Near Stirling Court test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 16 roundabouts and 15 turns across 42 navigation steps.
This is an independent 8.7 km practice loop near Stirling Court test centre, taking roughly 11 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 Barnet Lane and Tesco Roundabout. 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 roundabout approach & exit 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, named junctions, churches and pubs, 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 Stirling Court 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:
The full 42-step drive on real, named roads (about 8.8 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southeast.
56 m
Turn right onto Stirling Way.
Stirling Way250 m
Turn left to stay on Stirling Way.
Stirling Way24 m
Enter Stirling Corner and take the 4th exit onto Barnet Lane/A411.
Stirling Corner189 m
Exit the roundabout onto Barnet Lane/A411.
Barnet Lane445 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Furzehill Road.
27 m
Exit the roundabout onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road892 m
Turn right onto Elmwood Avenue.
Elmwood Avenue191 m
Turn left onto Cardinal Avenue.
Cardinal Avenue357 m
Turn right onto Whitehouse Avenue.
Whitehouse Avenue94 m
Turn left to stay on Whitehouse Avenue.
Whitehouse Avenue352 m
Turn right onto Shenley Road/B5378.
Shenley Road114 m
Enter Tesco Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto B5378.
Tesco Roundabout23 m
Exit the roundabout onto B5378.
B5378128 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Shenley Road/B5378.
56 m
Exit the roundabout onto Shenley Road/B5378. Continue on B5378.
B5378940 m
Turn left onto Hartforde Road.
Hartforde Road23 m
Turn left.
134 m
Turn left onto Palmers Road.
Palmers Road21 m
Turn right onto Cowley Hill/B5378. Continue on B5378.
B5378800 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto B5378.
72 m
Exit the roundabout onto B5378.
B5378128 m
Enter Tesco Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Shenley Road/B5378.
Tesco Roundabout30 m
Exit the roundabout onto Shenley Road/B5378.
Shenley Road474 m
Turn left onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road282 m
Turn right onto Brownlow Road.
Brownlow Road146 m
Turn left onto Goldfinch Way.
Goldfinch Way62 m
Turn left onto Siskin Close.
Siskin Close39 m
Turn left.
16 m
Turn left.
2 m
Make a right U-turn.
2 m
Turn right.
16 m
Turn right onto Siskin Close.
Siskin Close39 m
Turn right onto Goldfinch Way.
Goldfinch Way62 m
Turn right onto Brownlow Road.
Brownlow Road147 m
Turn right onto Furzehill Road.
Furzehill Road1.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Barnet Lane/A411.
28 m
Exit the roundabout onto Barnet Lane/A411.
Barnet Lane435 m
Enter Stirling Corner and take the 1st exit onto Stirling Way.
Stirling Corner12 m
Exit the roundabout onto Stirling Way.
Stirling Way277 m
Turn left.
56 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Stirling Court · Residential + A-road practice loop 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.
Roundabout
Watch your lane discipline and signalling at Tesco Roundabout. Get into the correct lane early and check your exit mirror before leaving.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Barons Borehamwood BMW
Start near Barons Borehamwood BMW.
Screwfix
Continue to Screwfix.
Little Waitrose
Continue to Little Waitrose.
Barnet Lane
Continue to Barnet Lane, taking the junction with good observation.
St Paul's Lutheran Church
Continue to St Paul's Lutheran Church.
Brish Imaging
Continue to Brish Imaging.
Michael Yeo
Continue to Michael Yeo.
Mistr.
Continue to Mistr..
Tesco Roundabout
Continue to Tesco Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
St Teresa of the Child Jesus
Continue to St Teresa of the Child Jesus.
Borehamwood Police Station
Continue to Borehamwood Police Station.
Pick & Shovel
Continue to Pick & Shovel.
Tesco Extra
Continue to Tesco Extra.
Good Companion
Continue to Good Companion.
Phonehouse
Continue to Phonehouse.
All Saints
Continue to All Saints.
Card Factory
Continue to Card Factory.
Borehamwood Baptist Church
Continue to Borehamwood Baptist Church.
H&T Pawnbrokers
Continue to H&T Pawnbrokers.
Barons Borehamwood Mini
Finish back near Barons Borehamwood Mini, completing the loop.
35 roundabouts · 6 turns
20 roundabouts · 18 turns
20 roundabouts · 13 turns
4 roundabouts · 7 turns
This route is 8.7 km and takes about 11 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Stirling Court test centre, not an official DVSA route.