Skip to content
Practice route
ChallengingLoop

Hinckley · Route 5

Near Hinckley test centre

23.8 km
Distance
35 min
Duration
Challenging
Difficulty
19
Manoeuvres
Difficulty: Moderate

Rated moderate from its real manoeuvre load, 3 roundabouts, 20 turns and 4 signalled junctions across 25 navigation steps.

How this route is examined

This is an independent 23.8 km practice loop near Hinckley 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, 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 pubs, shops, churches 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 Hinckley 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.

Manoeuvre breakdown

What you’ll actually do on this loop, counted from its turn-by-turn directions.

13
Left turns
7
Right turns
3
Roundabouts
4
Traffic lights
25
Total steps

Skills & features

8
Roundabouts
3.3 km
Dual carriageway
20, 30, 40 mph
Speed limits
20
Landmarks

This route helps you practise:

  • Multiple roundabouts
  • Dual-carriageway joins
  • 20 mph zones
  • Changing speed limits
  • Residential manoeuvres
  • Busy A-roads
  • Independent driving
  • Sustained concentration

Road mix

  • Residential 10.4 km
  • B-roads 8.4 km
  • Trunk roads 3.3 km
  • Unclassified 0.0 km

Turn-by-turn directions

The full 70-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.

  1. Depart:

    Drive southwest.

    31 m

  2. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Brookside.

    Brookside193 m

  3. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road125 m

  4. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 5th exit onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    228 m

  5. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road262 m

  6. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Hillside Road.

    Hillside Road192 m

  7. U-turn:

    Make a right U-turn to stay on Hillside Road.

    Hillside Road114 m

  8. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Greenmoor Road.

    Greenmoor Road578 m

  9. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Hall Road.

    Hall Road238 m

  10. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Denis Road.

    Denis Road157 m

  11. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Spinney Road.

    Spinney Road165 m

  12. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Applebee Road.

    Applebee Road75 m

  13. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Woodfield Road.

    Woodfield Road152 m

  14. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Denis Road.

    Denis Road94 m

  15. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Hall Road.

    Hall Road238 m

  16. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Greenmoor Road.

    Greenmoor Road278 m

  17. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Aldridge Road.

    Aldridge Road74 m

  18. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road408 m

  19. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Herald Way.

    Herald Way65 m

  20. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Sketchley Lane.

    Sketchley Lane415 m

  21. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Sketchley Old Village.

    Sketchley Old Village26 m

  22. Turn left:

    Turn left to stay on Sketchley Old Village.

    Sketchley Old Village29 m

  23. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Sketchley Lane.

    Sketchley Lane451 m

  24. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Herald Way.

    Herald Way290 m

  25. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Crownhill Road.

    Crownhill Road325 m

  26. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Broadsword Way.

    Broadsword Way200 m

  27. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Herald Way.

    Herald Way165 m

  28. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Sketchley Lane.

    Sketchley Lane415 m

  29. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Sketchley Old Village.

    Sketchley Old Village26 m

  30. Turn left:

    Turn left to stay on Sketchley Old Village.

    Sketchley Old Village29 m

  31. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Sketchley Lane.

    Sketchley Lane451 m

  32. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Herald Way.

    Herald Way559 m

  33. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Pyeharps Road.

    Pyeharps Road304 m

  34. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Coventry Road.

    Coventry Road288 m

  35. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Crossways.

    Crossways182 m

  36. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Sketchley Road.

    Sketchley Road787 m

  37. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road940 m

  38. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 5th exit onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    228 m

  39. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road1.5 km

  40. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Three Pots Road.

    57 m

  41. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Three Pots Road.

    Three Pots Road110 m

  42. Turn left:

    Move left onto Wolvey Road.

    Wolvey Road418 m

  43. Turn right:

    Turn right onto A5/Watling Street. Continue on A5.

    A51.6 km

  44. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A5.

    131 m

  45. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto A5.

    A51.6 km

  46. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Wolvey Road.

    Wolvey Road418 m

  47. Turn right:

    Move right onto Three Pots Road.

    Three Pots Road109 m

  48. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    11 m

  49. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road104 m

  50. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Coventry Road.

    Coventry Road1.3 km

  51. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Church Street/B578. Continue on B578.

    B5781.2 km

  52. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Burbage Road/B4669.

    B46691.1 km

  53. Turn left:

    Make a sharp left.

    52 m

  54. Turn left:

    Make a sharp left onto London Road.

    London Road32 m

  55. Turn right:

    Turn right onto London Road/B590.

    London Road316 m

  56. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Park Road/B590. Continue on B590.

    B590800 m

  57. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Hurst Road.

    Hurst Road228 m

  58. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Priesthills Road.

    Priesthills Road102 m

  59. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Thornfield Way.

    Thornfield Way207 m

  60. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Southfield Road/B590.

    Southfield Road143 m

  61. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Hurst Road.

    Hurst Road228 m

  62. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Priesthills Road.

    Priesthills Road102 m

  63. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Thornfield Way.

    Thornfield Way207 m

  64. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Southfield Road/B590.

    Southfield Road453 m

  65. Turn right:

    Turn right onto Station Road.

    Station Road395 m

  66. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Lancaster Road.

    Lancaster Road233 m

  67. Turn left:

    Turn left onto Trinity Lane/B590.

    Trinity Lane828 m

  68. Roundabout:

    Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    91 m

  69. Leave roundabout:

    Exit the roundabout onto Rugby Road/B4109.

    Rugby Road91 m

  70. Arrive:

    You have arrived at your destination.

Directions for the Hinckley · Route 5 loop. Always drive to the road and conditions you see, not the list — signs, signals and other traffic take priority.

Local roads & landmarks

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.

Schools

Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near these.

  • Progression House

Churches

Useful navigation anchors on the loop.

  • Burbage Congregational Church
  • St Catherine's Church
  • Hinckley Salvation Army
  • Madinah Masjid

Pubs

Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.

  • Hansom Cab
  • Hinckley Knight
  • Red Lion
  • Sycamores

Shops & parades

Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.

  • KV Brookside News
  • Wok Express
  • Burbage Star Pizza
  • Tesco Express

Watch out for

  • 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 3.3 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 (20, 30, 40 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.

Drive it: landmark by landmark

Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.

  1. Hansom Cab

    Start near Hansom Cab.

  2. KV Brookside News

    Continue to KV Brookside News.

  3. Wok Express

    Continue to Wok Express.

  4. Hinckley Knight

    Continue to Hinckley Knight.

  5. Burbage Star Pizza

    Continue to Burbage Star Pizza.

  6. Red Lion

    Continue to Red Lion.

  7. Sycamores

    Continue to Sycamores.

  8. Anchor Inn

    Continue to Anchor Inn.

  9. Burbage Congregational Church

    Continue to Burbage Congregational Church.

  10. Cross Keys

    Continue to Cross Keys.

  11. St Catherine's Church

    Continue to St Catherine's Church.

  12. Holywell

    Continue to Holywell.

  13. Tesco Express

    Continue to Tesco Express.

  14. Elbow Room

    Continue to Elbow Room.

  15. Hinckley Salvation Army

    Continue to Hinckley Salvation Army.

  16. Progression House

    Continue to Progression House.

  17. White Bear

    Continue to White Bear.

  18. Co-operative Food

    Continue to Co-operative Food.

  19. Hinckley Hub

    Continue to Hinckley Hub.

  20. Madinah Masjid

    Finish back near Madinah Masjid, completing the loop.

More routes at Hinckley test centre

Route FAQs

This route is 23.8 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Hinckley test centre, not an official DVSA route.