Near Buxton test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 23 turns across 26 navigation steps.
This is an independent 23.6 km practice route near Buxton 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, 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 churches, pubs, schools 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 94-step drive on real, named roads (about 23.8 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive northeast on Green Lane.
Green Lane57 m
Turn right onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road425 m
Turn right onto Crowestones.
Crowestones267 m
Turn right onto Byron Street.
Byron Street114 m
Turn right onto Bennett Street.
Bennett Street226 m
Turn right onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road64 m
Turn right onto Heath Park Road.
Heath Park Road253 m
Turn right onto Byron Street.
Byron Street273 m
Turn left onto A515/London Road.
A51554 m
Keep left to stay on A515/London Road.
A515109 m
Keep left to stay on A515/London Road.
A51571 m
Turn left onto Heath Grove.
Heath Grove158 m
Turn left onto Kents Bank Road.
Kents Bank Road246 m
Keep right to take Heath Park Road.
Heath Park Road107 m
Keep right to stay on Heath Park Road.
Heath Park Road63 m
Turn right onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road433 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Dale Road/B5059.
60 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road183 m
Keep left to stay on Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road412 m
Turn right onto Market Street.
Market Street187 m
Turn left onto South Street.
South Street99 m
Turn left onto A515/High Street.
A515248 m
Move right onto Green Lane.
Green Lane23 m
Keep left to stay on Green Lane.
Green Lane886 m
Keep left to stay on Green Lane.
Green Lane667 m
Turn left onto Holmfield.
Holmfield239 m
Turn left onto A53/Leek Road.
A5396 m
Keep right to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53119 m
Keep right to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53445 m
Keep right to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53105 m
Keep left to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53105 m
Keep left to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53131 m
Make a sharp left onto Grin Low Road.
Grin Low Road35 m
Turn left to stay on Grin Low Road.
Grin Low Road25 m
Turn right onto A53/Leek Road.
A5322 m
Keep left to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53105 m
Keep right to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53338 m
Keep right to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A53666 m
Move right onto Macclesfield Road/B5059.
Macclesfield Road1.2 km
Turn left onto Bath Road.
Bath Road32 m
Move left onto Burlington Road.
Burlington Road495 m
Turn left onto A53/St John's Road.
A531.2 km
Turn right onto Macclesfield Old Road.
Macclesfield Old Road699 m
Turn left onto Level Lane.
Level Lane145 m
Turn left.
122 m
Turn left.
8 m
Make a right U-turn.
8 m
Turn right.
122 m
Turn right onto Level Lane.
Level Lane73 m
Turn right onto Anncroft Road.
Anncroft Road469 m
Turn right onto Macclesfield Old Road.
Macclesfield Old Road342 m
Turn left onto A53/Leek Road.
A5310 m
Keep left to stay on A53/Leek Road.
A5321 m
Move right onto Macclesfield Road/B5059.
Macclesfield Road1.2 km
Turn left onto Bath Road.
Bath Road32 m
Move left onto Burlington Road.
Burlington Road495 m
Turn right onto A53/St John's Road.
A53340 m
Turn left onto A5004.
A5004774 m
Turn left onto Park Road.
Park Road134 m
Keep left to stay on Park Road.
Park Road149 m
Turn left to stay on Park Road.
Park Road328 m
Turn left to stay on Park Road.
Park Road132 m
Turn right onto Manchester Road/A5004.
Manchester Road91 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.
A53412 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 3rd exit onto A53/Station Road.
61 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Station Road.
A53412 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A53/Bridge Street.
23 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Bridge Street.
A53100 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A53/Spring Gardens.
17 m
Exit the roundabout onto A53/Spring Gardens.
A5379 m
Turn right onto A6/Bakewell Road.
A6277 m
Keep left to stay on A6/Bakewell Road.
A6108 m
Keep left to stay on A6/Bakewell Road.
A6102 m
Keep right to stay on A6/Bakewell Road.
A6148 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Dale Road/B5059.
45 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dale Road/B5059. Continue on B5059.
B50591.1 km
Turn right onto Bath Road.
Bath Road309 m
Turn left onto A515/High Street.
A515122 m
Turn left onto Chapel Street.
Chapel Street37 m
Keep left to stay on Chapel Street.
Chapel Street12 m
Turn left onto Torr Street.
Torr Street130 m
Turn left onto Bath Road.
Bath Road62 m
Turn right onto A515/High Street. Continue on A515.
A515320 m
Keep left to stay on A515.
A515595 m
Move left onto Duke's Drive.
Duke's Drive1.6 km
Turn right to stay on Duke's Drive.
Duke's Drive21 m
Turn left onto A6.
A623 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Dale Road/B5059.
15 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dale Road/B5059.
Dale Road389 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Buxton · 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.
Dual-carriageway join
About 8.6 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.
Church of St Mary the Virgin
Start near Church of St Mary the Virgin.
Blazing Rag
Continue to Blazing Rag.
Cheshire Cheese
Continue to Cheshire Cheese.
High Stakes
Continue to High Stakes.
A Block
Continue to A Block.
F Block
Continue to F Block.
Marriott Auto Services
Continue to Marriott Auto Services.
Burbage Village Stores
Continue to Burbage Village Stores.
Ramsay's Bar
Continue to Ramsay's Bar.
Christ Church Burbage
Continue to Christ Church Burbage.
Old Clubhouse
Continue to Old Clubhouse.
Parish Church of St John the Baptist
Continue to Parish Church of St John the Baptist.
Buxton
Continue to Buxton.
Buxton Tap House
Continue to Buxton Tap House.
Red Willow
Continue to Red Willow.
Railway
Continue to Railway.
Buxton Methodist Church
Continue to Buxton Methodist Church.
St Anne
Continue to St Anne.
Buxton Community Church
Continue to Buxton Community Church.
Buxton Hospital & Corbar Birth Centre
Finish back near Buxton Hospital & Corbar Birth Centre, completing the loop.
23 turns
28 turns
20 turns
19 turns
This route is 23.6 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Buxton test centre, not an official DVSA route.