Near Hastings test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 2 roundabouts and 22 turns across 27 navigation steps.
This is an independent 29.8 km practice route near Hastings 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 roundabout approach & exit, 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, stations, pubs 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 Hastings 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 78-step drive on real, named roads (about 29.7 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast.
95 m
Turn right onto The Ridge/B2093.
The Ridge143 m
Enter Conquest Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto The Ridge/B2093.
Conquest Roundabout45 m
Exit the roundabout onto The Ridge/B2093.
The Ridge877 m
Turn left onto Harrow Lane.
Harrow Lane1.4 km
Turn left onto A21/Sedlescombe Road North.
A211.1 km
Take the exit.
A2190 m
Move left onto A21/London Road.
A21298 m
Turn right onto A21/London Road. Continue on London Road.
London Road940 m
Turn left onto Hatherley Road.
Hatherley Road101 m
Turn right onto Stainsby Street.
Stainsby Street73 m
Turn right onto Station Approach.
Station Approach148 m
Turn right onto London Road/A2102.
London Road537 m
Turn left onto Brittany Road.
Brittany Road119 m
Turn left onto Charles Road.
Charles Road87 m
Turn left onto Anglesea Terrace.
Anglesea Terrace116 m
Turn right onto London Road/A2102.
London Road768 m
Turn left onto Norman Road/A2102.
Norman Road136 m
Move left onto St. Margaret's Road.
St. Margaret's Road109 m
Turn left onto Warrior Square.
Warrior Square225 m
Turn left onto Terrace Road.
Terrace Road90 m
Turn left onto Warrior Square.
Warrior Square224 m
Turn left onto St. Margaret's Road.
St. Margaret's Road657 m
Turn right onto Schwerte Way.
Schwerte Way50 m
Turn right onto A259/Verulam Place. Continue on A259.
A259548 m
Turn right onto Warrior Square.
Warrior Square71 m
Turn right onto St. Margaret's Road.
St. Margaret's Road714 m
Turn left onto White Rock Road.
White Rock Road125 m
Move left onto A21/Bohemia Road.
A21228 m
Turn left onto Falaise Road.
Falaise Road295 m
Turn left onto St. Margaret's Road.
St. Margaret's Road115 m
Turn right onto Schwerte Way.
Schwerte Way50 m
Turn left onto A259/White Rock. Continue on A259.
A259818 m
Enter Fountain Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A259/Breeds Place.
Fountain Roundabout37 m
Exit the roundabout onto A259/Breeds Place. Continue on A259.
A2591.6 km
Turn right onto Ashburnham Road.
Ashburnham Road61 m
Move right onto Dudley Road.
Dudley Road288 m
Move left onto Harold Road.
Harold Road293 m
Turn left onto Githa Road.
Githa Road248 m
Turn left onto Edmund Road.
Edmund Road100 m
Turn right onto Godwin Road.
Godwin Road112 m
Turn left onto Ashburnham Road.
Ashburnham Road138 m
Turn left onto Dudley Road.
Dudley Road288 m
Move left onto Harold Road.
Harold Road414 m
Turn left onto Athelstan Road.
Athelstan Road570 m
Turn left onto Alfred Road.
Alfred Road8 m
Turn left onto Edmund Road.
Edmund Road326 m
Turn left onto Bedford Road.
Bedford Road114 m
Turn left onto Athelstan Road.
Athelstan Road431 m
Turn left onto Alfred Road.
Alfred Road8 m
Turn left onto Edmund Road.
Edmund Road240 m
Turn right onto Berlin Road.
Berlin Road84 m
Turn left onto Clive Avenue.
Clive Avenue197 m
Turn left onto Mount Road.
Mount Road141 m
Turn left onto Edgar Road.
Edgar Road20 m
Turn left onto Edmund Road.
Edmund Road782 m
Turn left onto Offa Road.
Offa Road118 m
Turn right onto Saxon Road.
Saxon Road25 m
Turn left onto A259/Old London Road. Continue on A259.
A2592.9 km
Enter Fountain Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A259/Denmark Place.
Fountain Roundabout13 m
Exit the roundabout onto A259/Denmark Place. Continue on A259.
A2591.6 km
Turn right onto London Road/A2102.
London Road56 m
Turn right onto Saxon Street.
Saxon Street106 m
Turn left to stay on Saxon Street.
Saxon Street26 m
Turn right onto Norman Road/A2102.
Norman Road32 m
Turn right onto Warrior Square/A2102.
Warrior Square68 m
Turn right onto A259/Grand Parade.
A259128 m
Turn right onto London Road/A2102. Continue on London Road.
London Road1.9 km
Turn right onto A21/Sedlescombe Road North.
A21928 m
Turn right onto St Helen's Road/A2101.
St Helen's Road1.7 km
Turn right onto Dordrecht Way.
Dordrecht Way166 m
Turn right onto Lower Park Road.
Lower Park Road1.1 km
Turn left onto A21/Bohemia Road.
A2197 m
Turn right onto Tower Road.
Tower Road176 m
Turn left onto London Road/A2102.
London Road470 m
Turn left onto Alexandra Road.
Alexandra Road52 m
Turn right to stay on Alexandra Road.
Alexandra Road108 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Hastings · Route 9 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.
Pedestrian crossings and parked cars are common nearby.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
Roundabout
Approach in the correct lane, signal on the exit before yours, and keep checking your mirrors as you leave.
Dual-carriageway join
About 10.8 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.
Alexandra Gospel Hall
Start near Alexandra Gospel Hall.
St Leonards Warrior Square
Continue to St Leonards Warrior Square.
St Leonards Church
Continue to St Leonards Church.
St Mary Magdalene's Church
Continue to St Mary Magdalene's Church.
Christian Spiritualist Church
Continue to Christian Spiritualist Church.
Cutter
Continue to Cutter.
St. Mary Star of the Sea
Continue to St. Mary Star of the Sea.
Dudley Infant Academy
Continue to Dudley Infant Academy.
All Souls Church
Continue to All Souls Church.
Ashburnham arms
Continue to Ashburnham arms.
Salvation Army
Continue to Salvation Army.
Halton Baptist Church
Continue to Halton Baptist Church.
Marine Parade Station
Continue to Marine Parade Station.
Carlisle
Continue to Carlisle.
Three Legs
Continue to Three Legs.
Collected Fictions
Continue to Collected Fictions.
Welcome
Continue to Welcome.
Rose Garden
Continue to Rose Garden.
St Leonards-on-Sea Methodist Church
Continue to St Leonards-on-Sea Methodist Church.
Tower
Finish back near Tower, completing the loop.
5 roundabouts · 28 turns · 2 sets of lights
2 roundabouts · 16 turns · 1 set of lights
22 turns · 3 sets of lights
1 roundabout · 18 turns · 1 set of lights
This route is 29.8 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Hastings test centre, not an official DVSA route.