Near Sunderland test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 10 roundabouts and 28 turns across 44 navigation steps.
This is an independent 19.1 km practice loop near Sunderland test centre, taking roughly 25 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.
On this route you’ll practise 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, stations 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 Sunderland 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 44-step drive on real, named roads (about 19.1 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive west.
29 m
Turn right.
11 m
Turn left onto Riverbank Road.
Riverbank Road203 m
Turn right to stay on Riverbank Road.
Riverbank Road97 m
Turn left onto Washington Road.
Washington Road1.8 km
Turn right onto Blackwood Road.
Blackwood Road231 m
Turn left onto Bexhill Road.
Bexhill Road236 m
Turn right onto Borodin Avenue.
Borodin Avenue176 m
Turn right to stay on Borodin Avenue.
Borodin Avenue3 m
Make a right U-turn to stay on Borodin Avenue.
Borodin Avenue3 m
Turn left to stay on Borodin Avenue.
Borodin Avenue176 m
Turn left onto Bexhill Road.
Bexhill Road236 m
Turn left onto Blackwood Road.
Blackwood Road135 m
Turn right onto Brunswick Road.
Brunswick Road358 m
Turn left onto Hylton Lane.
Hylton Lane1.3 km
Move left onto Dipe Lane.
Dipe Lane109 m
Turn right onto Addison Road/A184. Continue on A184.
A1844.3 km
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1018.
54 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1018.
A1018757 m
Turn left towards Seaburn.
B1291554 m
Turn right onto Fulwell Road.
Fulwell Road336 m
Turn left onto Side Cliff Road.
Side Cliff Road509 m
Turn right onto Mere Knolls Road.
Mere Knolls Road154 m
Move right onto Sea View Gardens.
Sea View Gardens193 m
Turn left onto Mansfield Crescent.
Mansfield Crescent412 m
Turn right onto Sea View Gardens.
Sea View Gardens215 m
Turn left onto Roker Park Road.
Roker Park Road150 m
Turn right onto Side Cliff Road.
Side Cliff Road235 m
Turn right onto Roker Terrace/A183.
Roker Terrace556 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Harbour View/A183.
25 m
Exit the roundabout onto Harbour View/A183. Continue on A183.
A183877 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Dame Dorothy Street/A183.
40 m
Exit the roundabout onto Dame Dorothy Street/A183.
Dame Dorothy Street762 m
Turn right onto A1018/North Bridge Street.
A1018353 m
Move left towards Gateshead/Southwick.
A1290256 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto A1290.
35 m
Exit the roundabout onto A1290.
A12901.3 km
Enter Northern Way and take the 4th exit onto Wessington Way/A1290.
Northern Way249 m
Exit the roundabout onto Wessington Way/A1290.
Wessington Way1.3 km
Turn right onto Castletown Way.
Castletown Way260 m
Turn left onto Riverbank Road.
Riverbank Road71 m
Turn left.
11 m
Turn left.
29 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Sunderland · School-zone 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.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
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.
Local junctions
Take each junction on its merits, good observation, clear signalling and the right speed on approach. Rehearse the sequence so nothing surprises you on the day.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Lidl
Start near Lidl.
St Bede
Continue to St Bede.
Dhaka Tandoori Takeaway
Continue to Dhaka Tandoori Takeaway.
East Boldon Methodist Church
Continue to East Boldon Methodist Church.
Boldon United Reformed Church
Continue to Boldon United Reformed Church.
St George's And The Martyr
Continue to St George's And The Martyr.
Spa Fusion
Continue to Spa Fusion.
Pulman Volkswagen
Continue to Pulman Volkswagen.
Seaburn
Continue to Seaburn.
Bluebell
Continue to Bluebell.
Cliff
Continue to Cliff.
Redby Academy
Continue to Redby Academy.
Grannie Annie's
Continue to Grannie Annie's.
Harbour View
Continue to Harbour View.
Londis
Continue to Londis.
Wearbank House
Continue to Wearbank House.
Berto's
Continue to Berto's.
St Peter's
Continue to St Peter's.
Colliery Tavern
Continue to Colliery Tavern.
Halfway House
Finish back near Halfway House, completing the loop.
21 roundabouts · 12 turns
28 roundabouts · 18 turns
6 roundabouts · 35 turns
28 roundabouts · 6 turns
This route is 19.1 km and takes about 25 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Sunderland test centre, not an official DVSA route.