Near Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 25 roundabouts and 8 turns across 40 navigation steps.
This is an independent 16.2 km practice loop near Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-under-Lyme), taking roughly 19 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 Syeyd Roundabout, Clayton Road, Hanchurch Roundabout, Michelin Roundabout and Sideway 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 multiple roundabouts, 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 Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-under-Lyme), 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 40-step drive on real, named roads (about 16.2 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive southwest.
23 m
Turn left.
63 m
Turn left onto Lyme Drive.
Lyme Drive86 m
Move left onto A34/Newcastle Road. Continue on A34.
A341.5 km
Enter Grosvenor Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A34/Lower Street.
Grosvenor Roundabout38 m
Exit the roundabout onto A34/Lower Street.
A34198 m
Enter Blackfriars Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A34/Lower Street.
Blackfriars Roundabout40 m
Exit the roundabout onto A34/Lower Street.
A34195 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Pool Dam/A525.
5 m
Exit the roundabout onto Pool Dam/A525. Continue on A525.
A525243 m
Turn right onto Higherland/A525. Continue on A525.
A5251.5 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 5th exit onto Gallowstree Lane.
159 m
Exit the roundabout onto Gallowstree Lane.
Gallowstree Lane692 m
Turn right onto Sneyd Avenue.
Sneyd Avenue618 m
Enter Syeyd Roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Dartmouth Avenue.
Syeyd Roundabout35 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dartmouth Avenue.
Dartmouth Avenue1.2 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Clayton Road/A519.
110 m
Exit the roundabout onto Clayton Road/A519.
Clayton Road1.2 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Clayton Road/A519.
48 m
Exit the roundabout onto Clayton Road/A519. Continue on A519.
A519921 m
Enter Hanchurch Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A500.
Hanchurch Roundabout8 m
Exit the roundabout onto A500.
A5002.6 km
Take the Sideway Interchange exit.
77 m
Keep left at the fork.
278 m
Keep left to take A5006.
A5006208 m
Enter Michelin Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto A5006.
Michelin Roundabout89 m
Exit the roundabout onto A5006.
A5006401 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto White Rock Road.
39 m
Exit the roundabout onto White Rock Road.
White Rock Road84 m
Enter Sideway Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto White Rock Road.
Sideway Roundabout101 m
Exit the roundabout onto White Rock Road.
White Rock Road86 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit.
5 m
Exit the roundabout onto A500/Queensway.
A500852 m
Take the Hanford Roundabout exit.
350 m
Enter Hanford Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto A34/Stone Road.
Hanford Roundabout123 m
Exit the roundabout onto A34/Stone Road. Continue on A34.
A341.9 km
Move left onto Lyme Drive.
Lyme Drive86 m
Turn right.
63 m
Turn right.
23 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-under-Lyme) · Roundabout 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.
Multiple roundabouts
Watch your lane discipline and signalling at Syeyd Roundabout, Hanchurch Roundabout, Michelin 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.
Pinkstones
Start near Pinkstones.
Enable.Business
Continue to Enable.Business.
Holy Trinity Church
Continue to Holy Trinity Church.
Blakeys
Continue to Blakeys.
Highland Methodist Church
Continue to Highland Methodist Church.
Waggon and Horses
Continue to Waggon and Horses.
Thistleberry
Continue to Thistleberry.
Keel Road Stores
Continue to Keel Road Stores.
Syeyd Roundabout
Continue to Syeyd Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Gatehouse
Continue to Gatehouse.
St James the Great
Continue to St James the Great.
Clayton Road
Continue to Clayton Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Hanchurch Roundabout
Continue to Hanchurch Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Michelin Roundabout
Continue to Michelin Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Sideway Roundabout
Continue to Sideway Roundabout, taking the junction with good observation.
Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus Catholic Church
Continue to Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus Catholic Church.
Black Lion
Continue to Black Lion.
Saint John's Church
Continue to Saint John's Church.
Jubilee Working Mens Club
Continue to Jubilee Working Mens Club.
Greggs
Finish back near Greggs, completing the loop.
28 roundabouts · 8 turns
14 roundabouts · 9 turns
16 roundabouts · 21 turns
32 roundabouts · 23 turns
This route is 16.2 km and takes about 19 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-under-Lyme), not an official DVSA route.