m
Turn right onto Grange Road.
Grange Road142 m
Turn right onto South Avenue.
South Avenue98 m
Turn left onto Hardwick Square South.
Hardwick Square South186 m
Turn left onto Market Street.
Market Street68 m
Turn left onto South Avenue.
South Avenue219 m
Turn left onto Hardwick Square South.
Hardwick Square South186 m
Turn left onto Market Street.
Market Street68 m
Turn left onto South Avenue.
South Avenue219 m
Turn right onto Hardwick Square South.
Hardwick Square South178 m
Turn left onto Holker Road.
Holker Road257 m
Turn left.
36 m
Make a right U-turn.
36 m
Turn left onto Holker Road.
Holker Road25 m
Turn right onto Spring Gardens.
Spring Gardens86 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A53/Bridge Street.
11 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Bridge Street.
A5347 m
Turn right to stay on Bridge Street.
Bridge Street21 m
Turn left to stay on Bridge Street.
Bridge Street14 m
Turn left to stay on Bridge Street.
Bridge Street24 m
Turn right.
9 m
Make a right U-turn.
9 m
Turn left onto Bridge Street.
Bridge Street24 m
Turn right to stay on Bridge Street.
Bridge Street14 m
Make a right U-turn at Bridge Street onto A53/Bridge Street.
A5375 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Charles Street.
31 m
Exit the roundabout onto Charles Street.
Charles Street222 m
Turn left onto Lightwood Road.
Lightwood Road766 m
Turn left onto Corbar Road.
Corbar Road605 m
Turn right onto Devonshire Road.
Devonshire Road11 m
Turn left onto Manchester Road/A5004.
Manchester Road361 m
Move left onto A53/St John's Road.
A53115 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A53/Station Road.
20 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Station Road.
A5368 m
Turn left onto Palace Road.
Palace Road194 m
Turn right.
7 m
Make a right U-turn.
7 m
Turn left onto Palace Road.
Palace Road194 m
Turn left onto A53/Station Road.
A53344 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A53/Station Road.
44 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Station Road.
A53412 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A515/The Quadrant.
12 m
Exit the roundabout onto A515/The Quadrant. Continue on A515.
A515824 m
Turn right onto West Road/B5059. Continue on B5059.
B5059330 m
Turn left onto College Road.
College Road388 m
Turn right onto Green Lane.
Green Lane527 m
Turn right onto Temple Road.
Temple Road90 m
Turn right to stay on Temple Road.
Temple Road336 m
Turn left onto Ecclesbourne Drive.
Ecclesbourne Drive473 m
Turn left onto Milldale Avenue.
Milldale Avenue74 m
Turn left onto Errwood Avenue.
Errwood Avenue291 m
Turn right onto Ecclesbourne Drive.
Ecclesbourne Drive131 m
Turn right onto Temple Road.
Temple Road336 m
Turn left to stay on Temple Road.
Temple Road90 m
Turn left onto Green Lane.
Green Lane63 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Buxton · Route 1 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.
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.
Dual-carriageway join
About 2.0 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.
F Block
Start near F Block.
A Block
Continue to A Block.
Cavendish Avenue
Continue to Cavendish Avenue, taking the junction with good observation.
Church of St Mary the Virgin
Continue to Church of St Mary the Virgin.
St Anne
Continue to St Anne.
Buxton Food Spot
Continue to Buxton Food Spot.
Arnold Mycock & Sons
Continue to Arnold Mycock & Sons.
Buxton Infant School
Continue to Buxton Infant School.
Oxfam
Continue to Oxfam.
Trinity Church
Continue to Trinity Church.
Railway
Continue to Railway.
Beer and Bean
Continue to Beer and Bean.
Old Courthouse
Continue to Old Courthouse.
Buxton
Continue to Buxton.
McDonald's
Continue to McDonald's.
Church in the Peak Buxton
Continue to Church in the Peak Buxton.
San Pedro
Continue to San Pedro.
Ale Stop
Continue to Ale Stop.
Saint Anne's Catholic Church
Continue to Saint Anne's Catholic Church.
E Block
Finish back near E Block, completing the loop.
23 turns
28 turns
20 turns
19 turns
This route is 14.1 km and takes about 40 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Buxton test centre, not an official DVSA route.