A Pass Ahead Driving Schools

In order to qualify as a Driving Standards Agency Approved Driving Instructor there are certain requirements, which you must meet; not everyone can become a Driving Instructor. You should be a fit and proper person to have your name entered in the Register.

All non-motoring and all motoring convictions, providing they are not 'spent' under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, will be taken into account when assessing your suitability. If, however, your Licence has some penalty points (generally a maximum of 6) this may not necessarily affect your application.

You must have held a full UK or full European Union (EU) / European Economic Area (EEA) unrestricted car driving licence for periods totalling at least 4 years out of the 6 years prior to entering the Register after qualifying. Any period after passing the driving test and during which a provisional licence is held may be counted as a full licence. A foreign licence can also count towards the four year period and a full licence to drive 'automatics'.

You must not, at any time during the 4 years prior to being entered on the Register, have been under a disqualification from driving.

You must pass all three parts of the qualifying examination within a two-year period.

You must be able to read a vehicle number plate from a minimum of 27.5m (90ft). It should be noted that to accompany provisional licence holders, you must hold a full, unrestricted UK or EU/EEA Driving Licence for 3 years and be over 21.

A full foreign licence will count if it is accepted under the 'Exchange Scheme'.

Why do I have to be on the register of approved driving instructors?

You will also have to perform:

An eyesight test
An emergency stop
A turn in the road
A reverse park behind a parked vehicle and/or reverse bay park
A reverse into a limited opening on the left
A reverse into a limited opening on the right
You are allowed only THREE ATTEMPTS at this test. If you fail three times, you will have to start the qualifying process again, but cannot do so until two years have elapsed from the date you passed the ADI Theory / Hazard Perception test.

During the actual test, you will only be allowed to make up to and including six driving faults (including any faults you accrued on the 'Tell me, show me...' element). If you commit one or more serious or dangerous faults, then this will result in failure. The test will last about one hour, and as previously described, will be on varying road and traffic conditions.

For more detailed information, please consult your copy of 'The Driving Instructors Handbook'.

Tell Me, Show Me

After the eyesight test, the examiner will ask you five safety-related questions regarding your vehicle. You will accrue one minor fault for each question you answer incorrectly, up to a maximum of four. SHOULD YOU ANSWER ALL FIVE QUESTIONS INCORRECTLY, YOU WILL FAIL THE TEST OF DRIVING ABILITY. Do not worry about this - remember you are taking an advanced level test, and you will also probably have been driving for some time before taking this course, so you will hopefully have a reasonably good knowledge of vehicle safety issues anyway, but training will be given. This is not a difficult element of the test.

Eco-Driving Techniques

As you know, we now live in a world where environmental issues are commonplace, both in news bulletins, newspapers and other forms of the media. From recycling your household waste to pumping poisonous gases up into the atmosphere, our everyday lives are influenced in one way or another, and rightly so. No longer is it just sufficient to 'do you bit' by choosing an environmentally friendly fuel for your vehicle. We must now teach new drivers the techniques of eco-driving. This will lead to a new breed of driver who, from the moment they take to the road, will drive in an environmentally safe way. It is proposed by the EU that all driving licence acquisition tests (excluding category B - learning drivers) will include an element that takes into account the environmental driving of the candidate.

It is unlikely that Category B test will be indefinitely excluded, in that at some point in the not too distant future, it will become part of that test as well, so we may as well prepare for it by teaching our pupils good habits from day one.

As of 1st October 2005, a minor addition to the ADI Part Two Test will include an assessment by the examiner of the candidates ability to drive in an eco-friendly way. Please consult the Eco-Driving Assessment Table for the criteria to which you will be assessed. It is possible that at some point in the future, that the criteria within this table, may be updated or amended. It is currently understood that no matter how unsatisfactory the condidates eco-driving ability is, ONLY ONE DRIVING FAULT will be recorded under that heading on the DL25. This will be open to periodical review. However, although a fault will not necessarily be recorded against eco-safe driving, it may be that a fault, assessed as driving, serious or dangerous, could be recorded against a different subject heading on the DL25, for instance, item 12 control: accelerator, or item 26 awareness/planning.

If you consult the publication, 'Driving - The Essential Skills', in the section entitled, 'The Driver And The Environment', and 'Avoiding And Dealing With Congestion', you will find some very useful information. In his debrief at the end of your Part Two Test, the examiner will explain to you where the eco-unsafe incident(s) occurred, if any.

Tell me more about the trainee licence scheme?

A trainee licence gives you the opportunity to gain valuable experience teaching people to drive while preparing for your test of instructional ability. You are of course, not required by law to take up this option should you not wish to. It is possible to pass the test of instructional ability without this. With a trainee licence, you are able to receive payment for lessons you give, while gaining this valuable experience.

There are certain criteria we have to fulfil to enable you get a licence. Regardless of whether or not you take up a training licence, you MUST complete 40 hours in-car training in the core subjects. There are two options which can help you satisfy the terms of issue of the trainee licence.

Option One

At least 20% of the time you spend giving paid instruction MUST be under the direct supervision of an ADI trainer for the duration of the licence. The DSA will want to see proof of this either when your licence runs out, or when you qualify to join the register.

Option Two

You MUST take a further minimum 20 hours of training on all the core subjects within three months of the issue of your licence, or by the time you apply for the test of instructional ability. At least 25% of this training has to be practical in-car training with a maximum ratio of one ADI trainer to two trainee licence holders. You must keep a record of all the training you receive , as you will be required to present this to the examiner when you take your test of instructional ability if you didnt send it to DSA headquarters when you applied for your test, or when the three month period ends. If you fail an attempt at the test of instructional ability, you are obliged to take a further minimum of 5 hours training before taking the test again. If you were to fail the test three times, then you would have to, should you so wish, begin the whole qualifying process again. You would not be able to do this until a certain period of time has elapsed. This is two years from the date that you passed the Theory and Hazard Perception Test.