Any tips for booking a practical driving test slot as none available?

[OkieDokieLemonSmokie]

My DC has just started having driving lessons and passed the theory. The instructor told us to go online and book a test as they are at a good stage already (we make them drive us everywhere).

We went online and there was nothing available, not one slot to even book in and change except for one slot next week which obviously is no good. It’s completely booked up till end of Jan.

Any tips or advice for getting a slot?

Having an existing booking isn’t an advantage for getting a cancellation anymore. The apps that alert you to cancellations have been banned now. You still have to keep manually checking and then pounce on any opening. But you do at least have a “latest date” for your test which may take the pressure off.

the whole system needs a shake up. It’s ridiculous

It’s ever so slightly easier as you don’t have to put in all your details for a change. I suppose it depends how fast you can type because my dd was swooping in like a hawk with texting fingers whereas I was all ‘right, so email…’

It has already had its shake up. It will just take a while for the shake up to reduce the backlog.

If you check too often, the website thinks you're a bot and locks you out. 🙂

If you can be flexible on centres it is worth looking a bit further away, I asked ChatGPT where the best availability generally was within 30 miles of our postcode and DS got somewhere we hadn’t thought of based on that. But you do have to go there a few times for route familiarisation. There is a driving test practice routes app which is very helpful for that.

That is what has happened in the last few months with the restrictions about the learner booking, not someone else; only two changes and changes only to the three nearest centres to your first booking. But plenty of people in the system will still have booked under the “old regime” - give it another few months and it may have shaken out.

Also - we wouldn’t think it particularly unusual to have to wait for an NHS non-emergency procedure for a few months. It’s just that parents of current learners had a very different experience and so think the current waits are out of whack.

I’ll chill for a few weeks. He won’t be fully ready till at least the beginning of November so we can leave it for a bit.

At the end of the day, Feb is not too bad.