Near Kettering test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 7 roundabouts, 10 turns and 1 signalled junction across 25 navigation steps.
This is an independent 28.3 km practice loop near Kettering 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.
Along the way you'll meet Kathleen Drive, Broughton Interchange and Wicksteed Park 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, 20 mph zones, changing speed limits, residential manoeuvres, busy a-roads and independent driving. 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, pubs, churches 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 89-step drive on real, named roads (about 28.2 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southwest.
8 m
Turn left.
38 m
Turn left.
31 m
Turn right onto Orion Way.
Orion Way17 m
Turn left to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way69 m
Turn left to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way100 m
Turn right to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way74 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way74 m
Turn left to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way100 m
Turn left to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way73 m
Turn right to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way159 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Pytchley Lane.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane28 m
Make a sharp right to stay on Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane27 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Pytchley Lane.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane233 m
Move left onto Pytchley Road/A509.
Pytchley Road817 m
Turn left onto Bryant Road.
Bryant Road809 m
Turn left onto Highfield Crescent.
Highfield Crescent189 m
Turn left to stay on Highfield Crescent.
Highfield Crescent105 m
Turn right onto Highfield Road.
Highfield Road582 m
Turn left onto Martin Road.
Martin Road221 m
Move left onto Thomas Road.
Thomas Road89 m
Turn left onto Edward Road.
Edward Road171 m
Turn right onto Bryant Road.
Bryant Road579 m
Turn left onto Highfield Crescent.
Highfield Crescent189 m
Turn left to stay on Highfield Crescent.
Highfield Crescent105 m
Turn right onto Highfield Road.
Highfield Road705 m
Turn right onto Pytchley Road/A509.
Pytchley Road1.1 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Orion Way.
107 m
Exit the roundabout onto Orion Way.
Orion Way153 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Pytchley Lane.
9 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane28 m
Make a sharp right to stay on Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane27 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Pytchley Lane.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane233 m
Move left onto Pytchley Road/A509.
Pytchley Road1.1 km
Turn left onto London Road/A6003.
London Road275 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto London Road/A6003.
15 m
Exit the roundabout onto London Road/A6003.
London Road1.4 km
Turn right onto Montagu Street/A4300. Continue on A4300.
A4300918 m
Turn left onto Stamford Road/A4300.
Stamford Road635 m
Turn right to stay on Stamford Road.
Stamford Road28 m
Turn left to stay on Stamford Road.
Stamford Road50 m
Turn right onto Kathleen Drive.
Kathleen Drive88 m
Turn left to stay on Kathleen Drive.
Kathleen Drive46 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Kathleen Drive.
59 m
Exit the roundabout onto Kathleen Drive.
Kathleen Drive117 m
Turn right onto Margaret Road.
Margaret Road94 m
Turn right onto Eva Road.
Eva Road112 m
Turn right onto Bertha Way.
Bertha Way117 m
Enter Kathleen Drive and take the 2nd exit onto Doris Road.
Kathleen Drive57 m
Exit the roundabout onto Doris Road.
Doris Road171 m
Turn right onto Edith Road.
Edith Road60 m
Turn right onto Shelia Place.
Shelia Place53 m
Turn left onto Edith Road.
Edith Road211 m
Turn right to stay on Edith Road.
Edith Road54 m
Turn left onto Stamford Road/A4300.
Stamford Road943 m
Move left onto Windmill Avenue/A6098.
Windmill Avenue502 m
Move right onto Saint Mary's Road/A6900.
Saint Mary's Road1.0 km
Turn right onto London Road/A6003.
London Road53 m
Turn left onto Bowling Green Road/A6003.
Bowling Green Road231 m
Turn right onto Sheep Street/A6003. Continue on A6003.
A6003334 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Northfield Avenue/A6003.
38 m
Exit the roundabout onto Northfield Avenue/A6003.
Northfield Avenue25 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Northampton Road/A6013.
3 m
Exit the roundabout onto Northampton Road/A6013.
Northampton Road462 m
Turn left to stay on Northampton Road/A6013.
Northampton Road577 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Northampton Road/A6013.
30 m
Exit the roundabout onto Northampton Road/A6013.
Northampton Road266 m
Enter Broughton Interchange and take the 3rd exit.
Broughton Interchange249 m
Exit the roundabout onto A14/E 24.
A142.8 km
Take exit 6.
351 m
Turn left to take the ramp.
A145.9 km
Take exit 9 towards Kettering (S),Wellingboro' A509.
274 m
Keep left to take Kettering Road/A509.
Kettering Road296 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Kettering Road/A509.
32 m
Exit the roundabout onto Kettering Road/A509.
Kettering Road270 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Orion Way.
40 m
Exit the roundabout onto Orion Way.
Orion Way153 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Pytchley Lane.
9 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane28 m
Make a sharp right to stay on Pytchley Lane.
Pytchley Lane27 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Orion Way.
6 m
Exit the roundabout onto Orion Way.
Orion Way162 m
Turn left to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way73 m
Turn right to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way100 m
Turn right to stay on Orion Way.
Orion Way49 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Kettering · Route 4 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.
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 9.0 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 (20, 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.
Lock'nStore
Start near Lock'nStore.
Plantool
Continue to Plantool.
Highfield Convenience Store
Continue to Highfield Convenience Store.
Mikado Pheasant
Continue to Mikado Pheasant.
Bryant Road Stores
Continue to Bryant Road Stores.
Park House
Continue to Park House.
Wayfarers Inn
Continue to Wayfarers Inn.
Christ Abundant Life Ministries
Continue to Christ Abundant Life Ministries.
St Edward's
Continue to St Edward's.
Eden Centre
Continue to Eden Centre.
Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witness
Continue to Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witness.
Kathleen Drive
Continue to Kathleen Drive, taking the junction with good observation.
St John's
Continue to St John's.
Mill Road Chippy
Continue to Mill Road Chippy.
Gateway Community Church
Continue to Gateway Community Church.
Paw & Tail
Continue to Paw & Tail.
Broughton Interchange
Continue to Broughton Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Trading Post
Continue to Trading Post.
M&S Simply Food
Continue to M&S Simply Food.
Wicksteed Park Interchange
Finish back near Wicksteed Park Interchange, 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 28.3 km and takes about 35 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Kettering test centre, not an official DVSA route.