Near Lichfield test centre
Rated challenging from its real manoeuvre load, 7 roundabouts, 18 turns and 3 signalled junctions across 30 navigation steps.
This is an independent 38.1 km practice loop near Lichfield test centre, taking roughly 40 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 Friary and Swinfen 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 pubs, named junctions, shops and stations, 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 Lichfield 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 98-step drive on real, named roads (about 38.1 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive west on Lower Sandford Street.
Lower Sandford Street298 m
Turn right onto Walsall Road.
Walsall Road34 m
Turn left onto A51/Western By-Pass.
A51134 m
Enter The Friary and take the 3rd exit onto Friary Road.
The Friary341 m
Exit the roundabout onto Friary Road.
Friary Road185 m
Move left onto Walsall Road.
Walsall Road1.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Walsall Road.
105 m
Exit the roundabout onto Walsall Road.
Walsall Road1.1 km
Move right onto Friary Road.
Friary Road171 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A461/The Friary.
221 m
Exit the roundabout onto A461/The Friary.
A461126 m
Make a sharp right onto A461/Friary Road.
A461106 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A461/The Friary.
359 m
Exit the roundabout onto A461/The Friary.
A461328 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Birmingham Road.
9 m
Exit the roundabout onto Birmingham Road.
Birmingham Road809 m
Turn right.
28 m
Turn left.
29 m
Make a right U-turn.
29 m
Turn right.
28 m
Turn left.
280 m
Turn left onto Upper St John Street.
Upper St John Street826 m
Turn right onto Shortbutts Lane.
Shortbutts Lane697 m
Turn left onto Birmingham Road.
Birmingham Road152 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A461/Saint Johns Avenue.
11 m
Exit the roundabout onto A461/Saint Johns Avenue.
A461665 m
Turn left onto London Road/A5206.
London Road263 m
Turn right onto Borrowcop Lane.
Borrowcop Lane24 m
Turn right to stay on Borrowcop Lane.
Borrowcop Lane583 m
Turn left onto Hillside.
Hillside123 m
Turn right to stay on Hillside.
Hillside160 m
Turn right to stay on Hillside.
Hillside261 m
Turn left onto Minors Hill.
Minors Hill230 m
Turn left onto Quarry Hills Lane.
Quarry Hills Lane258 m
Turn right onto Gorse Lane.
Gorse Lane53 m
Turn left to stay on Gorse Lane.
Gorse Lane30 m
Turn right onto Ryknild Street.
Ryknild Street396 m
Turn right to stay on Ryknild Street.
Ryknild Street7 m
Turn right onto Tamworth Road/A51.
Tamworth Road591 m
Turn left onto Cricket Lane.
Cricket Lane536 m
Turn left onto A5206/London Road.
A5206604 m
Enter Swinfen Interchange and take the 3rd exit.
Swinfen Interchange309 m
Exit the roundabout onto A5148.
A51482.0 km
Move left onto A5.
A557 m
Move left onto Birmingham Road/A5127.
Birmingham Road820 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Pinfold Hill.
37 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pinfold Hill.
Pinfold Hill391 m
Turn right onto Grosvenor Court.
Grosvenor Court35 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Grosvenor Court.
Grosvenor Court35 m
Turn left onto Pinfold Hill.
Pinfold Hill395 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Birmingham Road/A5127.
5 m
Exit the roundabout onto Birmingham Road/A5127.
Birmingham Road813 m
Move left onto A5.
A5186 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A5148.
131 m
Exit the roundabout onto A5148.
A51481.6 km
Take the Swinfen exit.
400 m
Enter Swinfen Interchange and take the 1st exit onto A5206/London Road.
Swinfen Interchange73 m
Exit the roundabout onto A5206/London Road.
A5206627 m
Turn right onto Cricket Lane.
Cricket Lane536 m
Turn right onto Tamworth Road/A51.
Tamworth Road35 m
Turn left onto Quarry Hills Lane.
Quarry Hills Lane519 m
Turn right onto Gorse Lane.
Gorse Lane273 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Gorse Lane.
Gorse Lane220 m
Turn right to stay on Gorse Lane.
Gorse Lane30 m
Turn left onto Ryknild Street.
Ryknild Street1.0 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A5192/Cappers Lane.
66 m
Exit the roundabout onto A5192/Cappers Lane. Continue on Cappers Lane.
Cappers Lane2.5 km
Turn right onto Church Street.
Church Street1.7 km
Turn right onto Tamworth Road/A51.
Tamworth Road1.5 km
Turn left onto Cricket Lane.
Cricket Lane536 m
Turn left onto A5206/London Road.
A5206604 m
Enter Swinfen Interchange and take the 4th exit onto A5206/London Road.
Swinfen Interchange513 m
Exit the roundabout onto A5206/London Road.
A52062.2 km
Turn right onto Wade Street.
Wade Street162 m
Move right onto Castle Dyke.
Castle Dyke54 m
Turn right onto Frog Lane.
Frog Lane179 m
Turn left onto St John Street.
St John Street144 m
Turn left.
280 m
Turn right.
28 m
Turn left.
29 m
Make a right U-turn.
29 m
Turn right.
28 m
Turn left onto Birmingham Road.
Birmingham Road812 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A461/The Friary.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto A461/The Friary. Continue on A461.
A461322 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto The Friary.
213 m
Exit the roundabout onto The Friary.
The Friary285 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Swan Road.
9 m
Exit the roundabout onto Swan Road.
Swan Road354 m
Turn left onto Bird Street.
Bird Street837 m
Turn right onto Wheel Lane.
Wheel Lane221 m
Turn right onto Swallow Croft.
Swallow Croft362 m
Turn right onto The Leasowe.
The Leasowe260 m
Turn right onto Anson Avenue.
Anson Avenue399 m
Turn left onto Beacon Street.
Beacon Street460 m
Turn right onto Swan Road.
Swan Road198 m
Turn right onto Lower Sandford Street.
Lower Sandford Street199 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Lichfield · Route 11 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.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Pedestrian crossings and parked cars are common nearby.
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 11.6 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.
Changing speed limits
Limits change across this route (20, 30, 40, 50, 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.
Bowling Green
Start near Bowling Green.
Friary
Continue to Friary, taking the junction with good observation.
Co-operative Funeral Care
Continue to Co-operative Funeral Care.
Lichfield Bus Station
Continue to Lichfield Bus Station.
Bitter Suite
Continue to Bitter Suite.
Booze King
Continue to Booze King.
Borrowcop Locks Canal Park
Continue to Borrowcop Locks Canal Park.
Owl At Lichfield
Continue to Owl At Lichfield.
Swinfen Interchange
Continue to Swinfen Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Shenstone Lammas Land
Continue to Shenstone Lammas Land.
Screwfix
Continue to Screwfix.
Turnpike
Continue to Turnpike.
Horse and Jockey
Continue to Horse and Jockey.
Gallows Wharf Garden of Reflection
Continue to Gallows Wharf Garden of Reflection.
Little Waitrose
Continue to Little Waitrose.
Wade Street Church
Continue to Wade Street Church.
Hair by Imad
Continue to Hair by Imad.
Fountain
Continue to Fountain.
Queens Head
Continue to Queens Head.
Cycling2000
Finish back near Cycling2000, completing the loop.
5 roundabouts · 10 turns · 4 sets of lights
7 roundabouts · 15 turns · 5 sets of lights
6 roundabouts · 16 turns · 5 sets of lights
5 roundabouts · 14 turns · 4 sets of lights
This route is 38.1 km and takes about 40 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Lichfield test centre, not an official DVSA route.