Near Buxton test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 23 turns across 31 navigation steps.
This is an independent 18.0 km practice loop 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 Harpur Hill Road and Trent 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, national-speed roads, 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 churches, pubs, shops and schools, 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 65-step drive on real, named roads (about 18.3 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 Lane42 m
Turn right onto Spencer Road.
Spencer Road294 m
Turn left onto College Road.
College Road282 m
Turn left onto Green Lane.
Green Lane86 m
Turn left onto Robertson Road.
Robertson Road238 m
Turn right onto Spencer Road.
Spencer Road312 m
Keep left to take Compton Road.
Compton Road121 m
Turn right onto Mosley Road.
Mosley Road336 m
Turn left to stay on Mosley Road.
Mosley Road223 m
Turn left onto A515/London Road.
A51519 m
Keep right to stay on A515.
A515571 m
Turn right onto Market Street.
Market Street27 m
Turn right onto Scarsdale Place.
Scarsdale Place92 m
Turn right onto A515/High Street.
A51591 m
Turn right onto Market Street.
Market Street276 m
Turn left onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road189 m
Turn left onto Darwin Avenue.
Darwin Avenue203 m
Turn left onto Hardwick Square South.
Hardwick Square South202 m
Turn left onto Market Street.
Market Street68 m
Turn left onto South Avenue.
South Avenue46 m
Keep right to stay on South Avenue.
South Avenue75 m
Turn right onto Grange Road.
Grange Road142 m
Turn left onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road478 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A6.
45 m
Exit the roundabout onto A6.
A623 m
Turn right onto Duke's Drive.
Duke's Drive14 m
Move left to stay on Duke's Drive.
Duke's Drive1.6 km
Turn left onto A515/Ashbourne Road.
A515291 m
Turn left onto Central Drive.
Central Drive328 m
Turn right to stay on Central Drive.
Central Drive77 m
Turn left to stay on Central Drive.
Central Drive86 m
Turn right onto A515/Ashbourne Road.
A51553 m
Keep right to stay on A515/Ashbourne Road.
A515327 m
Turn left onto Harpur Hill Road.
Harpur Hill Road295 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Harpur Hill Road.
34 m
Exit the roundabout onto Harpur Hill Road.
Harpur Hill Road901 m
Turn right onto Grin Low Road.
Grin Low Road200 m
Keep left to stay on Grin Low Road.
Grin Low Road102 m
Keep left to stay on Grin Low Road.
Grin Low Road2.1 km
Turn right to stay on Grin Low Road.
Grin Low Road25 m
Turn right onto A53/Leek Road.
A5349 m
Keep left to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53797 m
Keep left to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53284 m
Move right onto Macclesfield Road/B5059.
Macclesfield Road45 m
Keep right to stay on Macclesfield Road/B5059.
Macclesfield Road1.1 km
Turn left onto Bath Road.
Bath Road68 m
Keep left to stay on Bath Road.
Bath Road240 m
Turn right onto A515/High Street.
A515101 m
Turn right onto West Road/B5059.
West Road314 m
Turn right onto Bath Road.
Bath Road32 m
Move left onto Burlington Road.
Burlington Road494 m
Turn left onto A53/St John's Road.
A531.1 km
Make a sharp left onto Macclesfield Road/B5059.
Macclesfield Road21 m
Keep right to stay on Macclesfield Road/B5059.
Macclesfield Road69 m
Turn left.
29 m
Turn right onto A53/St John's Road.
A531.4 km
Turn right to stay on A53/St John's Road.
A5327 m
Keep left to stay on A53/St John's Road.
A5387 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A515/The Quadrant.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto A515/The Quadrant. Continue on A515.
A515465 m
Turn left onto Market Street.
Market Street69 m
Keep left to stay on Market Street.
Market Street207 m
Turn right onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road184 m
Turn right onto A515/High Street.
A515123 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Buxton · Route 11 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 6.0 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.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (30, 50, 60 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.
Buxton Community Church
Start near Buxton Community Church.
Cheshire Cheese
Continue to Cheshire Cheese.
Arnold Mycock & Sons
Continue to Arnold Mycock & Sons.
Morrisons Daily
Continue to Morrisons Daily.
Buxton Infant School
Continue to Buxton Infant School.
Steve's Tyres & Exhausts
Continue to Steve's Tyres & Exhausts.
Harpur Hill Road
Continue to Harpur Hill Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Trent Avenue
Continue to Trent Avenue, taking the junction with good observation.
Parks Inn
Continue to Parks Inn.
St James
Continue to St James.
Marriott Auto Services
Continue to Marriott Auto Services.
Christ Church Burbage
Continue to Christ Church Burbage.
London Road
Continue to London Road.
St Anne
Continue to St Anne.
Ramsay's Bar
Continue to Ramsay's Bar.
Old Courthouse
Continue to Old Courthouse.
Parish Church of St John the Baptist
Continue to Parish Church of St John the Baptist.
Church in the Peak Buxton
Continue to Church in the Peak Buxton.
Saint Anne's Catholic Church
Continue to Saint Anne's Catholic Church.
Church of St Mary the Virgin
Finish back near Church of St Mary the Virgin, completing the loop.
23 turns
28 turns
20 turns
19 turns
This route is 18.0 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.