Driving Tests: Nottingham
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the impact on learner drivers of average practical driving test waiting times at Nottingham (Chilwell) Driving Test Centre; and what steps she is taking to reduce waiting times and increase test availability at that centre.
Answered by Simon Lightwood
The Government set out a comprehensive package of measures in April 2025 to tackle long waiting times, aiming to deliver around 10,000 additional tests per month.
A key step was reintroducing overtime incentives. At Nottingham (Chilwell) driving test centre (DTC), 423 additional overtime tests were delivered between June 2025 and May 2026 when compared to the previous year. This increase can largely be attributed to the additional test allowance scheme the agency introduced in June 2025.
As well as this, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is continuing with recruitment campaigns and going further to make the booking system fairer. These are practical steps to increase supply, protect access to tests, and bring waiting times down.
From recent recruitment at Nottingham (Chilwell) driving test centre (DTC), DVSA has had 4 new driving examiners (DE) start in the last 12 months. There is also 3 potential new DEs currently undergoing employment checks with another 2 currently in training and booked on a future training course respectively. If all are successful this would mean Nottingham (Chilwell) DTC would be fully resourced, however, DVSA will be regularly reviewing the situation in line with modelling and recruitment needs.
DVSA has published more detailed data-sets so learners can get better understanding of the booking system. More information and waiting time data, including Nottingham (Chilwell) DTC and other DTCs serving the area, can be found on GOV.UK.
Verbatim has judged this answer against the question that was actually asked — answered, partly answered, or evaded. Sign in to see the verdict →