Near Kettering test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 10 roundabouts and 16 turns across 30 navigation steps.
This is an independent 36.6 km practice loop near Kettering test centre, taking roughly 45 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 Wicksteed Park Interchange and Broughton Interchange. 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 shops, churches, pubs and named junctions, 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 Kettering 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 28-step drive on real, named roads. An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
At roundabout, turn right
Orion Way
At end of road, turn left
Pytchley Lane
At roundabout, turn left
Isham Rd
2nd exit
A14
At roundabout, turn right
Slip Rd
At roundabout, turn right
Henson Way/Telford Way
Turn left
Rothwell Rd
Turn left
Gypsy Lane
At end of road, turn left
Windermere Rd
At end of road, turn left
Bowhill
Turn right
Northampton Rd
At end of road, turn left
Northfield Avenue
Turn right
Station Rd
Go ahead
Queensbury Rd
Turn left
Broadway
Turn right
London Rd
Turn right
St Marys Rd
At end of road, turn right
Larch Rd/Chestnut Aveune
At end of road, turn right
Linden Avenue
At end of road, turn left
Pipers Hill Rd
At roundabout, turn right
London Rd
Turn right
Pytchley Rd
At end of road, turn right
Lewis Rd
At roundabout, turn left
Pytchley Rd
At roundabout, turn right
Holdenby
At roundabout, turn right
Kettering Parkway
At roundabout, go ahead
Pytchley Rd
At end of road, turn right
Orion Way
Directions for the Kettering · Route 13 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 7.0 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, 40, 60, 70 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.
Plantool
Start near Plantool.
Vision Express
Continue to Vision Express.
All Saints, Pytchley
Continue to All Saints, Pytchley.
Overstone Arms
Continue to Overstone Arms.
Wicksteed Park Interchange
Continue to Wicksteed Park Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Broughton Interchange
Continue to Broughton Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Continue to Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Euro Car Parts
Continue to Euro Car Parts.
Game
Continue to Game.
Doorway Services
Continue to Doorway Services.
Morrisons Daily
Continue to Morrisons Daily.
Pollard Evangelical Church
Continue to Pollard Evangelical Church.
Pepper
Continue to Pepper.
Kids Planet Day Nursery
Continue to Kids Planet Day Nursery.
Wayfarers Inn
Continue to Wayfarers Inn.
Mens Room
Continue to Mens Room.
Lock'nStore
Continue to Lock'nStore.
Southfield School for Girls
Continue to Southfield School for Girls.
Park House
Continue to Park House.
B&M Retail
Finish back near B&M Retail, completing the loop.
10 roundabouts · 11 turns
7 roundabouts · 13 turns · 1 set of lights
8 roundabouts · 13 turns
8 roundabouts · 18 turns · 2 sets of lights
This route is 36.6 km and takes about 45 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Kettering test centre, not an official DVSA route.