Near Wanstead test centre
Rated easy from its real manoeuvre load, 8 roundabouts and 5 turns across 33 navigation steps.
This is an independent 15.5 km practice loop near Wanstead test centre, taking roughly 22 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 Charlie Brown's 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, 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 stations, churches, shops 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 Wanstead 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 33-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 west on Wellesley Road.
Wellesley Road5 m
Turn right onto Hermon Hill/A113. Continue on A113.
A1131.8 km
Enter Charlie Brown's Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto A406/North Circular Road.
Charlie Brown's Roundabout32 m
Exit the roundabout onto A406/North Circular Road.
A4063.4 km
Take the Crooked Billet Interchange exit onto A112/B179 towards Walthamstow/Chingford/Highams Park.
A406480 m
Enter Crooked Billet Roundabout and take the 4th exit onto Chingford Road/A112.
Crooked Billet Roundabout152 m
Exit the roundabout onto Chingford Road/A112. Continue on A112.
A112339 m
Turn right onto Rushcroft Road.
Rushcroft Road24 m
Turn left onto Ascham Drive.
Ascham Drive73 m
Turn left onto Loxham Road.
Loxham Road26 m
Turn left onto Salisbury Hall Gardens/A112. Continue on A112.
A112404 m
Enter Crooked Billet Roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Chingford Road/A112.
Crooked Billet Roundabout107 m
Exit the roundabout onto Chingford Road/A112.
Chingford Road1.7 km
Keep right to take Hoe Street/A112.
Hoe Street104 m
Keep left to stay on A112.
A1121.2 km
Keep right to stay on Hoe Street/A112.
Hoe Street245 m
Turn right onto Lea Bridge Road/A104.
Lea Bridge Road1.0 km
Turn left onto Church Road/A1006.
Church Road70 m
Turn left onto Gloucester Road.
Gloucester Road167 m
Turn left onto Lea Bridge Road/A104.
Lea Bridge Road126 m
Turn left onto Church Road/A1006.
Church Road70 m
Turn left onto Gloucester Road.
Gloucester Road167 m
Turn right onto Lea Bridge Road/A104.
Lea Bridge Road96 m
Keep straight to stay on Lea Bridge Road/A104.
Lea Bridge Road1.3 km
Keep left to stay on Lea Bridge Road/A104.
Lea Bridge Road755 m
Turn right onto Whipps Cross Road/A114.
Whipps Cross Road581 m
Keep right to stay on Whipps Cross Road/A114.
Whipps Cross Road879 m
Enter Green Man Roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Hollybush Hill/A113.
Green Man Roundabout8 m
Exit the roundabout onto Hollybush Hill/A113.
Hollybush Hill149 m
Keep right to stay on Hollybush Hill.
Hollybush Hill33 m
Move right onto New Wanstead/A113. Continue on A113.
A113836 m
Turn right onto Wellesley Road.
Wellesley Road5 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Wanstead · Dual-carriageway 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.
Expect busier traffic, pick-ups and pedestrians around these.
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 Charlie Brown's 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.
George Lane / Chigwell Road
Start near George Lane / Chigwell Road.
Charlie Brown's Roundabout
Continue to Charlie Brown's Roundabout.
Woodford Spiritualist Church
Continue to Woodford Spiritualist Church.
Grove Hill Evangelical Church
Continue to Grove Hill Evangelical Church.
Winchester Food & Wine
Continue to Winchester Food & Wine.
Living Flames Baptist Church
Continue to Living Flames Baptist Church.
Walthamstow Stadium
Continue to Walthamstow Stadium.
Brettenham Road
Continue to Brettenham Road.
Jewel Road
Continue to Jewel Road.
Walthamstow Market
Continue to Walthamstow Market.
Grove Road
Continue to Grove Road.
Auctioneer
Continue to Auctioneer.
Potters House
Continue to Potters House.
Kashmir Hairdresser
Continue to Kashmir Hairdresser.
Leyton Green Road
Continue to Leyton Green Road.
Whipps Cross / Wood Street
Continue to Whipps Cross / Wood Street.
Whipps Cross Bus Stand
Continue to Whipps Cross Bus Stand.
Shree Nathji Sanatan
Continue to Shree Nathji Sanatan.
High Stone
Continue to High Stone.
High Street / Hermon Hill
Finish back near High Street / Hermon Hill, completing the loop.
21 roundabouts · 9 turns
8 roundabouts · 18 turns
12 roundabouts · 20 turns
10 roundabouts · 19 turns
This route is 15.5 km and takes about 22 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Wanstead test centre, not an official DVSA route.