Newslink April marketing special

Newslink 

The Voice of MSA GB 

Issue 375 • April 2024 – Marketing Special Edition 

msagb.com 

WIN 

All new members 

entered into free 

draw for a £50 

Amazon voucher 

New documentary 

a ‘must watch’ 

BBC film Drive Fast Die Young described 

as a ‘game changer’ in helping young 

men kick the dangerous driving habit 

MSA GB Conference: 

Full report inside 

from page 18 

Non-members 

special issue 

Join us today for just 

£60 * 

* Hurry! Special offer 

must end May 1 

We work for all Driver Trainers. Join us today at https://msagb.com/join

Welcome to MSA GB 

Mike Yeomans 

MSA GB 

National Chairman 

I’d like to say a warm welcome to 

members of the ADI and PDI 

community who are receiving their 

own link to this digital issue of 

Newslink for the first time. 

Newslink is the official membership 

magazine of the Motor Schools Association 

of Great Britain – or MSA GB, as it is more 

usually known. 

At MSA GB we represent driving 

instructors across Great Britain, lobbying 

government and the DVSA on your behalf 

while at the same time representing 

individual members when they become 

embroiled in dispute with the DVSA, the 

registrar or when problems arise at their 

local driving test centre. Our team is ready 

to advise, guide and help you to become the 

very best driving instructor you can 

possibly be. 

In addition, our members receive a host 

of benefits, including money off specially 

selected products and services, free of 

charge Professional Indemnity Insurance 

and Public Liability Insurance, free Terms of 

Business contracts for you to work to with 

your pupils, and numerous discounted CPD 

training events throughout the year. 

And they get Newslink every month, too! 

This free digital publication comes to you at 

the start of every month packed with all 

the latest news, views and comment from 

across the driver training and testing 

profession, as well as CPD articles 

and general road safety 

information that will improve 

you as an instructor. 

So why are you receiving a 

copy of Newslink this 

month? Because we want 

you to join the MSA GB 

family. 

Over the next couple of pages we’ll 

highlight some of the benefits of joining 

MSA GB, and then you will see what you can 

look forward to each month in Newslink. 

Becoming a member of MSA GB is 

oustanding value: just £60 a year will get 

you all the benefits I’ve mentioned above 

– and don’t forget, as a professional fee, 

that is tax deductible, too! 

But to make the decision to join us that 

little bit easier, if you join using our special 

joining offer code, Newslink, you will receive 

a full year’s membership for just £60, 

saving you £25, and your access to PI & PL 

insurance cover starts immediately. 

Want to meet 

up with MSA GB 

members in person? As 

well as occasional local 

events, MSA GB Areas will 

be hosting their own Annual 

Training Days in the 

autumn. Details on 

our website. 

Enjoy this magazine. I hope 

you see enough here to 

convince you to join the 

association. If you want to 

talk to anyone at MSA GB, 

contact our head office 

team. We will be 

delighted to take your call 

and tell you more. 

WIN! 

Every new member who joins 

through this special edition 

of Newslink will be entered 

into a free draw for a 

£50 Amazon voucher 

Join MSA GB and receive a host of special offers 

and discounts on supplies and services 

Up to 10p 

off every litre of 

fuel through our 

Fuel Card deal 

Discounted 

breakdown 

cover to keep 

you moving 

Health and 

finance cover 

at special 

members-only 

rates 

Discounted 

accountancy 

services from 

ADI specialist 

PLUS 

Card payments 

• Training • Tyres 

• and more! 

Cashback on 

pupil insurance 

for private 

practice 

How to join MSA GB 

Go to https://msagb.com/join/ 

Pay just £60 for a year’s membership, 

saving you £25. 

Don’t forget to use the special 

Discount Code: Newslink 

Hurry! Discount offer ends on May 1 

JOIN TODAY: Go to https://msagb.com/join or call 01787 221020

For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com 

Why join? 

Just some of the benefits 

that membership brings 

n Products 

and services 

- including 

our Terms of 

Business and 

handy guides written by 

our industry experts 

Check out our App 

n Networking with fellow ADIs: 

Get involved through our regional 

networks - friendly advice and 

support that’s on your doorstep 

MSA GB has its own app that can be downloaded free from 

Apple Play and Google Play stores. 

It contains all the latest information on the driver training 

and testing sector, including policy updates, news from 

the DVSA and the latest on L-tests. 

It also includes details on MSA GB events, benefits, 

exclusive discounts and much, much more. 

Keep up-to-date in a flash with all that’s going on: 

Download it today. 

Representing the profession 

MSA GB is in constant touch with the Department for Transport 

and the DVSA as they look to develop the L-test and Standards 

Check for ADIs. That way you get to influence the future of 

driver training and testing. We always ask you for your views and 

take them directly to the people at the top. 

Essential legal protection 

Professional indemnity cover – up 

to £5m – and £10m public liability 

insurance included in your 

membership FREE 

More on this on pg 4-5 

CPD: vital for the 

modern ADI 

Subsidised - 

sometimes FREE 

- training material, 

guides and exclusive 

CPD courses to keep 

your tuition fresh and 

ahead of the field 


Welcome to MSA GB 

Who we are, how we’re run 

Who we are 

The Motor Schools Association of Great 

Britain (MSA) was formed on March 31, 

1935, just before the driving test was 

introduced. Its principal aims, then as now, 

are to keep members informed of any 

matters of interest to them, to represent 

the views of members to Government, its 

departments and agencies, to provide 

services that will be of benefit to members 

and to set standards of professional and 

ethical behaviour for teachers of driving. 

Who owns the MSA GB? 

The MSA GB is a non-profit-making 

association, without shareholders, owned by 

and run for the benefit of its membership. 

Membership 

Membership is open to all Approved 

Driving Instructors (ADIs). PDIs join as 

Probationary Members and their 

membership is automatically converted to 

Full on qualification. MSA GB also offers 

membership to motorcycle and LGV 

instructors, as well as deliverers of driver 

improvement courses. 

How it is run 

The MSA GB is a company limited by 

guarantee. Formal title is The Motor 

Schools Association of Great Britain Ltd. 

Registered in London (615026). The 

association’s registered office is: 

Peershaws, Berewyk Hall Court, White 

Colne, Colchester, Essex CO6 2QB 

The MSA GB is run on behalf of members 

by the Board of Management. Board 

members are all working driving 

instructors and are paid no salary for the 

work they do. 

All full members have voting rights and 

can join their area committees, vote at the 

AGM and help decide future strategy and 

direction of the association. 

Some of the benefits of 

joining MSA GB 

Manned phone lines to help 

you during office hours 

Advice on dealing with the 

DVSA... L-test examiners... 

and your Standards Check 

Professional help if you are 

threatened with being 

removed from the register 

Cost-effective CPD 

to keep your tuition 

skills up to date 

What are the main benefits? 

The MSA offers members benefits falling under four headings: 

INFORMATION – through Newslink, the MSA GB website and our social media channels. 

REPRESENTATION – if you have a problem with your work as an ADI, we will offer advice 

and guidance and represent your interests. In particular, if you need help with the DVSA, 

perhaps because they are threatening to remove your ADI registration, contact us and we 

will try to help. Every year we represent many ADIs in cases against the DVSA. We also act 

as expert witnesses in instructor-pupil disputes. 

SERVICES – Members automatically receive professional indemnity insurance worth up to 

£5m and £10 public liability insurance - FREE OF CHARGE. This is an essential service: legal 

protection, covering you against legal claims arising from your tuition. 

SUPPORT – We also organise events on your behalf, including our annual conference every 

March and area AGMs each autumn. 

Free, professionally written Terms of 

Business will make sure you’re covered 

MSA GB members receive access to our superb and highly 

recommended Terms of Business. These are free for you to 

download and allow you to present yourself to pupils in a businesslike 

fashion by setting out the ‘rules’ that will govern the relationship 

between the ADI and the pupil in a professional manner. A printed 

version (as photo) is available to purchase from Driving School 

Supplies, updated in April 2023. 

The Terms cover items such payment terms, lesson duration, 

conduct of both parties during lessons, cancellations and the 

responsibilities both parties carry in terms of licensing and the rules 

of the road. 

Here is an example that highlights their usefulness: You receive a 

fine for using your car in a bus lane. 

You don’t recall this incident and on checking your diary you 

realise the car was on an L-test at the time of the incident. As the 

person responsible for the vehicle you are 

required to pay the fine. Unlike an offence 

like speeding, the law requires you to pay, 

not to provide details of the driver. Luckily, 

you and your pupil have signed the MSA 

GB Terms of Business. 

Clause 12 states: During an official 

driving test the client is in charge of the 

vehicle and is liable for any fines or 

charges levied as a result of any motoring 

offence committed. 

You are therefore able to claim the fee 

from the client. 

That’s why you need the reassurance of 

having the MSA’s Terms of Business behind you. 

Updated in 

April 2023 



FREE to members: Our professional indemnity 

and public liability insurance has you covered 

As part of our membership offer, MSA GB 

has arranged Public Liability Insurance and 

Professional Idemnity Insurance for all 

members. Public Liability Insurance is up to 

the sum of £10m and Professional 

Indemnity insurance is up to the sum of 

£5m for when members are engaged in 

any driver training that they are qualified 

to deliver... 

Th e Public Liability Insurance protects 

members where a third party makes a 

claim, caused by the negligence of the 

member, for personal injury or damage to 

property, not belonging to the member, 

when outside the car. 

Th e Professional Indemnity Insurance 

covers members in case of action taken 

against them by a third party for 

professional error, negligence or omission 

in the professional advice they give to the 

public. 

Sounds great... but why would I need it? 

These two policies are so important that 

if you decide to move into teaching 

business fleet drivers or on behalf of local 

authorities, colleges or other public sector 

bodies, they will insist on you having such 

cover in place before employing you. It is 

also a requirement to have such insurance 

in place if you are going to hire facilities for 

classroom tuition. 

Why would I need it? The cover protects 

you should a pupil or another third party 

bring a legal action against you for 

damages. 

As an ADI you are expected to maintain 

the highest standards at all times when 

supervising learners, but if ever your 

standards should slip, or are perceived to 

have slipped by a court, and someone else 

is hurt, then you are vulnerable to a claim 

made against you. 

How does it work? An example case 

would be where, during a lesson, you and 

your pupil are involved in a car crash, in 

which the pupil is injured. 

Subsequently the pupil claims his/her 

injuries were due to your poor tuition and 

supervision of the lesson. They contract a 

solicitor on a no-win, no-fee basis and 

proceed to being a civil case against you for 

damages. 

What can the ADI do? As a member of 

the MSA GB, you would enact the free 

Professional Indemnity cover that comes 

as part of membership. It protects you for 

up to £5 million of legal costs and damages. 

Any court case would still be a trying 

experience but at least you would be 

covered financially. 

If you were not covered you would have 

to either contract a solicitor out of your 

own pocket and fight the claim or agree to 

pay damages to the pupil. Either way you 

will be out of pocket. 

That’s the peace of mind and protection 

that professional indemnity insurance can 

bring – and you get it free of charge as a 

member. 

Start your cover now: Just go to 

https://msagb.com/join and use Discount 

Code Newslink to secure your year’s 

membership for just £60 – saving you 

£25. All benefits start immediately 

you join. 

Ready to support and serve 

MSA GB members are served by 

a dedicated team of staff at our 

head office. 

MSA GB is administered by a professional 

team at CJAM, who provide support with 

the day-to-day running of MSA GB, as 

well as supporting members with any 

issues they may have. 

CJAM has extensive experience 

supporting trade bodies, charities, 

professional institutions, societies, and 

business clients. 

They have access to the latest skills, 

tools, and methods of best practice, 

ensuring MSA GB runs as smoothly and 

efficiently as possible. 

The MSA GB team is led by Helen 

Shears. As the first point of contact for 

MSA GB members, Helen is very friendly 

and approachable. Working closely with 

the team and using her experience of 

managing ‘not for profit’ groups, she 

brings meticulous administrative skills to 

the association, ensuring that members 

receive consistent and helpful support, so 

they can make the best use of their 

membership and its benefits. 

For any member enquiries, please do 

not hesitate to contact us on: info@ 

msagb.com or to speak to Helen direct on 

01787 221 020. 

TURN TO THE NEXT PAGE TO READ THE APRIL ISSUE OF NEWSLINK IN FULL


Conference proves there’s no 

substitute for face-to-face events 

Colin Lilly 

Editor, 


At the end of March, MSA GB held its annual 

conference in Telford. I say annual but the last 

four years were affected by Covid 19 and its 

after effects, so they were held via Zoom. 

The opportunity to meet face-to-face was 

taken by some members who had attended 

before but many were attending for the first 

time. Reports on the speakers are given 

elsewhere in this issue (from pg 14). 

Many trainers feel that the internet can act 

as a source for the information they require, 

but face-to-face events provide much more. 

Not only do the presenters share information 

on their field of expertise, they answer 

questions, not only at the time, but 

individually during the breaks. 

The fact that delegates had the 

opportunity to network and discuss events 

of the day adding to the event’s valuable 

Continuous Professional Development (CPD). 

The DVSA has stated that it sets great store 

on gaining CPD. Zoom events do not give you 

this added value. 

For a day delegate to participate cost less 

than the price of two hour-long lessons. The 

value to the trainer is worth much more than 

that. Without development there is 

stagnation. 

Conference report 

Members enjoyed a great weekend in Telford at the 

2024 MSA GB Conference. Find out what happened 

in our full coverage, starting on page 14 

If you feel that you cannot attend a national 

event there will more local events held 

throughout the year, by the MSA GB Area 

teams. These are scaled down versions of the 

main event but of equal value. 

Details of these events are publicised in 

Newslink and on the MSA GB website. Make 

2024 the year that you attend one of these 

events to see for yourself. 

Just after the conference the DVSA 

announced that its employees who are 

members of the Public and Commercial 

Services Union (PCS) had accepted the 

Memorandum of Understanding covering the 

dispute it had with DVSA. These issues 

involved terms and conditions and standards 

of safety for driving tests. 

Hopefully, the continuing discussions will 

lead to a more stable delivery of driving tests 

without the threat of strikes, 

This is unlikely to lead to an immediate 

reduction in driving test waiting times as it 

coincides with the return to normal duties for 

the warrant card holders who had been 

conducting driving tests. 

However, in the long term this may attract 

more recruits to conduct driving tests and 

their retention. 

The driving test waiting times are reducing 

but not by as much as the DVSA, trainers and 

learners would like. 

Let us hope this situation resolves itself; 

the end to the examiner dispute is an 

important step forward. 

Welcome to your 

digital, interactive 


See a pale blue box in any article or 

on an advert? It it contains a web 

address or email, it’s interactive. Just 

click and it will take you to the 

appropriate web page or email so you 

can find more details easier. 

You’ll also find these panels across 

the magazine: just click for more 

information on any given subject. 

To get the 

full story, 

click here 

How to access this 

magazine 

You can read Newslink in three ways: 

Go online and read the interactive 

magazine on the Yumpu website; or, 

if you would like to read it when you 

don’t have a mobile signal or WiFi, 

you can download the magazine to 

your tablet, PC or phone to read at 

your leisure. Alternatively, a pdf can 

be found on the MSA GB website, at 

www.msagb.com 

Follow the link 

MSA GB sends 

you to access 

Newslink, 

and then just 

click Download 

(circled above) 

to save a copy 

on your device 


COVER STORY 

A screengrab from 

the new BBC film 

Drive Fast Die Young, 

which has been hailed 

by road safety 

professionals 

and the DVSA as a 

game-changer in 

highlighting the 

problems the UK has with young male 

drivers addicted to dangerous driving and 

speeding. See pg 12 


Issue 375 • April 2024 

New documentary 

a ‘must watch’ 

We work for a l Driver Trainers. Want to join? SAVE £25 – see pg 39 for special offer 

msagb.com 

MSA GB Conference: 

Full report inside 

from page 14 

BBC film Drive Fast, Die Young described 

as a ‘game changer’ in helping young 

men kick the dangerous driving habit 

NEWSLINK n APRIL 2024 07

Contents 

CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS 

Young riders targeted 

in Spring campaign 

The National Young Rider Forum has 

launched a new social media campaign to 

support young motorbikers this Spring – 10 

Spotting the 

danger zones on a 

commentary 

drive: pg 34 

34 

Heartbreaking film gets to truth 

of young driver casualties 

A new film by the BBC has been hailed a 

game-changer in the way it confronts the 

consequences of dangerous driving – 12 

Taking a test in a non-ADI car: 

does it make a difference? 

Finally, MSA GB gets to the truth of whether 

having dual controls on a driving test makes 

any difference to pass rates – 14 

Learner harrassment is getting 

worse, new poll finds 

81% of learners have faced aggression from 

other road users while on a lesson – and their 

ADIs say it’s getting worse – 16 

Enhanced CPD: why it matters and 

how it helps 

Neil Wightman continues his series of 

articles on the advantages ADIs can gain 

from taking CPD – 33 

The NHS needs your help – 

in learning to park 

An enforced hospital stay has John Lomas 

asking, who teaches doctors and nurses to 

park like that...! – 38 

An ADI on holiday... is still an ADI, 

says Brian Thomson 

Even during a spot of RnR in Gran Canaria, 

Brian Thomson can’t stop thinking about 

driver training –40 



The Motor Schools Association 

of Great Britain Ltd 

Head Office: 

Peershaws, 

Berewyk Hall Court, 

White Colne, Colchester, 

Essex CO6 2QB 

T: 01787 221020 

E: info@msagb.com 

Newslink is published monthly on behalf of the MSA GB 

and distributed to members and selected recently 

qualified ADIs throughout Great Britain by: 

Chamber Media Services, 

4 Hilton Road, Bramhall, Stockport, 

Cheshire SK7 3AG 

Editorial/Production: Rob Beswick 

e: rob@chambermediaservices.co.uk 

t: 0161 426 7957 

Advertising sales: Colin Regan 

e: colinregan001@yahoo.co.uk 

t: 01942 537959 / 07871 444922 

Views expressed in Newslink are not necessarily those 

of the MSA GB or the publishers. 

Although every effort is made 

to ensure the accuracy of 

material contained within 

this publication, neither MSA 

GB nor the publishers can 

accept any responsibility for 

the veracity of claims made 

by contributors in either 

advertising or editorial content. 

©2024 The Motor Schools 

Association of Great Britain 

Ltd. Reproducing in whole 

or part is forbidden without 

express permission of the 

editor. 

08 NEWSLINK n APRIL 2024


MSA GB Board 

of Management 

National Chairman & 

Area 2 - East Coast Chair 

Mike Yeomans 

7 Oak Avenue, Elloughton, 

Brough HU15 1LA 

T: 07772 757529 

E: mike.yeomans@msagb.com 

AREA 1 

Vice Chairman 

Peter Harvey MBE 

T: 01505 814823 

E: peter.harveymbe@msagb.com 

Area 1 – Scotland & 

Northern Ireland 

Chair: Steven Porter 

18 Heron Place, Johnstone 

PA5 0RW 

T: 01505 345372 or 

07747 600672 

E: steven.porter@msagb.com 

Area 3 – London & South East 

Chair: Tom Kwok 

52B Sutton Road, Muswell Hill, 

London N10 1HE 

07956 269922 

E: tom.kwok@msagb.com 

How MSA GB 

is organised, in 

four AREAS 

AREA 4 

AREA 2 

AREA 3 

Area 4 – West Coast & Wales 

Chair: Arthur Mynott 

9 Hagleys Green, Crowcombe, 

Taunton TA4 4AH 

T: 01984 618858 

E: arthur.mynott@msagb.com 

Keep in touch 

If you have updated your address, telephone numbers or 

changed your email address recently, please let us know 

at head office by emailing us with your new details and 

membership number to info@msagb.com. 

If you can’t find your membership number, give us a ring 

on 01787 221020. 

Follow MSA GB on social media 

Just click on the icon to go 

through to the relevant site 


News 

Young bikers targeted as forum pushes 

its ‘Ready to Ride’ campaign for spring 

The National Young Rider Forum has launched 

a new social media campaign to support 

young motorbikers this Spring. 

The campaign includes its ‘Ready to Ride?’ 

educational film, which details the steps that 

a young person needs to take if they are 

considering becoming a motorcyclist. 

Funded by The Road Safety Trust and Kent 

County Council, it covers vital topics such as 

licensing, safety equipment, maintaining a 

motorcycle and riding safely in sections 

presented by young people themselves. 

The campaign was launched ahead of 

Easter, to coincide with a return to the roads 

for many motorcyclists, pedal cyclists, horse 

riders and pedestrians. 

It encourages young riders to watch out for 

hazards on the roads and to make the right 

choices about what to wear – to give them 

the best possible protection in the event of a 

collision. 

Heidi Duffy MBE, facilitator of the National 

Young Rider Forum, said: “This campaign aims 

to raise awareness to new and young riders 

that the warmer, drier weather will make the 

roads much busier. 

“Therefore, it is vitally important they are 

watching out for hazards on the roads, as well 

as making the right choices about what to 

wear – just in case they come a cropper!” 

Ruth Purdie OBE, chief executive of The 

Road Safety Trust, said: “It is well known that 

motorcyclists are over-represented in crash 

statistics. 

“This timely campaign makes use of a 

great resource, which covers a series of 

important topics for young riders to 

consider.” 

‘Ready to Ride?’ is designed to fit into 

school, college and university timetables, or 

any other classroom opportunity, and can be 

delivered by road safety professionals, 

emergency service personnel or teaching 

staff. 

The interactive film is 40 mins in length and 

features young actors who take the audience 

through five sections of information which 

potential young motorcyclists will find useful 

as they set out on the journey to be a new 

rider. 

The film comes in two versions, one with 

subtitles. It also includes lesson plans and 

additional presenter information as well as 

evaluation sheets. 

You can watch the film at https:// 

newriderhub.net/ready-to-ride/ 

THINK! again 

on seat belts 

The Department for Transport’s road 

safety team at THINK! is launching a 

new seat belts campaign to encourage 

young men to wear their seat belts, 

“whatever the journey, whether 

they’re a driver or passenger”. 

The campaign speaks to male drivers 

aged 17-24 years as they are overrepresented 

in car fatalities and 

casualties where a seat belt is not 

worn. The creative focuses on the 

‘CLICK’ sound of a seat belt fastening, 

which serves as an audible and visual 

reminder that something as simple as 

clicking your seat belt could save your 

life, and the lives of your friends. 

CLICK HERE to read more about the 

campaign. 

New police operation to put the 

spotlight on driving’s ‘Fatal Four’ 

Police forces across the country are 

supporting a four-week operation to 

highlight the ‘fatal four’ offences in a bid to 

improve road safety and reduce KSI incidents. 

The operation, which got underway at the 

start of April, is being co-ordinated by the 

National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC). 

The operation will focus on all vehicle types 

and road users, with forces conducting joint 

partnership and cross border operations. 

The aim is to educate road users on the 

perils of the fatal four – not wearing a 

seatbelt, drink and drug driving, speeding and 

using a handheld mobile phone. 

The Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership 

will be sharing information on social media to 

encourage seatbelt use, demonstrate the 

risks posed by the fatal four and the penalties 

drivers and passengers will face when they 

are caught. Officers will be increasing their 

presence on the county’s roads to look for 

drivers who choose to offend. 

Sgt Chris McSharry, who is involved in the 

operation in the Midlands, said: 

“Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership has a 

target to reduce the number of people killed 

or seriously injured on our roads by 50% by 

2030. 

“We are asking drivers and passengers to 

please make it a habit to check everyone is 

wearing a seatbelt before travelling because 

a seatbelt is one of the simplest and most 

effective things you can do to reduce the risk 

of injury in a collision. 

“If you are on a night out, don’t forget it’s 

your car so your rules – please make sure all 

your passengers wear a seatbelt. There’s no 

excuses for not doing so.” 



Nick Bitel re-appointed as DVSA executive chair 

Nick Bitel has been reappointed as Non- 

Executive Chair of DVSA, and Helen Aston 

has been appointed as its non-executive 

director, replacing Emir Feisal.. 

Nick was originally appointed for a 

three-year term in July 2021. He has been 

reappointed for a further three-year term 

and will continue to play a vital role in the 

effective strategic and operational leadership 

of the DVSA. 

In addition to acting as a non-executive 

director, Helen Aston will chair the DVSA’s 

audit and risk committee. 

Helen is a Chartered Accountant and brings 

a wealth of leadership experience, with 10 

years as the executive director of finance and 

corporate services at The Pensions 

Regulator. She also holds non-executive 

roles at Defence Business Services and the 

Valuation Office Agency. 

Guy Opperman, the Roads Minister, said: ” I 

would like to congratulate Nick and 

Helen on their appointments, and 

would also like to thank Emir Feisal 

for his dedication and work with 

the DVSA as Helen’s predecessor. 

“Nick and Helen are clear in their 

commitment to back drivers and 

keep the country moving and I look 

forward to working closely with them to 

ensure the DVSA continues its great work in 

backing drivers and keeping Britain’s roads 

safe. 

Nick Bitel said: “I’m delighted to be 

re-appointed. Over the last three years, 

we have faced significant challenges 

in the aftermath of the pandemic, 

and I am proud of the hard work, 

drive and commitment shown by 

colleagues and senior leaders 

across DVSA. 

“I look forward to working with 

Nick Bitel 

Helen to help achieve DVSA’s vision 

to keep Britain moving, safely and 

sustainably. I also want to express 

my gratitude to Emir Feisal for his 

sterling work with our audit and risk 

committee.” 

Loveday Ryder, DVSA Chief Executive, 

said: “Nick has played a pivotal role in DVSA’s 

work to recover our services following the 

pandemic and develop a vision and strategic 

plan for the future, and I am delighted he has 

been re-appointed. I’m also really 

pleased to welcome Helen as our new 

Non-Executive Director, and thank 

Emir Feisal for his contribution to 

the DVSA over the past three 

years.” 

Loveday Ryder 


News 

ADIs urged to make heartbreaking BBC 

documentary key part of their lesson plans 

A devastating new film produced by the BBC 

has been described as “a must watch for all 

learner drivers, and those who have just 

passed their test.” 

Drive Fast Die Young tells the heartbreaking 

story of Sammy Phillips, who was 

killed in 2023 at the age of 19 after a car he 

was travelling in left the road at high speed 

and smashed into a tree. 

The driver, his friend Lewis, was three 

times over the drink-drive limit, and was 

travelling at an “insane speed”, according to 

an eye witness. 

The film is narrated by Sammy’s older 

brother Jamie, and details how he and his 

family came to terms with Sammy’s death. 

Jamie interviewed the two Thames Vally 

Police officers tasked with attending the 

crash scene, as well as the paramedic who 

was the first health responder. 

The officers admit that having to tell the 

family about a bereavement was the 

“toughest part of the job. You know that you 

are about to ruin someone’s life, telling them 

that their son or daughter is dead.” 

The paramedic reflected that his first 

thought, on realising the two occupants had 

died, was “what a waste, and how stupid.” 

Police investigators found that the car had 

clipped the kerb while travelling at high speed 

and had flipped in the air, before crashing into 

trees by the side of the road. 

It hit a tree eight feet up, roof first, 

delivering sickening and unsurvivable head 

injuries to the two young men. 

The only consolation for the families was 

that death would have been instantaneous; 

“they will have felt nothing,” said the coroner. 

Jamie is filmed visiting the scene where he 

sees the scars on the tree where it was 

struck by the car. “I stand here and know, 

this is exactly where Sammy died. It’s 

horrible,” Jamie says. 

He also talked to Dr Elizabeth Box, research 

director for the RAC Foundation, and Dr 

Shaun Helam, chief scientist at the TRL Ltd, 

who highlight the problems new drivers have 

with being attracted to dangerous behaviour. 

Dr Box points out that the male brain 

develops differently from the female, and it is 

hard-wired to seek “thrills and risk-taking”, 

something that fades away in their middle 

20s. “But at 17-18, young men have a 

sensation-seeking craving, just at the point 

when we give them driving licences.” 

Dr Helam says “we have a societal 

blindspot” over the consequences of 

dangerous driving, and that fatal incidents 

such as Sammy’s make graduated licences 

something that must be introduced. 

“Policymakers go on about them being 

difficult to enforce, but that’s not a reason for 

doing nothing.” 

Jamie expresses his anger that England no 

longer has a road safety strategy, and hasn’t 

had one since the Conservative Party came 

to power in 2010. 

There is also a fascinating interview with a 

young rapper called Ned Price. Ned describes 

how he was deligted to pass his driving test 

when 17 - but the day was ruined when he 

crashed his car the very same day. 

Did he learn anything from the lesson? “No, 

I got straight into a borrowed car and within 

two weeks had crashed that as well!” 

Unsurprisingly the two crashes were 

enough for him to receive a ban, and he lost 

his licence. “That’s what hurt. I never thought 

‘I was lucky to survive those crashes’”, he 

tells Jamie. “I thought I was invincible. The 

Screengrabs from the programme. Right, 

floral tributes left at the scene of the fatal 

crash, and above the car crash of the year 

before, which amazingly he walked away 

from unscathed. The car was being driven far 

above the speed limit, but “I was too scared 

to tell him to slow down,” Sammy later said 

only thing that really made me stop and think 

was when I realised I had to re-take my 

theory and L-test again. That changed me.” 

The last word goes to Jamie and his mum. 

They recall that a year before his death, 

Sammy was in another crash, which left the 

car a write-off but which, amazingly, both he 

and the driver walked away from unscathed. 

When asked what the driver was doing 

Sammy admitted he was driving very fast 

and, heartbreakingly, had left him scared – 

but “I wasn’t brave enough to tell him to slow 

down.” It’s hard not to think, if only you had. 

If you get your pupils to do one thing in the 

next week or two, get them to watch the film 

and then base your next lesson around it. It 

could be the most important hour’s tuition 

you ever give them. 

Click here to 

watch the film 



DVSA low carbon plans focus on flexible delivery 

The DVSA has set out its commitment to a 

sustainable and Net Zero strategy in a new 

policy paper. 

It highlights previous successes on the low 

carbon agenda, including converting 25% of 

its fleet to ultra low emission vehicles, 

reducing carbon travel emissions by 27% and 

installing solar panels at three DVSA sites. 

But it aims to go further. As the paper 

points out, “Road use is changing to a more 

automated and digitised way of travelling. We 

want to be at the forefront of this transition.” 

As a result, moving towards 2030, it will 

Residents’ voice their 

anger over ADIs’ 

actions near DTC 

Complaints have been raised by local 

residents regarding ADIs’ cars obstructing 

driveways and junctions unnecessarily in the 

area around the Birmingham Kingstanding 

driving test centre. 

The DVSA is asking ADIs to remember they 

must be considerate to local neighbours 

when attending/leaving that driving test 

centre (DTC), and to be particularly careful on 

on Birdbrook Road and Rodlington Avenue. 

Using Birmingham Kingstanding DTC 

ADIs are reminded that they should only 

use the car park if they are attending a 

driving test, and only come into the test 

centre 10 minutes prior to your candidates’ 

test. If you are hoping to familiarise yourself 

with the area, you can view the car park and 

its layout by using an online street view. 

“By being considerate to neighbours we 

reduce the chance of disruption to testing in 

the future”, the DVSA said. 

Record high licence holders - 

but fewer young people 

The number of driving licence holders has hit 

a record milestone with more than 42 million 

people now holding a full licence. 

42,120,966 people now have a full UK 

driving licence, compared to 41,570,822 this 

time last year. 

But the number of younger licence holders 

is down: there are 3.05 million licensed 

drivers aged 16 to 25 in the UK, 8% fewer than 

held a licence in March 2020, when 3.32 

million 16 to 25-year-olds had a full driving 

licence. 

invest further in decarbonising its car and van 

fleet by replacing existing hybrid and diesel 

vehicles with battery electric vehicles (BEVs) 

to achieve near to zero tailpipe emissions by 

the end of 2027. 

In addition it will reduce overall greenhouse 

gas emissions and direct emissions from a 

2017 to 2018 baseline – this is a total scope 

reduction of 33%, including fleet emissions 

reduced by 35% 

Of interest to ADIs will be an aim to “be 

proactive in identifying new ways to deliver 

our services. Projects are underway to 

further explore the alternatives to our 

current fixed driving test centre estate: the 

flexible test delivery service (FTDS) and 

automated route generation initiatives. 

“These, supported by the new driver 

services platform project, will help us to 

reduce our future reliance on the use of fixed 

driving test centres, while improving our 

service offering to our customers.” 

Overall its goal is to reduce greenhouse gas 

emissions linked to DVSA activity from 

electricity by 79% and fossil fuels by 6% from 

a 2017 to 2018 baseline. 


News 

Big fall in pass rates when no duals involved 

During Conference a delegate put the 

following question to the DVSA: ‘Do 

candidates fare better or worse on their 

L-test if they take it in their own car, without 

dual controls being present?’ 

The suggestion back was to “put an FOI in, 

and find out.” 

So Newslink did... read on for the answer! 

In recent months there has been a lot of 

debate around candidates taking their L-test 

in their own cars, and as a consequence, 

taking it without dual controls being present. 

In particular ADIs have wondered whether 

taking a test in a non-ADI car impacts on the 

pass rate. Are examiners less inclined to pass 

a candidate without duals being present, or is 

the act of taking a test without your 

instructor being involved likely to lend itself 

to a greater chance of a fail – or a pass? 

This has become an increasingly important 

question as more and more learners, 

desperate to obtain an L-test slot, have 

booked tests without first checking with 

their ADI that they are available on the day 

and at the time in question – or whether they 

are ready to take their test. 

In addition, some ADIs have refused to 

accompany their pupils on tests when they 

think they are clearly not ready, particularly if 

they feel a bad fail could impact on their TIP 

score. 

So, do candidates fare better in their own 

cars, without duals, or does it make no 

difference to overall pass rates? 

We asked the DVSA, and the answer is, 

yes, it does make a difference – and a quite 

sizeable one at that. 

We asked the DVSA ‘How many candidates 

took their driving test (L-test) in a car which 

did not have dual controls fitted, from 

September 2023-February 2024.’ 

The answer may surprise you, as it is a lot; 

in fact during that period 165,403 people 

took tests in cars without dual controls. 

We estimate that that period saw around 

900,000 L-tests being conducted, so ‘own 

car tests’ amounted to just under 20 per cent 

of the vehicles used. That is a far higher 

proportion than previously; in many years 

‘own car’ tests made up far fewer than 10 per 

cent of the whole. 

And now the $64m question: how did they 

do? The answer is... pretty badly! 

At present the pass rate for the L-test as a 

whole is reasonably high, at around 48.6%. 

But for those taking a test in a vehicle 

without dual controls, the pass rate is 42.6% 

– that’s a drop of just over 12 per cent. 

Impact on L-test waiting times 

To put that in context, if candidates could 

take their test only in an ADI’s car with duals 

fitted, and the pass rates stayed the same, 

based on 1.8 million tests a year, 10,000 more 

people would pass the L-test every six 

months. That would reduce the number of 

candidates on the L-test waiting list by a 

minimum of 20,000 a year. 

Why a minimum? Because we are 

assuming that every failure only takes one 

more test; but as we all know, some 

candidates will take multiple goes before 

leaving the L-test scene with a pass. 

So there we have it: if the DVSA stopped all 

tests without dual controls, logic tells us we 

would immediately reduce the waiting list by 

at least 20,000 in a year. Over to you, DVSA. 

For more on the DVSA at the MSA GB 

Conference, see page 14 

Peggy Hutchins: A titan of the Taunton ADI scene 

Colin Lilly 

Editor, 


As this issue of Newslink was being prepared 

for publication, I heard the sad news of the 

passing of a former MSA GB Member of the 

Year, Peggy Hutchins. 

Peggy was a formidable character who 

was Chairman of the local Taunton 

Association of Driving Instructors. She was 

respected by her fellow instructors, the then 

Driving Standards Agency and local authority 

road safety officers. 

She set up many young driver courses in 

local schools supporting local trainers. One of 

her proteges was Arthur Mynott, himself a 

past MSA GB Member of the Year and 

currently West Coast and Wales Chairman. 

She always promoted the MSA GB to every 

instructor she met, and highlighted the value 

of being a member. It was in recognition of 

her work for the association and driver 

training in Somerset that she was named as 

our Member of the Year in 2000. 

In recent years she had been affected by 

the conditions of old age and had been living 

quietly in a nursing home where she passed 

away on 30th March. 

I am sure that many established driver 

trainers in the Taunton area, her countless 

former pupils and past and present members 

of the MSA GB regional committee, of which 

she was once the Deputy Chairman, will have 

many fond memories of Peggy. 

A celebration of her life will be held at 

Taunton Deane Crematorium on Friday, 19th 

April at 11.20am. 

A true stalwart of the profession and of 

this association: thank you, Peggy. 

Rest in peace 



New report lifts lid on impact of driver fatigue 

MSA GB was recently made aware of a report 

on driver fatigue which is a worthwhile 

training aid and discussion document. 

One of the principle factors behind traffic 

collisions is driver fatigue. Research by 

ROSPA has found that 20% of crashes have 

driver fatigue as a factor, as do a quarter of 

killed and seriously injured collisions. 

A report summarising the information 

available on the topic has been published by 

Hendy Car Store (Driver Fatigue: An Essential 

Guide to Road Safety (hendycarstore.co.uk). 

The report has sections outlining the factors 

involved. 

n Driver fatigue statistics 

n Causes of driver fatigue 

n Advice on staying awake while driving 

n Driving fatigue and the law 

n Secondary sources of information 

The statistics highlight some interesting 

details. The counties where fatigue-related 

crashes are more prevalent are Kent and 

Devon, and perhaps unsurprisingly, young 

drivers are more likely to continue to drive 

when tired, and do not accept that it affects 

their driving. This is seen to be due to 

over-confidence in their abilities. Again no 

surprise but this is more likely to be seen in 

males rather than females. 

Reviewing the causes of driver fatigue it 

deals with medical conditions and 

psychological conditions. It also deals with 

lifestyle choices such as sleep patterns, diet 

and exercise. 

Looking at the work and other 

commitments drivers have, many may be 

unavoidable, but drivers need to be aware of 

the effects on their performance. The effects 

of shift patterns, workload and driving hours 

are discussed, alongside family commitments. 

The advice on staying awake does not deal 

with battling against fatigue after its onset 

but rather preparation for a long trip; foods to 

assist and those to avoid, getting enough 

rest, managing long journeys to avoid fatigue 

and knowing when not to drive. 

The legal aspects of driving fatigued are 

outlined, included the penalties for falling 

asleep at the wheel, which could be 

considered as dangerous driving and can lead 

to 14 years imprisonment, through to lesser 

offences which still have legal repercussions. 

It also covers the legal aspects of sleeping 

in cars and driving hours. 

There are links to other sources of 

information on the subject. 

Overall, it is a valuable teaching aid on the 

subject of driver fatigue, which all our clients 

will be affected by this at some time. 

Click here for the 

full report 


News 

Learner harrassment getting worse - and 

now P-plates are in the firing line, too 

New research by Marmalade Insurance has 

revealed that hassling and intimidating 

learner drivers and new drivers displaying 

P-plates is becoming worse. 

Indeed, according to 59% of driving 

instructors, the problem has worsened since 

the pandemic. 

Marmalade found that 81% of learner 

drivers have been on the receiving end of 

abuse or intimidation. 44% said the worst 

place for this was at roundabouts, with 29% 

saying it occured at traffic lights. 

In total, 99% of instructors said they had 

witnessed other drivers being abusive or 

intimidating towards learners during lessons. 

As one ADI put it, “I was a driving instructor 

for several years and encountered this 

[intimidation] daily. I also got verbal abuse 

and rude hand gestures when my pupils 

stalled the car, especially at a roundabout or 

traffic lights.” 

The impact of on-road intimidation 

and abuse 

Unsurprisingly, learners said this all made 

them feel more anxious when driving, with 

9% taking a break from driving as a result. 

91% of instructors say behaviour from other 

drivers has impacted learners negatively. 72% 

of learners made more mistakes as a direct 

result of the aggressive driving of others. 

Incidents usually involved shouting, 

gesticulating and driving too close, as well as 

aggressive overtaking, but some young 

drivers reported having their car purposely 

bumped. 

As one of the learners pointed out, 

however: “Beeping at me isn’t going to make 

me recover from stalling any quicker!”. 

Tackling the problem 

The majority of learners and instructors 

surveyed suggested that they would support 

on-the-spot fines for aggressive drivingt 

towards ADIs and learners, 54% and 67% 

respectively, with 72% of instructors calling 

for three penalty points on culprit’s licences. 

Perhaps more fittingly for society, 

however, 46% of learners and 69% of 

instructors felt anger management courses 

for offenders would be beneficial. 

At the very least, both parties called for 

greater public awareness of the problem, 

with a publicity campaign ran by the DVSA 

informing the rest of the motoring public that 

such behaviour just wasn’t fair, wasn’t 

helping and needed to stop. 

72% of instructors supported learners 

having their own category or special mention 

in the Highway Code hierarchy of road users. 

Worst offenders 

Results suggest that males aged 30-39 

rank as the biggest culprits for bullying 

behaviour, with 64% of learners identifying 

this age group, while 70% said men in general 

were most abusive. In terms of vehicles, 

behind cars, 57% said abuse came from those 

Get out of our boot! 

ADIs may recall that Marmalade ran a 

petition in 2022, asking for the 

Government to make harrassing learners a 

specific offence. The petition called on the 

Government to make disregard for the 

safety of drivers displaying an L-plate an 

aggravating factor in dangerous driving and 

careless driving offences. This would allow 

courts to impose stronger sentences on 

drivers who do not take sufficient 

precautions when driving near learners. 

It gained 10,705 signatures, which 

merited a Government response. It read: 

“The Government is committed to road 

safety, by identifying and prosecuting the 

few who make our roads less safe. 

Aggravating factors are set out in the 

in vans, while 18% said taxis. 

What about P plates? 

Only 30% of newly qualified drivers said 

that they used P plates when they first 

passed. Nearly half (47%) said one of the 

main reasons for not using them was so as 

not to be victimised by other drivers. In fact, 

nearly half of instructors (46%) advise their 

students NOT to use P-plates! Of those new 

drivers that used P plates, 50% said they did 

receive abuse on the roads. 

One parent said: “The worst tailgating my 

daughter experienced was after she passed 

her test and used P plates. It was so bad that I 

told her to remove them, as it was almost like 

a challenge for other drivers to harass.” 

P-plate wearers in London suffer the most 

frequent abuse. Indeed, London was the 

most hostile place in Britain to learn how to 

drive, with almost one in 10 (9%) 

experiencing abuse every time they drive. 

Learning to drive in Northern Ireland is a far 

more pleasant experience with almost a third 

(28%) of learners never experiencing abuse. 

In Great Britain, the North of England was 

also found to be a more welcoming place. 

When it comers to makes of cars, you’ll 

never guess which brand of car was 

mentioned more often than others, without 

prompting: BMW. 

What a surprise! 

sentencing guidelines.” 

It added: “The law is clear in the Road 

Traffic Act 1988 and set out in the Highway 

Code that drivers must not drive 

dangerously, without due care and 

attention or without reasonable 

consideration for other road users. 

“The Government keeps the road traffic 

offences under review, and the DfT plans to 

publish a call for evidence on motoring 

offences. Its scope and timings are still 

being worked on, but it is expected to 

include aspects of drink and drug driving 

and failure to stop and report. There will be 

an opportunity to raise other matters.” 

MSA GB notes that this has not 

happened. 



Private healthcare 

is peace of mind 

No matter how fit and healthy we are, it is 

inevitable that at some point in our lives we 

will fall ill and need medical care. And when 

illness does strike it is to the NHS that most 

people will turn in seeking a diagnosis, 

treatment and recovery. 

The NHS has for some years been showing 

signs that it, too, is not in the best of health. A 

growing and ageing population is putting an 

ever-increasing strain on staff and services. 

This is a problem exacerbated by the 

coronavirus pandemic. 

Reports of underfunding, a shortage of 

medical staff, noisy and overcrowded wards, 

cancelled operations and long waiting times 

will be familiar to everyone. 

In England, hospital waiting lists are longer 

than ever before, with a total waiting list of 

7.75 million people.* This is the highest 

number since records began and illustrates 

the severe pressure that the NHS is under. 

Quick, private and convenient 

Understandably, these lengthy delays are 

causing additional stress for patients, 

undermining their health and quality of life 

even further. How many people do you know 

whose physical health and mental well-being 

has deteriorated from the anxiety of having 

to wait months for a hospital appointment? 

All this can be avoided by taking out private 

health insurance. Seeing a doctor in private 

practice used to be only for the wealthy, but 

not anymore as the cost of private medical 

cover is becoming more affordable. 

A private medical plan delivers prompt 

access to hospital consultants, thus avoiding 

lengthy waiting lists. Patients can choose 

from an extensive list of hospitals throughout 

the UK; if they need to be admitted, they will 

have their own private room equipped with 

TV and telephone, and visiting is arranged to 

suit patient and family. 

A quick, private and convenient service 

that removes many of the anxieties 

associated with NHS hospital stays. 

Taking control of your healthcare 

However, those interested in taking out 

health insurance should not leave it too late. 

As we get older our healthcare needs 

increase. Therefore, as only some of the best 

health insurance companies provide cover for 

pre-existing conditions, the best time to 

invest in getting private treatment for 

illnesses you may suffer tomorrow – is today. 

By acting now you can ensure your future 

healthcare will not be dictated by NHS 

bureaucracy and, just as importantly, you will 

be able to benefit from the widest possible 

cover. 

Private health insurance cannot guarantee 

good health, but it can ensure that when you 

are feeling unwell you will quickly receive the 

best possible care, when and where you want 

it. The peace of mind that comes with that 

knowledge cannot be underestimated and is 

often the most important factor for people 

deciding to take control of their healthcare 

provision and “go private”. 

For further information and a no obligation 

quotation contact HMCA by telephone on 

01423 799949 or visit the exclusive HMCA 

Motor Schools Association of GB website 

here: https://www.hmca.co.uk/msa 

© HMCA/S PLC (trading as Hospital and Medical 

Care Association, HMCA and HMCA Members) is 

authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct 

Authority (FRN:307587). HMCA/s PLC is a 

company registered in England, company number: 

01362094, registered office: Beech Hall, 

Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, HG5 0EA. 

*The Telegraph 16th October 2023 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/ 

body/nhs-wait-list-private-treatment-backlogsurgery/ 

NEWSLINK n APRIL 2024 

17

Conference 2024 Telford: Full report 

The MSA GB Conference was back with a bang as members met up in Telford for a weekend of 

high-quality presentations on driver training and networking, as well as some well-deserved relaxation 

and fun. Over the next few pages we’ll try to capture the weekend’s key moments and offer a flavour 

of what was learned, what’s new, and what the future holds for ADIs 

Session 1: G Sabini-Roberts 

LGBT awareness 

and allyship 

Conference opened with a thoughtprovoking 

and informative presentation by 

G Sabini-Roberts on LGBT awareness and 

how ADIs can become effective allies to a 

community that still sees barriers and 

obstacles in its path, as well as criticism. 

Around 10-20 per cent of the UK 

population identifies as members of the 

LGBTQIA+ community - which means up to 

a fifth of your pupils could well place that 

description on themselves. 

How to address them, be aware of their 

needs and offer allyship were all covered in 

the session. 

G – who identifies as queer and nonbinary, 

and uses the pronouns they/them 

– offered a wealth of information and 

insights on the subject, with the key 

message being that everyone has a right to 

identify as they wish and have that view 

respected. 

At the heart of the presentation were 

details of the gay and trans communities, as 

well as information on intersex pupils. 

In working with learners who identify as 

LGBTQIA+ ADIs may make mistakes, and 

LGBTQIA+ 

L: Lesbian 

G: Gay 

B: Bisexual 

T: Trans 

I: Intersex 

A: Asexual 

+: + to represent those communities 

not represented above 

getting the language right is an 

important part of acceptance. 

G started by pointing out that 

views on gender were being 

challenged. Gender “is in the brain, 

not between the legs”. The sex 

you were designated at birth 

defines you in our society, but 

your sex is actually a 

combination of anatomy, 

chromosome and hormones. 

“People who believe they are wholly male 

or female could actually be less so, if they 

were to have a full chromosome or 

hormone test.” 

“It’s up to you how you live your life” 

G acknowledged that it is a complex 

issue, and that “you will make mistakes 

from time to time; the secret is to accept 

them, apologise and move on with the 

correct terms and language.” However, a 

bigger error was making a fuss over a 

mistake - “don’t start off by saying, ‘I’m 

going to get this wrong…’ as if it is a big deal 

for you in the first place, they stressed. 

Graphics and 

information sheets 

courtesy of QueerBox 

Avoid assumptions. Many people express 

their gender through clothing, but not 

everyone. Some female pupils may dress in 

an androgynous style, but be heterosexual. 

“You don’t have to present as a woman to 

be one,” G pointed out. 

The language we use is vital. “Pronouns 

are critical,” G said. “Ask the pupil first 

which pronoun they prefer, and keep 

conversations gender neutral until you are 

certain of how they present.” 

There were some words and phrases that 

should be avoided. Never use ‘transsexual’; 

it is outdated and considered offensive. 

Rather, if your pupil is trans, simply say 

trans woman or trans man. 

Similarly, never call anyone a 

haemaphrodite; they are intersex. 

When discussing the issue comments 

like ‘You don’t look gay/non-binary’ 

suggest there is a linear look to all people 

which they must comply with. That’s 

wrong; people don’t have to follow a set 

appearance to be that gender. 

Interestingly, one of the biggest 

challenges was around a word G used to 

describe themselves: Queer. G is happy to 

us that phrase but many in the LGBTQIA+ 

community dislike it and see it as a 



7 tips for allyship 

1. Make it a habit to ask for pronouns 

and introduce yours. 

2. Be careful not to assume the gender 

or pronouns of someone you don’t 

know. Use they/them pronouns until 

you do. 

3. As soon as the opportunity arises, 

clarify pronouns. 

4. Always use gender-neutral language 

for groups of people, and for individuals 

until you know they wish to be 

identified. 

5. Avoid using microaggressions and 

challenge them when you encounter 

them. 

6. Before asking about someone’s past, 

ask if it’s OK to ask and use affirming 

language when you do. 

7. If you mess up, don’t panic. Don’t 

make a big deal about it, but do 

acknowledge it and move on. 

Exhibitors 

MSA GB was delighted to welcome a number of businesses 

and road safety groups to our Conference Exhibition area. It 

was great to have them with us, and even better to see how 

well they interacted with delegates. We hope they enjoyed 

being with us as much as we enjoyed hosting them 

It was good 

to meet 

representatives 

from MSA GB 

authorised 

supplier 

Telematicus 

Services Ltd 

(t/a Smart 

Green Drivers) 

pejorative phrase. “I am queer but don’t 

assume you can use the phrase to describe 

everyone from the community in the same 

way,” was the advice. “Only use it if your pupil 

does in relationship to themselves.” 

So how can ADIs be allies to the LGBTQIA+ 

community? “First, you will make mistakes 

- using the wrong pronoun, etc. Accept that, 

don’t make a fuss and apologise, but get it 

right next time. 

“Two, make it clear that your tuition car is 

an inclusive safe space. You don’t have to go 

full Pride flag everywhere but just having a 

rainbow flag on Facebook page or a sticker in 

your car is a subtle way of telling pupils they 

will be respected when they are with you. 

“Third, put your own preferred pronouns on 

your website/emails/correspondence. This 

might seem a small gesture but it signals an 

understanding of the issues, and that 

someone who identifies by a gender different 

to the one assigned at birth will be 

understood and welcomed.” 

Ultimately, remember that “the driving 

lesson could be one of the few occasions 

when a pupil escapes from pressures and 

tensions at home around their gender or 

sexuality. Be a safe space so they can open 

and comfortable. ” 

G added: “Make it clear that you accept 

that they may be in a different form of 

relationship to the one you are in. Not 

everyone wants to follow the ‘nuclear’ family 

path.” 

“Conference is an ideal opportunity to get 

away from the coalface for a time, to refresh 

my thinking and get some new ideas and 

inspiration. I always return a better ADI” 

One delegate in conversation with Newslink 

Charles Morton 

manned the 

IMTD stand 



Session 2: Graham Feest 

Conference finds no clear road ahead 

for graduated driving licences 

The questions asked: 

How many members of your group would support the introduction of Graduated 

Driving Licences (GDL), which would mean placing restrictions on newly qualified 

drivers after they had passed their test? 

Irrespective of your position on the matter: 

1. If we were to place restrictions on new drivers once they had passed their test, for 

what period of time should they be in place? 

2. How are we going to monitor and police such restrictions? 

3. What do you consider we would gain by introducing such restrictions? 

Road safety consultant Graham Feest 

chaired a fast-paced session focused on 

post-test restrictions for new drivers – or 

graduated driving licences, as they are 

often known. 

Delegates around each table were tasked 

with finding answers to questions on 

whether more post-test restrictions were 

needed (a sample of which is posted above), 

what was needed for a more formal 

graduated licence, and whether any 

measures stood the chance of being both 

accepted by the public and being effective in 

reducing new driver crash statistics. 

The issue of 17-25-year-olds being 

involved in crashes within 12 months of 

passing their L-test is of great concern to 

many, but despite a number of heartbreaking 

stories over the years, the 

toughest sanction the UK has come up with 

thus far is to reduce the number of penalty 

points a new driver can accrue before a ban 

kicks in. 

So the question posed was, should the 

New Drivers’ Act be made stronger? 

Some ideas 

Popular ideas included reducing the size 

of engines on new drivers’ cars, curbs on 

night-time driving and carrying passengers, 

and post-test assessments by ADIs. 

But while most delegates agreed 

something should be done, there was little 

consensus around what. Stopping nighttime 

driving seemed an obvious way to 

tackle anti-social driving and problems 

around alcohol and drug use, but it would 

curb young peoples’ abilities to work in the 

night-time economy. Carrying passengers 

would be difficult to enforce and the slow 

switch to electric vehicles made reducing 

engine size on new drivers’ cars feel like an 

outdated idea. 

While the idea of post-test assessments 

were popular, it was pointed out that few 

ADIs had the capacity to train all local 

learners at the moment, let alone take on a 

new type of clients. 

Perhaps a better idea was a more 

structured training programme to begin 

with, combined with the compulsory use of 

telematics post-test to capture data and 

“Most delegates agreed something should be done but there was 

little consensus around what.... stopping night-time driving 

seemed an obvious way to tackle anti-social driving and 

problems around alcohol and drug use, but it would curb 

young peoples’ abilities to work in the night-time economy. 

Carrying passengers would be difficult to enforce...” 

identify problems. 

This latter idea, when linked to insurance 

policies, has generated positive outcomes 

for some new drivers; why not roll it out 

across the whole of the new driver 

community? 

Other ideas floated included a second 

test a set time after the first – though with 

DVSA currently struggling to fulfil ‘first test’ 

demands, it was hard to see how it could 

accommodate a second. 

Stopping parents from teaching driving 

was another option - though with the DVSA 

being big supporters of private practice, and 

this having been linked to L-test success, 

again, it was hard to see it gaining traction. 

Many ADIs expressed the view that Pass 

Plus needed more support and a marketing 

campaign could encourage more new 

drivers to not think their learning journey 

had ended at the L-test. 

But as Tom Kwok pointed out, while 



“Restricting drivers without 

intervening and helping them 

understand why their right to 

drive was being controlled, 

with no path to improve as 

drivers, seemed counter 

productive.” 

Exhibitors 

Kevin and 

Tracey Field of 

Confident 

Drivers chat to 

delegates 

others had called for restrictions, the police 

could not enforce the existing rules of the 

road now; could they do so in a future where 

there were more things to control? 

Other alternatives: linking a grade on 

L-test to future insurance premiums, to 

encourage learners to take more lessons and 

really aim high on the test. 

Another idea was for a 10-year licence to 

be renewed only after an assessment, with 

drivers being informed six months before the 

expiry to give them time to book in for an 

assessment drive with an instructor. 

Finally, one suggestion was for the New 

Drivers’ Act to be made tougher, and the 

number of penalty points required before a 

ban reduced to three – or even zero. 

With new drivers having recent experience 

of the challenges of obtaining, and passing, 

an L-test, perhaps that threat would be 

sufficient to make them more considerate 

and safer drivers. 

Graham Feest said the debate highlighted a 

lack of consensus on the issue: it’s clear that 

something needs doing, but what? 

He admitted that he had always been 

against graduated licences, for many of the 

reasons outlined above, but now he was 

sitting on the fence. He saw too many new 

drivers struggling with distractions, and with 

night-time driving, and was coming round to 

the belief that perhaps, something did need 

to be done along the lines suggested. 

But as he pointed out, restricting drivers 

without intervening and helping them 

understand why their right to drive was being 

controlled, and without offering them a path 

to improve as drivers, seemed counterproductive 

and unlikely to be popular. 

Above, the Disability Driving 

Instructors were on hand to run 

delegates through the support 

available for those looking to teach 

pupils with additional needs 

We were joined by the team from 

Driving Instructor Services who 

were delighted to chat to members 

about their call handling and diary 

management services, as well as 

pupil booking support services and 

intensive courses 



Session 3: Q&A with the DVSA 

Nick Taylor and John Sheridan 

take questions from the floor 

Conference delegates put the 

questions to Nick Taylor, ADI 

Registrar, and John Sheridan, 

DVSA roads policy adviser 

For many delegates, the high point of every 

MSA GB Conference is always the chance to 

hear from DVSA officials – and put them 

under the spotlight with some searching 

questions on the day’s hot topics. 

With many senior managers at the agency 

currently tasked with taking L-tests it was 

feared conference would not get the chance 

this year, but thankfully Nick Taylor and John 

Sheridan agreed to come to Telford to talk to 

members. We’re grateful to both of them, 

and to DVSA chief executive Loveday Ryder 

for agreeing to their attendance. 

Nick Taylor opened with a swift look at what 

is still the hot topic of the day: L-test waiting 

times. 

Those DVSA managers holding L-test 

warrant cards who had been seconded on to 

examiner duties would be returning to their 

usual roles in April, having made a positive 

impact on waiting times. 

The DVSA was concerned that other areas 

of the agency’s work were being impacted by 

their absence, in particular Parts 2 and 3 and 

Standards Checks, and both would be 

returning to normal service as soon as 

possible. 

Waiting times remained higher than the 

DVSA would like, and the agency was looking 

to add a further 160 new examiners to the 

roster. Testing windows were being extended 

to include weekends and Bank Holidays, and 

examiners were volunteering for 

redeployment from quieter areas with 

shorter waiting times to those with bigger 

waits, such as London. 

It was particularly important the DVSA 

restarted Part 2 & 3 tests, as there was a 

large pent-up demand among people keen to 

train to become an ADI. There were 40,000 

instructors on the ADI Register at present, 

and it would soon top 41,000, Nick said. 

Future plans 

ADIs who had recently failed a Standards 

Check would be SEs’ main focus for the time 

being, with TIP data used to target those 

instructors whose pupils’ performance on 

test was giving concern. 

Looking forward, Nick said it was accepted 

that the qualification process needed 

reviewing; an assessment would consider 

whether it was aligned with more needs. 

The DVSA was also keen to extend 

awareness of Ready to Pass, and funding had 

been secured to target more young people 

through social media. 

The DVSA was also keen to look at certain 

factors around the L-test. Test nerves was 

clearly a big factor in failures: indeed, John 

Sheridan said he had seen the impact of 

nerves for himself while conducting L-tests 

from Lichfield DTC in recent months. 

Both DVSA officials were keen to stress 

how much emphasis was placed on 

examiners helping the candidate relax, with 

the examiner introducing him or herself to 

make them feel at ease. 

Driving test centre open days were 

another way of removing the fear from the 

test. 

Other key points to consider: data showed 

that the private practice was hugely 

beneficial to learners; they were 50 per cent 

more likely to pass if they had continued to 

practice with family members. 

Those who had taken a realistic Mock Test 

were 40 per cent more likely to pass. 

ADI CPD 

The DVSA was looking at ADI Continuing 

Professional Development again. It was a 

shame that comprehensive plans laid down 

by Rosemary Thew when she was DVSA chief 

executive had been rejected by the then 

Transport Minister, but its importance had 

never been undervalued by the DVSA. 

CPD training does not have to be too 

formal: attending events like the MSA GB 

Conference and reading professional 

literature on driver training was as acceptable 

as standardised training. 

Just record it on .gov.uk, and discuss it 

before your Standards Check if you have an 

engagement call with your SE. 



Questions from the floor 

Nick and John were more than 

happy to answer questions from 

the floor. Below are just some 

of the many topics covered 

Q: ADIs were concerned that the TIP 

programme was not acknowledging the 

candidate’s ADI if the test took place in the 

pupil’s own car. 

A: This is easily rectified. If your car isn’t 

available, tell the examiner beforehand the 

ADI number, or get your pupil to do so if you 

are not attending. Before the test! 

learners fail a test and be back three weeks 

later for another go. And as he said, “there are 

fails… and there are fails…” 

Q: Is there anything we can do about L-test 

‘no show’ candidates? 

A: This is very frustrating; there is nothing 

worse than knowing you have a big waiting 

list and examiners sat around doing nothing 

as their candidate has failed to show. The 

DVSA text reminder service has proved 

useful in reducing no shows, or to convince 

people to cancel and swap their test if they 

realise they aren’t ready near the date. 

Q: Does the DVSA record car registration 

numbers for TIP scores? 

A: They don’t usually but the DVSA does 

have the facility to do so. Usually it occurs 

only if there are concerns over candidate 

standards. 

Q: Can we link CPD taken to our TIP data, if 

that is going to set when Standards Checks 

take place? 

A: At the moment this doesn’t happen, but 

a wider point is that Nick and John would like 

to see the narrative change around Standards 

Checks. “We don’t see the Check as a 

negative. It is an opportunity to showcase 

how you are fairing as an ADI and your skills. 

Think of it as a positive.” 

On CPD: “use the engagement call to talk 

about your CPD”. 

On Standards Checks: “the DVSA has a 

regulatory function that is important, but 

sees it as opportunity to keep an eye on 

overall standards.” 

Q: If a pupil complains to the DVSA about an 

ADI not allowing them to take their driving 

test because they are not ready, what would 

the DVSA say? Whose side would you be on? 

A: We are very much on the ADI’s side in 

such a case. We would ignore such complaints. 

It is your job to know when a pupil is ready. 

Q: Could the DVSA run more road safety 

campaigns? They were always very 

successful in the past 

A: The DfT runs road safety campaigns, 

and at the moment the focus is on the Think 

campaign. We are running the Ready To Pass 

campaign. 

DVSA is always keen to promote new 

John Sheridan: After being 

an examiner in Lichfield 

for the past few months, I 

can tell you, there are 

fails... and there are fails... 

educational campaigns, particularly targeted 

ones. For instance, data had showed that a 

growing number of drivers from the West 

Midlands’ Asian community were reluctant to 

wear a seatbelt. A campaign fronted by local 

voices had helped highlight this. 

John Sheridan brought the conference’s 

attention to Drive fast, Die Young (see pg 8). 

This is a film that should be viewed by all 

learners, he said. It is an excellent account of 

the consequences of a high-speed crash, and 

how easy it is for young and novice drivers to 

be drawn into bad habits and reckless 

behaviour by peer pressure. 

Q: Why didn’t the DVSA predict that there 

would be a rise in L-test demand post-Covid? 

A: We know the demand is still too high and 

it is still our priority. We have added 150,000 

tests - a huge number - and would continue 

to do all we could. Post Covid it was difficult to 

respond any quicker than we did. It takes a 

long time to train a new examiner. 

John Sheridan pointed out that if there 

were no fails there would be no waiting lists. 

As an examiner he had witnessed several 

Q: Are you going to do anything for PDIs who 

fear they will run out of time to take their 

Part 2/3 (as a reminder, PDIs have only two 

years to have booked their Part 3 from the 

moment they pass their Part 1) 

A: Our hands are tied; the need to pass the 

Part 3 within two years is in the regulations, 

so changing it would require parliamentary 

approval, and it is unlikely time would be 

allocated for it. We would stress that you 

don’t need to have passed your Part 3 within 

two years, just have a Part 3 test booked 

before the two years is up. The test itself can 

be months later. 

Q: What is the DVSA’s view on graduated 

driving licences? 

In many respects this is not our sector, but 

we know from talking to colleagues in 

Northern Ireland, where graduated licences 

do exist, that they can be burdensome and 

restrictive. 

However, we’re happy to keep an open 

mind, and anything that can be proven to 

improve road safety would be supported. It 

does need to be balanced and thought 

through, to avoid unintended consequences. 

Q: Can we sanction candidates who don’t 

show up, perhaps by charging them more? 

Great idea but we can’t as the test fee is laid 

down in parliamentary regulations. 

Q: Why allow L-tests in DTCs that are clearly 

miles away from their home? 

It’s about personal choice; candidates can 

book a test wherever they like. Ironically, it is 

good to encourage a test in an area that they 

don’t know, to avoid learning the test route 

by rote. 



Session 4: Julia Malkin MBE 

ADHD and the L-test: 

Understanding neurodiversity 

Dr Julia Malkin MBE is a long-time 

supporter of MSA GB events and a 

well-known face within the driving 

instruction community. She is best known 

for teaching, and helping others to teach, 

autistic learners, those with ADHD, and 

other neurodivergent differences. 

Julia used her slot at Conference to 

explain the different ways that ADHD can 

affect pupils. The support they need varies. 

Some people need to take things slowly 

and others could need all tasks to be broken 

down into more manageable chunks that 

can be more easily processed. 

There were some interesting takeaways 

from her presentation. It is believed that 

around three per cent of the UK population 

have one of the three types of ADHD, and 

65 per cent of people with this condition 

are undiagnosed. 

These are, as a group, a throwback to our 

ancestors’ most successful hunters: as Julia 

put it, “when there were hunter-gatherers 

thousands of years ago, those with ADHD 

traits were always on the go. They were 

scanning their environment for predators 

and prey, seeing changes around them 

faster, the tribe’s best hunters.” 

That agile ‘constantly on’ brain remains 

with us today. But our modern world, with 

its ‘sit still, stay quiet’ behavioural norms, 

makes people with ADHD have constant 

struggles. While the condition can be 

challenging to manage, it does not prevent 

those with ADHD from learning to drive. 

Types of ADHD 

There are three types of ADHD. The first 

type is Impulsive ADHD, driven by activity 

and constantly being on the go. Commonly 

diagnosed in childhood and in boys, this 

condition manifests today in teens and 

adults as restlessness, fidgeting, problems 

with focus and concentration. In extreme 

cases it can cause recklessness due to its 

impulsive traits. In the past, it was known as 

‘hyperactivity’ and results in children being 

always told they were naughty. 

“We were the naughty kids at school,” 

Julia said in the presentation. “We were 

those always being told off for not being 

able to sit still, stay still, and shut up. Many 

of us were told to stand in the corridor. I 

was sent to the Head! I was diagnosed 

hyperactive when I was six, and was 

drugged with Valium so deeply that it took 

three hours to walk four streets home from 

school.” 

Some people with the condition can 

interrupt, others have problems listening, 

and many can’t stand waiting, so situations 

involving queues of traffic can present 

problems. 

Some of them, as Julia puts it, “could 

impulsively touch all the controls, anything 

within reach; others will be watching 

through the windscreen, spotting changes 

in the environment, such as a boy with a 

ball; their mind is always on the go and this 

makes them lose concentration.” 

This is why it is exhausting having this 

type of ADHD. 

Another type of ADHD is Inattentive 

ADHD – commonly diagnosed in girls and in 

adults. People with this type can struggle 

to concentrate on a task. This constant 

need to focus our attention on a task or 

person drains their energy quickly, and the 

loss of energy can lead to them ‘zoning out’ 

to recharge – at school these were “the 

daydreamers, always looking out of the 

window, and losing attention on the task 

and the teacher.” 

This type is not so impulsive, but they 

can be distracted, especially when they 

have concentrated on sitting down or 

thinking for long periods. They can lose 

confidence when, after much effort and 

energy is spent on concentration, they 

eventually try to do a task and cannot do it 

correctly. 



“That agile, constantly on 

brain remains with us today, 

but in our modern world of ‘sit 

down and stay quiet’ 

behavioural norms, those with 

ADHD struggle to conform...” 

The third type of ADHD is Combined ADHD 

– this type has traits of both of the two other 

types. Julia said that this was the type of 

ADHD she herself has. Combined ADHD often 

has the restlessness and daydreaming states 

of the two previous conditions, but also 

commonly there is anxiety, mood swings and 

depression. 

Tiredness and energy loss are common 

with this ADHD type, as are sleep issues and 

low self-esteem. Confidence is very easily 

lost. People with this type can be constantly 

in need of reassurance that they can succeed 

– many could easily lose hope of trying to 

learn, and often have problems finding good 

in the work they do. 

A key feature of ADHD is a condition called 

Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, or RSD. It is 

present in many ADHD people. 

RSD works in this way – a pupil could 

worry about starting a task, or hesitate for a 

long time before starting one. Here, many 

people think they are lazy, or not committed 

to the task, but they cannot see inside the 

ADHD head. This problem is due to fear. 

When presented with a new task in a driving 

lesson, the person is often thinking – ‘If I try 

this, and can’t do it, or something goes 

wrong, my driving instructor will reject me 

because I can’t learn or can’t drive.’ 

The fear is not of the driving task, but of 

rejection by their driving instructor if they 

can’t succeed. They may have had problems 

at school, rejection by their peers, or have 

been to a previous driving instructor who had 

problems understanding the ADHD head. 

This fear of being rejected is very strong – 

with them, a car hooting could mean the 

driver has rejected them, and of course on 

the driving test, if they do not pass it is, to 

them, proof that the driving examiner has 

rejected them. This is what causes fear and 

nerves on their driving tests. 

If an ADHD pupil learns that there’s no 

actual rejection by anyone if the test is not 

passed, and there’s always another attempt 

to try, that will give them more confidence in 

themselves to succeed. 

Exhibitors 

Former MSA GB general 

manager John Lepine chats 

to He-Man Dual Controls 

Road safety consultant 

Graham Feest in 

conversation with 

representatives from the 

British Horse Society 

Naresh and 

Trupti Chauhan 

from Driving 

School Supplies 

brought along a 

great selection 

of goodies for 

delegates to 

peruse and 

purchase 



Session 5: John Lepine MBE 

European matters, and 

road safety’s future 

MSA GB’s former general manager John 

Lepine MBE gave delegates a look at some 

of initiatives emerging from Europe in the 

driver testing and training profession, from 

his vantage point of working with the 

European Driving Schools Association, 

EFA. 

He started by comparing the learningto-drive 

journeys pupils take in Ireland, 

France, Belgium and Holland, finding many 

similarities with Britain’s - but many 

glaring differences too. 

In Ireland, a theory test pass is needed 

before practical tuition can start, with 

lessons opening with 12 hours of 

mandatory tuition. The test itself can be as 

long as 100 minutes, and costs €85 

In France, two systems exist. The 

Apprentissage Anticipé de la Conduite 

(AAC) can begin at 15 if certain criteria are 

met. First the pupil must sign up with a 

registered driving school for an “evaluation 

of knowledge”. If successful, they then 

follow a minimum of 20 hours driving 

practice with a school before taking a 

general theory test. If successful, a 

certificate is issued that is valid for five 

years to drive accompanied by an adult, 

with three obligatory teaching follow-ups 

by the driving school. 

This is an expensive course, requires a 

lot of parental involvement and is regarded 

as a very middle class programme, but is 

effective, with a 70 per cent L-test pass 

rate. 

For those reluctant to go down this path, 

a cheaper option has a theory test followed 

by a practical exam from the age of 18. 

Interestingly the theory test pass entitles 

the holder to five goes at the L-test, rather 

than the two-year deadline in Great Britain. 

The Netherlands’ system is perhaps the 

closest to ours. Some differences remain 

- lessons can be only with an ADI, refresher 

training is required for ADIs, but the 

outcomes are similar, with around 42 hours 

of training taken on average for a pass. 

Belgium’s system is befitting a nation 

with such a complicated linguistic, political 

and civic structure: chaotic. There are eight 

paths to a licence, depending on which part 

of nation you live in. 

John provided a flowchart which 

highlighted the old adage that if Belgium 

didn’t exist, no one would be daft enough 

to invent it. 

Simusafe/FitDrive 

Two projects EFA had been involved in 

were Simusafe and Fit Drive. The first 

looked at the benefits of using simulators 

for teaching driving. A research programme 

had found benefits, particularly in areas 

that were difficult to teach in real life such 

as bad weather driving, night-time driving 

and how to safely use advanced driver 

assistance systems. 

FitDrive was focused on looking at a 

driver’s medical profile and trying to 

protect everyone from unexpected 

medical emergencies that were a danger to 

other road users. It monitors a driver’s 

health over a long period and creates an 

identikit of your health, with warnings if 

changes in health occur. 

The question of dual controls 

A third project of interest had links with 

conference supporter and exhibitor 

He-Man, the manufacture of dual controls. 

EFA has asked, what happens to dual 

controls when they are no longer needed? 

The research considered the fate of old 

duals across Europe, with some interesting 

differences in what happens to them. 

Some countries insist they are disposed 

of and cannot be re-used, but others, 

including Great Britain, have no regulations 

covering their subsequent use. He-Man’s 

concern is that second hand duals could 

end up being re-used, with incorrect fitting 

and be a danger to the public. 

It was noted that all countries require 

dual controls, though in some they have a 

third pedal to act as the accelerator. 

In France a buzzer fitted to the duals tells 

the learner when the ADI has intervened 

on their behalf. 

First aid lessons 

Many nations in Europe have a First Aid 

component in their driver training 

curriculum. As part of this, EFA had led on 

the Basic Life Support Project with a 

campaign called ‘Learn To Drive. Learn 

CPR’, produced in collaboration with the 

European Resuscitation Council (ERC). This 

encouraged a greater awareness of how 

CPR can save a life in the event of a cardiac 

arrest, and combined learning it with 

learning to drive. 

EFA had commissioned a catchy upbeat 

dance track with lyrics in English telling 

young people how to administer CPR - and 

was thrilled to win the Best Road Safety 

Project Award at the CIECA 2024 

Conference in Dubai. 

Conference enjoyed watching the video, 

which you can see for yourself by clicking 

HERE. 



“Belgium’s system is 

befitting a nation with such 

a complicated linguistic, 

political and civic 

structure: chaotic. There 

are eight paths to a driving 

licence, depending on which 

part of nation you live in.” 

It’s good to talk... 

Best bit of Conference? 

The chance to catch up with 

other ADIs and just have a 

chat... 

Brexit and divergence 

Brexit has divorced the UK from EU 

legislation on road safety and driver 

training, and it will be interesting to see 

how far our paths diverge in the years to 

come. 

At present much of the UK’s legislation 

is still based on the Third Driving Licence 

Directive 2006/126/EC, which introduced 

a single driving licence across the EU two 

decades ago. 

The current focus in Brussels was on 

better preparing novice drivers for the 

roads, protecting vulnerable road users, 

and the use of advanced driving 

assistance systems. EU politicians were 

also concerned that in-car driver 

distractions were becoming a factor in 

more crashes. 

Early reforms could see minimum 

eyesight checks being brought in, as well 

as other health assessments for drivers. 

Discussions were also looking at 

standardised restrictions on new driving, 

including nil alcohol levels and stricter 

penalties for speeding, etc. 

As reported in Newslink, one huge area 

of concern has been plans to allow 

17-year- olds to drive LGVs, something 

road safety professionals have strongly 

criticised as dangerous and ill advised. 

Looking further afield, EFA believes the 

greater use of electric vehicles poses 

some challenges for the driver training and 

testing sector, including manual/ 

automatic testing. 

Further development and production of 

driverless cars will also demand politicians 

create adequate safeguards over their 

use. 



MSA GB Awards 

Each year MSA GB presents its awards to those areas and individuals who have 

contributed most to the association during the past year. Here we salue this year’s 

winners, and thanks to MSA GB Chairman Mike Yeomans for presenting the awards 

MEMBER OF THE YEAR: 

This year we had joint winners of our 

Member of the Year Award, which 

goes to an individual who has worked 

tirelessly on behalf of the MSA GB in the 

past year. The duo were: (far left), Geoff 

Capes (West Coast) and (near photo), 

Bob Page (London & South East) 

EDITOR OF THE YEAR: 

Colin Lilly received the Jon Gross 

Memorial Trophy for his sterling efforts 

on ensuring Newslink is published every 

month (middle row, far left) 

RECRUITMENT 

AWARDS: 

Left, Paul Harmes 

receives the Ron Feltham 

Memorial Cup on behalf 

of the East Coast, after 

it had recorded the 

best net percentage 

membership growth/ 

retention over the year 

Bottom row, far left, 

Bryan Phillips receives 

the John William Parker 

Memorial Cup on behalf 

of Scotland & NI, after 

the area came second 

in the membership 

growth/retention 

There were joint winners 

of the Ian Scoular 

Memorial Shield for most 

new members recruited: 

Scotland & NI, and East 

Coast. Bryan Phillips and 

Karl Satloka collected 

the awards on behalf of 

their respective areas 



MSA GB Annual General Meeting 

Minutes of 89th Annual General 

Meeting held on 

23rd March 2024 

MSA GB Annual General Meeting was held in 

the Telford Hotel & Golf Resort, Telford. 

1. Chairman’s Welcome 

The Chairman, Mike Yeomans, opened the 

89th AGM at 12.35pm, introduced the agenda 

and welcomed attendees. There were 62 

people present. He reminded them that only 

members should vote. 

2. Convening Notice 

The Chairman read out the Formal Notice 

of meeting. 

3. Apologies 

Apologies were received from Mr. Rod 

Came. London & South East. 

4. Adoption of Previous Minutes 

Minutes of 88th AGM held virtually on 11th 

March 2023, were proposed by Mr. Alex 

Brownlee, London & South East and 

Seconded by Mr. Bryan Phillips, Scotland & NI. 

Carried unanimously. 

5. Matters Arising 

There were no matters arising. 

6. Adoption of Financial Statement 

The Chairman invited Mr. Peter Harvey, the 

vice chairman, to introduce the financial 

report for the year ending 30th November 

2023. This had been sent to members in 

advance of the meeting and was available to 

view on the website or in Newslink. 

There were no questions and the vice 

chairman asked for a proposer to accept the 

financial statement. Mr. Karl Satloka East 

Coast proposed, and was seconded by Mr. 

Neil Whiteman, East Coast. 


7. Adoption of the Annual Report 

The board continually strives to make 

further improvements to membership 

throughout the year and in many cases are 

the first to offer updates and changes to the 

profession. 

The Annual Report was proposed by Mr. 

Alex Brownlee, London & South East and 

MSA GB Board, 2024-25. From left, Peter Harvey MBE, Steven Porter, Mike Yeomans, 

Tom Kwok and Arthur Mynott 

seconded by Mr. Karl Satloka East Coast. 


8. Board Chairman 

Mr. Peter Harvey MBE announced that the 

board had nominated Mr. Mike Yeomans to 

continue as chairman for the ensuing year. 

Received with acclamation. 

9. Board Vice National Chairman 

The Chairman installed Mr. Peter Harvey 

MBE, Scotland & NI as vice chairman. 

Received with acclamation. 

10. Board of Management 

The Chairman introduced the Board of 

Management for 2024/25. 

Area 1: Scotland & Northern Ireland 

Mr. Steven Porter. 

Area 2: East Coast 

Mr. Mike Yeomans 

Area 3: London & South East 

Mr. Tom Kwok 

Area 4: West Coast 

Mr. Arthur Mynott 

The Chairman thanked the new Board for 

their continued commitment to the 

Association. 

11. Motion – from the Board of Management 

The Board proposes Saffron Accountancy 

Services Limited (Registration No:07941205, 

Registered Office: 27 Chaucer Road, London, 

E7 9LZ) be elected as MSA GB accountants 

and auditors for the year 2023/24. 

Proposed – The Chairman. 


12. Motion – from the Board of Management 

The Board proposes that the annual 

membership fee of the association should be 

increased by £5 per annum and should be 

implemented, from 1st May 2024. 

Proposed – The Chairman. 


13. Meeting Close 

The Chairman formally closed the meeting 

and thanked everyone for attending his first 

face to face AGM. 

The chairman closed the 89th AGM at 

12.50pm.Awards 


Members’ section 

NASP: The National Associations 

Strategic Partnership 

Alongside the other major ADI representative 

bodies, MSA GB is a member of NASP: the 

National Associations Strategic Partnership. 

NASP holds regular meetings with senior 

personnel from the DVSA to discuss the 

current position in the driver training and 

testing sector, to seek views and offer advice, 

and discuss how policy was impacting on 

driving standards and L-test outcomes. 

The most recent meeting took place on 11th 

March, via Teams, with a focus on the 

continuing fight to bring L-test waiting times 

down. 

At the meeting the DVSA revealed: 

n Nearing end of six months recovery 

period. Some warrant holders will be returning 

to normal duties after end of March (as 

reported to the MSA Conference, see from 

page 14) 

n National average waiting times for 

L-tests were down, to 16.1 weeks through 

February. The north of Great Britain was 

recovering more quickly than the south. In 

Scotland, north-east England down to 

Lincolnshire the average waiting time was 12.5 

weeks. In north-west England, including 

Manchester, Wales, and down to 

Gloucestershire, waiting times were 15 weeks. 

In Nottingham, M1, Oxford, Cambridge and a 

belt running from Norfolk to Penzance, the 

position was worse, around 19 weeks, and 

there was continuing high demand in M1 

corridor area into SE England. In London and 

south-east England is was 21-22 weeks. 

n The DVSA was actively seeking 

volunteers from among its examiners to move 

from driving test centres with lower L-test 

waiting times to ones in high wait areas. 

n Forward bookings have fallen to 507,293, 

with a sustained dropping off for bookings 

since October. These have been continually 

falling each month. Panic buying of tests was 

not fully over but customer behaviour is 

starting to change. 

At the time of writing there were 127,000 

available tests in system to book, though 

these were not evenly distributed across the 

country. 

n The DVSA is conducting around 44,000 

tests a week. In July 2023 it was 33,000. 

It was forecast that there would be two 

million tests held this year – comfortably a 

record high. 

Recruitment 

The DVSA was still looking to recruit more 

examiners. It had 170 available posts - 

proportionally in line with recovery and will be 

newcomers will be posted where they are 

most needed. Response has been positive. 

ADI Registrar 

The volume of new applications to become 

ADIs is not reducing. Over 100% more 

applications than previously - now 41,000 on 

the Register with 4,000 trainee licence 

holders. The DVSA is still receiving around 700 

applications per month for trainee licences 

- previously 250 per month. This has been 

challenging, with no let-up for 18 months. 

In February 2024 there were 1,675 new ADI 

qualifications and 722 trainee licences. 

ADI Examiner Update 

n There were 5,727 Part 2s from 

September 2023 – February 2024 - again, a 

record number. Previously were 500 a month. 

Currently delivering to capacity at three times 

the normal. 

During the same period there were 4,637 

Part 3s. 

n However, the DVSA conducted only 863 

Standard Checks. Each one was with an ADI 

who had registered poor scores on the TIP 

evaluation of pupils’ driving test record, had 

qualified recently or had failed a Standards 

Check. 

n A six-week course was starting on 8 

April for six new examiners. There will be nine 

examiners within three months giving an 

extra 150 tests per week. 

n Resources will be focused on Part 2s and 

3s and then Standards Checks, focusing on 

areas with highest needs 

n NASP asked if people are booking early 

because of lack of Part 2 and 3 tests. This is 

happening and means they will cancel tests, 

which will have detrimental effect on whether 

they get more than one trainee licence and 

take slots away from those who are ready. 

NASP suggested it’s happening because 

people are scared their two years will run out 

and asked if there are messages for trainees. 

DVSA replied, making sure they are prepared 

is the best message. 

n NASP said if a trainee is on “Book to Hold” 

they can take Part 3 if theory is running out, 

but they can’t have more than one test 

booked at a time. 

DVSA stated, the window is still 12 weeks 

and priority will be given to those with Part 1 

expiring, as well as those who came on the list 

first. Some test centres have different needs. 

If the demand for Part 2s and 3s is lower there 

will be more Standard Checks. 

Ready2Pass? and communications 

n NASP asked for an update in relation to 

Ready2Pass regarding trainees. DVSA stated 

work had been started on this, however is 

currently paused. Supporting messages and 

PDI guidance is now being issued on a weekly 

basis. 

n NASP queried ADI qualification test 

results emails update. It was explained that 

these will be reviewed once warrant card 

holders return from testing. 

Policy update 

n DVSA driver policy team is currently 

focusing on driver policy priorities and has 

started designing a long-term recovery 

roadmap 


ADI groups and associations 

MSA GB is proud of its long-standing links with many local ADI 

groups around the country. Many are small, dedicated to driver 

training in one city, town or even focused on a sole DTC, but all 

work tirelessly to improve the work of being an ADI. This can 

be in representing ADIs’ interests and views to your DVSA area 

manager, offering an ADI’s voice to local authorities and town 

planners, or by simply providing a network within which ADIs can 

find help and advice from their fellow instructors. After all, for 


many ADIs working as sole traders, being a driving instructor can 

be a lonely task: local ADI groups help stop it feeling quite so much 

that it’s ‘you against the world.’ 

In every issue of Newslink will be publishing a list of local ADI 

groups and associations. We will only publish those groups who let 

us know they are happy to be included in our list, so if you would 

like to see your details here, please contact Peter Harvey at 

peter.harveymbe@msagb.com 

Aberdeen and District Driving Schools 

Association 

Secretary: Derek Young 

T: 07732 379396 

E: derekyoungcreel@aol.com 

Meets quarterly February (AGM), May, 

August and November. 

Cost £35 per annum 

Angus Driving Instructors Association 

Secretary: Frances Matthew 

T: 07703 664522 

E; francesmatthew@hotmail.co.uk 

This group holds six meeting per year 

(usually one week after the Scottish 

committee meeting) 

Cost £20 per year. 

Aylesbury Vale Driving Instructors 

Association 

Chairman: Sue Pusey 

T: 07780 606868 

E: AVDIA@btinternet.com 

Meetings are first Wednesday of every 

month at Church of the Holy Spirit, 

Camborne Avenue, Aylesbury, HP21 7UE. 

7.30pm start. 

Guest speaker every other month, 

refreshments provided. 

Annual fee £30. First meeting free as try 

before you buy. 

Birmingham Approved Driving Instructors 

Contact: Dave Allen 

T: 07939 627493 

E: Daveallen1999@googlemail.com 

Cornwall Association of Approved Driving 

Instructors (CAADI) 

Secretary: Rachael Lloyd-Phillips 

E: rachael@oneandallsom.co.uk 

This group meets via Zoom on the 3rd 

Monday every other month at 7.30pm. 

City of Dunfermline and District ADIs 

Secretary: Gail Pilch 

T: 07817 661450 

E: dunfermlineadisecretary@outlook.com 

Meetings are bi-monthly, at 

Dunfermline Northern Bowling Club, Dewar 

Street, 

Dunfermline KY12 8AD 

Glasgow & District Driving Instructors 

Association 

Contact: Bryan Phillips 

T: 07989 339 646 

E: bryan.phillips@hotmail.co.uk 

Meet on the last Sunday of the month, 

once every quarter, at 

The Fort Theatre, Kenmuir Ave, 

Bishopbriggs, Glasgow, G64 2DW. 

Joining fee: £15 per year 

Hinckley & District Driver Trainers 

Association (HDDTA) 

Chairman: Barrie Pates 

T: 07914 408 739 

E: haddta@yahoo.com 

Hull and East Riding Driving Instructors 

(HERDI) 

Contact: Andrew 

T: 07754542993 

E: herdi.rsa@gmail.com 

Lanark Driving Instructors 

Secretary: Sandra Smillie 

T: 07975 147150 

Meet quarterly from March which is our 

AGM 

South Warwickshire Association 

of ADIs (SWAADI) 

Contact: Andy Thomas 

T: 01926 717230 / 07900 673634 

E: artommo@hotmail.com 

We meet at 8.30pm every third Monday of 

the month except August and December 

(no meetings) at The Windmill Inn, 

Tachbrook Rd, Leamington Spa CV31 3DD, 

Rolls and snacks are available for a small 

charge and membership is £25 a year and 

includes a monthly newsletter and addition 

to a WhatsApp group for local issues/ 

traffic updates, etc. 

Swindon Driving Instructors Association 

(Swindon DIA) 

Contact: Sandra Jill Richens 

T: 07795 006015 

E: SJRichens@btinternet.com 

Taunton Association Driving Instructors 

See Facebook page – search ‘Taunton ADI 

& PDI Forum’ 

Wirral Association of Professional Driving 

Instructors (APDI) 

Chairman: Brian Murray 

T: 07810 094332 

Secretary: Richard Gillmore 

T: 07790 193138 

E: wirral-apdi@hotmail.co.uk 

W: wirralinstructors.co.uk 

Meet monthly on the first Thursday of the 

month (except January and August) 

at Heswall FC, Brimstage Road, Heswall, 

Wirral CH60 1XG 

Further information and to join, please visit 

the website. 

Why join a local association? 

Local news, local input – a local voice... 

If you want to see your local ADI group listed in this index, 

contact Peter Harvey on peter.harveymbe@msagb.com 


Members’ section 

Get 10p off every litre of fuel 

with special MSA GB deal 

The cost-of-living crisis is putting many 

ADIs under considerable financial pressure, 

and nowhere is it felt more than through 

the rising cost of fuel. 

So to help alleviate some of the burden 

on our members, we’re thrilled to 

announce a brand-new partnership with 

FUEL CARD SERVICES. 

A fuel card from MSA GB partner, Fuel 

Card Services can provide huge benefits to 

businesses that use vehicles on a daily 

basis: 

n Cutting fuel costs - save up to 10p per 

litre and get a consistent price. 

n Increased security - fuel cards are a 

safer alternative to carrying cash and 

eliminate fraud. 

n Streamline admin - HMRC compliant 

invoices, no receipts, one neat invoice and 

a dedicated account manager. 

n Tighter control of business expenses 

- view transactions and reports online 24/7. 

n Increased flexibility for refuelling 

across a huge network. 

n Fleet convenience - a quick and 

convenient way for fleets to refuel. 

There are a range of fuel cards available 

on the market and for your business to 

truly benefit from investing in fuel cards, 

you need to choose the right one for your 

businesses’ requirements. 

FUEL CARD SERVICES offers a large 

choice of networks from leading brands, 

such as BP, Shell, Esso and UK Fuels, so 

you can decide which networks you wish 

to include on your business account. 

Fuel Card Services and MSA GB are 

helping to deliver cost savings to 

members throughout the country. 

For more details and to obtain a fuel 

card through MSA GB, go to our website at 

https://msagb.com/members/ 

member-discounts/ 

What are the latest UK fuel prices? 

The prices right are the latest available unleaded petrol and diesel averages 

across supermarket, motorway and independent forecourts in the UK, according 

to data compiled by the RAC. Prices correct at the end of January. Continuing 

instability in the Middle East, affecting both fuel output and transport through the 

Red Sea, risks causing price rises in the coming weeks. 

MEMBER OFFER 

UNLEADED 

DIESEL 

UK average 144p 152p 

Motorway 157p 176p 

Supermarkets 142p 152p 

MEMBER OFFER 

AlcoSense: Every ADI should have one handy 

MSA GB has teamed up with leading supplier of personal 

breathalyser kits AlcoSense to bring our members a 

very special offer. 

The AlcoSense kits give an instant and accurate 

snapshot of whether you – or your pupil – has alcohol in 

your/their system, and are particularly useful ‘the 

morning after.’ 

Peter Harvey, MSA GB national vice chairman, 

commented: “These are a quality product. They arrive 

well packaged, with the required batteries, five 

mouthpieces and full instructions. They are very easy to 

use, with a simple menu, and can be adjusted to suit the 

country you are in depending on the legal limit there. 

Once set up, the breathalyser gives a very clear reading 

in traffic light colours, making it easy to follow. 

“Green, as you would expect, tells you you are okay to 

drive. Amber advises you that alcohol is present but you 

are below the limit you entered at set up – though it is so 

important to check what the limit is in the country you 

use it. Red is pretty self-explanatory – Don’t drive. 

“The set is very compact, about the same size as a 

mobile phone but a little deeper. It is ideal for eliminating 

any concerns you may have the morning after – or for 

your pupils.” 

The Excel model costs around £100 and can be viewed: 

https://alcosense.co.uk/alcosense.html. 

But we’ve negotiated a special discount on the entire 

AlcoSense range (except single-use disposables) of 10 

per cent for members IF BOUGHT THROUGH THE MSA 

GB WEBSITE – from the entry-level Lite 2 (£44.99) to 

the top-of-the-range Ultra (£249.00), with other 

options available. Go to 

https://msagb.com/members/member-discounts/ 

to secure your member discount. 


Towards your CPD 


Enhanced CPD can open up 

a host of new opportunities 

This is the second in Neil 

Wightman’s articles looking 

at the benefits of taking CPD. 

This issue he looks at enhanced 

competence, and what it does. 

What does enhanced competence mean? 

Developing competence is identifying the 

skills, talents, characteristics and knowledge 

you require to perform your job effectively, 

and training or practising to improve them. 

Taking time to enhance competence helps 

you improve your job performance, allowing 

you to advance your career. 

Enhanced competence: CPD enables 

professionals to acquire new skills, refine 

existing ones, and broaden their expertise. 

This continuous learning process enhances 

their competence and capabilities, enabling 

them to deliver higher quality services. Public 

confidence is bolstered when professionals 

demonstrate competence and expertise in 

their field. 

I have recently just proved that by taking 

my practitioner level of mentoring to the next 

level, which now stands me at Accredited 

Senior Mentor. 

Enhanced competence can make you 

better in several ways: 

1. Improved performance: When you 

develop and refine your skills and knowledge 

through enhanced competence, you become 

better equipped to perform your professional 

tasks and responsibilities effectively. You 

gain a deeper understanding of your field, 

enabling you to make informed decisions, 

solve problems more efficiently, and deliver 

higher quality outcomes. 

2. Increased confidence: Enhanced 

competence leads to increased confidence in 

your abilities. As you acquire new skills and 

broaden your expertise, you become more 

self-assured in your professional capabilities. 

This confidence positively impacts your 

performance, as you approach tasks with a 

greater sense of assurance, assertiveness, 

and poise. 

3. Expanded opportunities: Developing 

enhanced competence opens up new 

opportunities for personal and professional 

growth. With a broader skill set and deeper 

knowledge, you become eligible for more 

challenging projects, promotions, leadership 

roles, and career advancement. Enhanced 

competence can expand your professional 

horizons and provide you with a competitive 

edge in the job market. 

For example, with me altering the levels of 

my mentoring qualification it stands me out 

from the crowd. Advertising the fact that I’ve 

stepped up will enable people to have full 

confidence in employing me to do what I do. 

4. Adaptability: In today’s rapidly evolving 

world, adaptability is crucial. Enhanced 

competence enables you to stay ahead of 

changes and adapt to new circumstances 

more effectively. 

By continuously learning and developing 

your skills, you become more adaptable to 

emerging trends, technologies, and industry 

shifts. This adaptability allows you to 

navigate uncertainties, embrace innovation, 

and thrive in dynamic environments. 

“Enhanced competence 

contributes to building a 

strong professional reputation. 

When you consistently 

demonstrate expertise and 

high-quality performance, 

your reputation as a competent 

professional grows...” 

5. Professional reputation: Enhanced 

competence contributes to building a strong 

professional reputation. When you 

consistently demonstrate expertise and 

high-quality performance, your reputation as 

a competent professional grows. A positive 

reputation can lead to increased trust, 

credibility, and respect from colleagues, 

clients, and employers. 

6. Continuous learning: Developing 

enhanced competence is a lifelong process 

that fosters a mindset of continuous learning 

and improvement. When you embrace a 

growth-oriented mindset, you become open 

to acquiring new knowledge and skills beyond 

your current expertise. This commitment to 

continuous learning keeps you engaged, 

intellectually stimulated, and motivated to 

stay at the forefront of your profession. 

In summary, enhanced competence 

through continuous learning and skill 

development empowers you to perform at a 

higher level, increases your confidence, 

opens up new opportunities, enhances your 

adaptability, strengthens your professional 

reputation, and nurtures a mindset of lifelong 

learning. 

These factors collectively contribute to 

making you a better professional and position 

you for long-term success in your career. 

“Developing enhanced competence is a lifelong process 

that fosters a mindset of continuous learning and 

improvement. When you embrace a growth-oriented 

mindset, you become open to acquiring new knowledge 

and skills beyond your current expertise...” 



Talking of driving safely... 

Steve Garrod offers some advice on how to conduct a commentary 

drive, and how it can help enhance your harzard perception skills 

Over the last month I have been asked to help 

some ADIs looking to improve their 

commentary driving, so I thought it might be 

an opportunity to share some thoughts on 

this topic, which is also one of the lesson 

themes in the Standards Check. 

A good commentary drive promotes 

forward planning and is an essential part of an 

advanced driver’s, or trainer’s, toolbox. In 

general terms, a commentary is used to 

inform a student, trainer or assessor of the 

thought processes of the driver or to help 

enhance and develop hazard perception skills. 

Developing good commentary skill is about 

practice so that the quality of the drive will be 

enhanced rather than degraded. In the early 

stages of learning commentary driving the 

driving performance often dips. The 

commentary should emphasise the action 

that is to be taken in order to deal with each 

potential hazard. 

The contents of the commentary should 

be current and future and not historical. I 

always think of it in terms of casting out a 

fishing line; you start from behind your head 

(mirrors) then cast it to the furthest point 

before reeling it back in and casting it out 

once more from behind your head. As you reel 

it in you scan from side to side from the far 

ground, middle ground and near and rear 

ground. 

Throughout the drive it is important to use 

a clear, distinct voice and avoid talking too 

quickly. A good tip to remember is ABC - 

Accurate, Brief and Concise. Also, imagine 

you are taking to somebody sitting in the 

back of the car to ensure your voice is loud 

enough to be heard. 

It may be appropriate at some stage to 

define a hazard that contains an element of 

actual or potential danger and anything which 

may cause a driver to change course or 

speed. Actual danger is where the law or the 

rule of the road places the responsibility on 

the driver to ensure that it is safe before 

continuing. Such circumstances may require 

a delayed gear change such as at give way or 

coming to rest at a stop sign or obstructions 

on the nearside. 

Potential danger is where common sense 

or road sense suggests that safety 

precautions should be taken before entering 

the danger area. 

Such action as an early gear change for 

example on the approach to a bend, a narrow 

section, a hump backed bridge or 

obstructions on the offside causing 

oncoming drivers to cross the centre of the 

carriageway or when pedestrians are 

approaching a crossing or a junction 

(remember the ‘hierarchy’ laws that were 

introduced a couple of years ago). 

Roadcraft view 

Roadcraft explains there are three main 

types of hazard: 

a) Fixed physical features such as road 

junctions, bends or crests of hills 

b) Risks arising from the position or 

movement of other road users 

c) Problems arising from variations in road 

surface, weather conditions or visibility 

A driver is constantly making driving plans 

to deal with immediate circumstances and is 

designed to ensure that the vehicle is always: 

n At the correct speed 

n In the correct position 

n In the correct gear 

The driving plan will take into account: 

n What can be seen 

n What cannot be seen 

n What a driver may reasonably expect to 

see 

n Which hazards present the greatest 

threat 

n What to do if a situation develops 

differently from expected 

It is often the hazards that can’t be seen 

catch drivers out. Many will pride themselves 

on being observant, but few think of the 

‘what if’ scenario. This is an area that should 

be emphasised during all driver training 

sessions, regardless of the driver’s 

experience. 

Such examples include a second car 

emerging from a side road, a hidden car 

behind an approaching van in a meeting 

situation or the second emergency vehicle at 

a set of traffic lights. 

Observation 

Means using sight, hearing, feel and even 

smell (think of cut grass or diesel/petrol) to 

gain as much information as possible about 

what lies ahead. It is the result of this 



“Roadcraft lists three types of hazards... 

including fixed physical features such as 

road junctions, bends or crests of hills...” 

observation which principally dictates the 

content of the commentary. A driver should 

also refer to the more obvious features that 

can be seen such as: 

n road signs 

n obstructions 

n road markings. 

Weather conditions and visibility 

You need a reasonable prediction of how 

weather and visibility will affect the driving 

plan. What actions will the driver need to take 

to be able to deal with the situation and what 

alternative courses of action may be required 

if the situation develops. A big omission in 

many a commentary is that of the road 

surface, eg, leaves, rain, pot holed, mud on 

the road, animal droppings or loose gravel. 

Anticipation 

Observation links are also useful as a 

commentary device and therefore support or 

dictate the driving plan. We can comment on 

the lampposts; for example, are they on the 

right or left-hand side of the road? If they are 

on the left, then the chances are the road will 

bend to the right and if they are on the right 

then the road often bends to the left. This can 

be backed up with direction of hedgerows 

when driving more rural areas. 

Black and marker posts (red reflectors on 

top) which are on the left and posts with 

white tops on the right are used to show the 

outside of a bend. 

It is based on the rear of vehicles having 

red reflectors and lights and white at the 

front, which is why reversing lights are white 

to warn other drivers that the car is coming 

towards them. 

What do you think it could mean if you saw 

a Royal Mail van slowing down, brake lights on 

cars, out-turned front wheels, or exhaust 

fumes? 

The following distance calculation and 

application can effectively be included as part 

of a commentary. Employing a two or more 

second time gap behind the vehicle in front, 

depending on conditions, will ensure that the 

driver: 

n Has a good view and can increase it 

along both sides by slight changes of position 

n Can stop the vehicle safely in the event 

that the driver in front brakes sharply 

without warning. 

n Can extend the braking distance so that 

the driver behind has more time to react. 

n Can see when it is safe to move up into 

the overtaking position 

Planning 

On your commentary include a brief 

explanation of what is intended to be carried 

out, eg, restricted view, intending to slow and 

looking to go. Church spire ahead, anticipating 

reduction in speed, therefore I will need to 

slow before the bend 

It must be emphasised that good 

commentary is about good observation, 

planning and implementation. Responding to 

what can be seen or in some cases not seen. 

In certain circumstances there may be 

several simultaneous occurrences and it is up 

to the driver to prioritise accordingly. 

Effective commentary is about current and 

future events. History has no value. 

To sum up it should Observe, Anticipate & 

Planning ….OAP! 

A good way to start is by watching a hazard 

perception DVD. Try to say aloud what you 

are observing, then anticipating and finally 

planning to do. Once you feel comfortable 

with this, try including all three elements 

(OAP) before you arrive at each hazard, then 

take those skills into the car. 

Once you feel confident why not teach 

your learners how to do it. It does make the 

lesson interesting and will really bring home 

then need for full concentration while driving. 



Evaluating road safety interventions: 

when to step in, and how to gauge success 

Janet 

Stewart 

London & the 

South East 

I had the chance to listen to a webinar hosted 

by Tanya Fosdick at Agilysis recently, on how 

and why we should evaluate road safety 

interventions. 

Among the speakers were Fay Cannon and 

Dr Elizabeth Box; Elizabeth has been 

instrumental in forming the Drive Fit 

campaign, which was designed to address 

the needs of 16-18 year-old pre-drivers. 

The first question to address is why we 

should evaluate interventions. The point, as 

James Harrington said, is “What if we are 

investing in solutions that don’t work?” What 

we are doing must be effective, be value for 

money and facilitate further improvement. 

As driving instructors, we know this. One 

size does not fit all. When it comes to 

educational bodies, university research and 

bodies such as the RAC and IAM, the 

evaluation aims and objectives must meet 

the further criteria of carrying stakeholder 

confidence and being scalable. 

There is no point in change that does not 

lead to improvement. The aims and objectives 

need to be clear. People can get so carried 

away with detailed analysis and complex data 

that the results almost get lost. 

A couple of reports were mentioned during 

this webinar – notably the 2004 Guidelines 

for Evaluating Road Safety Education 

Interventions and Dr Fiona Filan’s report of 

2017 on Behavioural Change. There is also 

Elizabeth Box’s paper on Empowering Young 

Drivers with Road Safety Education. All of 

these are well worth close reading. 

There are three main problems with 

research into what interventions work in the 

area of road safety. Cost is the most obvious. 

Then there is the time it takes to get projects 

set up. Finally, there is human nature – 

people start with enthusiasm, the process is 

slow and people drop out of the research. 

One of the questions asked was how to 

decide when the drop out level is such that 

the data won’t make sense. When do you 

abandon it? How do you explain to the 

stakeholders? 

It is essential that there is a point to the 

evaluation that is being undertaken. There 

may be an area that a researcher is very 

interested in but if it is only of very limited use 

then maybe it should not be followed up. 

Having planned an intervention, carried it 

through and got the evaluation you may not 

get the result that you were expecting; then 

something needs to be changed. 

The example given was skid-pan training 

for young drivers. The premise was that they 

would be safer if taught how to deal with 

skidding. The outcome was that “skill fade” 

set in quite quickly but the drivers were more 

likely to speed having done the course. 

On a non-driving subject, some juvenile 

delinquents spent some time in an adult 

prison to find out how harsh the environment 

was. This was counter-intuitive – they came 

out with the feeling that their risk-taking 

behaviour was “normalised”. 

I found it interesting that all three speakers 

said that there is a real stigma attached to 

publishing the results of interventions that 

did not work, despite the fact that this would 

be so useful to other research teams who 

might have been planning something similar. 

It was suggested that it would be helpful if 

there was some standardisation of 

evaluation and delivery methods. It was also 

suggested that there should be a catalogue 

of who was doing what research so that 

there could be a pooling of ideas and an 

avoidance of unnecessary duplication. 

As to what we driving instructors do, of 

course we evaluate all the time and put in 

what we hope is the correct intervention. We 

know that if something is not working then 

we need to try a different approach rather 

than just saying the same thing again but 

louder. 

I know I am not alone in having a tendency 

to assume I understand why the learner has 

done what they have done. I know, too, that I 

can be very wide of the mark. 

I was teaching bay parking at the local 

leisure centre. My pupil’s eyes glazed over so 

I tried to use a different form of words. She 

then apologised and said she had been 

looking at the legs of the firemen playing 

football on the pitch the other side of the car, 

out of my view! 

There is so much information available, so 

many papers, so much research and advice 

out there for us, it is difficult to know where 

to start. 

However, each seminar, conference or 

online event that I attend gives me some 

nugget to take away and there is always 

something more to think about and 

incorporate into my teaching/tutoring/ 

coaching. 

Janet Stewart is an Executive Member of the 

IMTD. 

Contact: 

Janet Stewart, 

MSA GB London & the South 

janetslittlecar@btinternet.com 

Tel 07989 852274. 



EU progress on safety ‘barely moving’ 

The European Court of Auditors has warned 

that EU member states will need to ‘move 

their efforts up a gear’ if they are to reach 

targets of halving road deaths and serious 

injuries by 2030. 

EU auditors analysed the bloc’s current 

road safety efforts and while commending 

the overall strategy, they warn that 

implementation is lacking or non-existent in 

several key areas. Eva Lindström, the ECA 

member who led the audit, said progress was 

“barely moving”, and that the situation in 

some countries “remains rather alarming”. 

Commenting on the report’s findings, 

Antonio Avenoso, executive director of the 

European Transport Safety Council said: “This 

report shows the scale of the challenge 

ahead if the EU is serious about halving the 

20,000 tragic deaths on our roads every 

year. The current approach is just not going 

to do the job as long as legislation is not 

ambitious enough, and proper 

implementation is lacking in many areas. 

“We hope this report will be a wake-up call 

for the EU that efforts will need to increase in 

the second half of the decade. 

“We also think that the European 

Commission does not have enough resources 

to tackle major emerging issues such as the 

roll-out of vehicle automation, and that an EU 

road safety agency should be established to 

take on some of this work. 

“It is hard to understand why maritime, air 

and rail all have dedicated agencies, but there 

is no EU agency for road safety issues.” 

In terms of the overarching goals, the 

auditors suggest that the strategy for 

reducing serious road injuries is being 

hampered by a lack of harmonisation on how 

member states classify data. This leaves the 

Commission “unable to obtain an accurate 

overview of serious injuries at EU level.” 

In vehicle safety, the auditors noted that 

the flagship EU General Safety Regulation 

which applies to all new vehicles sold from 

July this year, will not lead to the expected 

reductions in deaths because Europeans are 

replacing their vehicles less often. 

Separately ETSC has pointed out that the 

regulation has been weakened in the 

implementation phase, as carmakers put 

policymakers under huge pressure to lower 

the bar for minimum requirements on 

technologies including Intelligent Speed 

Assistance (ISA), Electronic Data Recorders 

(EDR) and distraction warning systems. 

The auditors reiterated ETSC’s warning 

that thousands of new vehicles are able to 

circumvent EU vehicle safety requirements 

each year, including dangerous American 

pickup trucks, because they are imported 

and approved under the EU’s Individual 

Vehicle Approval Scheme which has very low 

safety requirements. 

On speed, responsible for a third of deaths, 

the report notes that the Commission has 

not yet issued a formal recommendation to 

member states on safe speed limits, “even 

though the European Parliament had called 

upon the Commission to do so in 2021.” 

Rural roads account for half of Europe’s motoring deaths 

A new report by the European Transport 

Safety Council (ETSC) has revealed that 

around 10,000 people died on rural, nonmotorway 

roads in the EU in 2022 – 

accounting for around half of all road deaths. 

Rural roads can be dangerous, compared to 

other road types. They often lack central and 

side barriers and allow for large speed and 

weight differences between the vehicles that 

use them, from lorries to vulnerable cyclists 

as well as pedestrians and horses. 

Single-vehicle crashes, where a fatigued 

driver misjudges a turn and runs off the road, 

are common. Head-on collisions frequently 

occur, and are often lethal. 

The report urges national governments to 

invest significantly to improve the safety of 

rural roads. 

The call comes as EU rules on road 

infrastructure safety management (RISM) 

have changed dramatically. Previously EU 

safety rules applied on the main roads and 

motorways that form the EU’s Trans- 

European Network, but new rules agreed in 

2019, but only just implemented, now extend 

that coverage to national ‘primary’ roads and 

any roads that benefited from EU-funds. 

Installation of side and central barriers, 

removing roadside obstacles and 

construction of separated paths for cyclists 

and pavements for pedestrians are among 

the recommendations for safer rural roads. 

Although often seen as an urban road 

safety issue, around half of cyclist deaths 

occur on rural roads. 

The report contains many examples of 

remarkable interventions that are saving 

lives across Europe. France, Spain and the 

Belgian region of Flanders have reduced the 

speed limits across their entire rural road 

networks. Scotland’s initiative with road 

markings to help motorcyclists navigate 

sharp bends safely was also praised. 

Speed remains a major risk factor, with 

large numbers of drivers still driving above 

the posted limit on rural roads despite the 

availability and proven reliability of 

automated enforcement technology such as 

speed cameras and time-over-distance, or 

‘average speed’ cameras. The authors note 

that the safest countries of those studied 

usually have lower standard rural road speed 

limits, set at 70 or 80 km/h. 

ETSC also wants to see the EU’s automated 

‘eCall’ emergency call system, which is 

required on all new cars, extended to other 

vehicle types – notably motorcycles. In rural 

areas, an incapacitated driver or rider who 

cannot call for help, could have their life saved 

by an eCall system which can send location 

information directly to emergency services. 


Area News 

The NHS desperately needs your help... 

with its bay parking 

John Lomas 

MSA GB 

West Coast 

& Wales 

Following a bit of a health scare I recently 

spent another overnight in our local 

hospital. 

The window by my third floor ward bed 

gave me a lovely view of one of the staff 

car parks during the early morning shift 

influx, and if I had had a decent video 

camera with me I could have made a 

terrific hour-long training video showing 

bad bay parking, both forwards and 

backwards. It would have included a 

range of angles, from 90 degrees to 

straight access, and a selection of shunt 

numbers ranging from NONE (straight in, 

well done) to around five or six goes, 

regardless of the direction of parking. 

I even watched two to four shunts 

when there were no other vehicles within 

three bays either side. 

The red lines show aproximately the 

scope of my view. 

(Just in case you’re thinking ‘shunt’ in 

this case means a crash, I’m referring to 

parking by moving forwards then back 

again). 

Motor vehicle versus wild animal 

To illustrate this point, I’ve used two 

photographs (both right). 

The photo (see top right) I have used 

for this happens to be on the A4 in 

Savernake Forest, Wiltshire; but it could 

be any national speed limit road with 

restricted sideways visibility. 

The night driving picture (below right) 

is actually from America but it illustrates 

the restricted scope of your lights in such 

an area. 

The point I want to make is how driving 

on rural roads can be dangerous because 

of the presence of large wild animals. It 

doesn’t have to be a forested area either 

because some deer can easily come over 

a field hedge onto the road; this is why in 

some deer areas they actually erect high 

deer fence. Large wild animals such as 

Red, Roe, Fallow and Sika deer can 

nowadays be found virtually anywhere in 

the country. 

So the question is: although this is a 

national speed limit and even if it didn’t 

have a Wild Animals warning sign, which 

are found in a relatively few areas, just 

what speed would you consider doing on 

a dark night even if you can use main 

beam because there is nothing coming 

the other way? 

You might think that traffic on the road 

might deter the animals from crossing, 

but I have actually experienced a large 

deer crossing between my car and the 

one in front at about 25 yards. In that 

case we were actually doing about 

30mph through the Forest of Dean. 

I wonder how often fatal single vehicle 

crashes involving vehicles leaving the 

road have actually been caused by a 

driver, using an inappropriate speed, 

swerving to avoid a deer, or other, 

smaller, wild animal which has suddenly 

emerged into their path from the 

darkness. 

Do you raise this sort of scenario with 

your pupils when doing or discussing 

night driving – particularly (though not 

exclusively) if you are an ADI in a rural 

area, or whose pupils are more likely to 

drive on coutnry roads? 

“How fast would you 

fancy driving down the 

dark road right, in the 

event of a large wild 

animal coming out of the 

forest into your path?” 

My line of vision 

over the car park. 

It offered a 

grandstand view 

of some dubious 

parking 

techniques 



Julia’s message rang home 

and would have been great 

to hear many years ago 

Arthur Mynott 

MSA GB 

West Coast 

& Wales 

Hopefully, you’ve had chance to read 

elsewhere in this issue of Newslink all about 

our recent Conference and Training Day. I 

thought it was a great success. 

It was our first face-to-face conference for 

five years, the last four being conducted via 

Zoom, and it was so nice to meet other 

instructors in person. 

I met old acquaintances and made new 

ones, and everyone I spoke to agreed that it 

had been a great occasion, one which had 

them already looking forward to next year’s 

event. Marie and I went up on the Thursday 

with the intention of me playing golf with the 

Driving Instructors Golf Association (DIGA) 

on the Friday but, because of the continuous 

wet weather, the course was closed so Marie 

and I went sightseeing instead. 

Conference highlight 

As I said earlier, the conference itself is 

covered elsewhere in this publication but I 

would just like to mention one speaker who 

stood out for me, and that was Dr Julia Malkin 

MBE. 

Julia, who is also a driving instructor, spoke 

about teaching learners with ADHD, a 

condition from which she also suffers. She 

went through the thought processes 

learners with this condition go through. 

Her presentation struck me on a personal 

level as my older brother, born in 1954, was 

diagnosed with learning difficulties, a severe 

form of ADHD. He was non-verbal until the 

age of five and attended a Special Needs 

secondary school. He also worked all his life 

until redundancy, living with our parents the 

whole time until their passing. 

My wife, eldest son and myself then took 

over looking after his welfare and finances 

until he passed away suddenly two years ago 

of a heart attack at the age of 67. 

If I knew years ago what I now know, 

thanks to Julia, it would have made a big 

difference in being able to understand his 

thought processes, and it would have made 

looking after him much easier for us and also 

better for him. 

One thing that he did manage to do, at the 

age of 50, was to pass his driving test at the 

second attempt, thanks to yours truly. It took 

a while but was very rewarding for him when 

he received his pass certificate, just as it was 

for me. 

West Coast Conference 

From one conference to another. It’s now 

time to book another important date into 

your diary, and that is the West Coast & 

Wales Area Conference. It will be held on 

Monday, 11th November, and this year will be 

held at the Mercure Bristol North Hotel, The 

Grange. It is just off the M5/M4 interchange 

near Bristol, so hopefully is easy for people in 

this far-flung region to get to. 

Speakers booked so far include John 

Sheridan, DVSA Driver Training Policy 

Adviser. John has promised to be there “by 

hook or by crook” this year after having to let 

us down last year because he was conducting 

driving tests. 

He will be joined by Daniel Cox, Road Safety 

Officer for Avon and Somerset Police. 

I am in the process of booking more 

speakers for the day. 

The cost per delegate has yet to be 

confirmed but will be in comparison with 

other years, and I have managed to negotiate 

a discounted room rate for anyone who 

wishes to stay over for the conference. 

Make sure you put this date in your diary in 

readiness for this event and also drop me a 

message if you are thinking of coming. 

CONTACT 

Arthur Mynott, Chairman West Coast & 

Wales MSA GB 

Tel 07989852274 

arthur.mynott@msagb.com 

Big rise in theory 

test cheating 

Reports of cheating in driving theory tests 

have tripled amid low pass rates and long 

waits for a practical test booking. 

According to data accessed by AA 

Driving Schoo via a Freedom of 

Information request, 1,652 incidents of 

cheating were reported from theory test 

centres in 2022/23, up from 568 in 20/21. 

In 2022 and 2023, 625 people were 

investigated, resulting in 46 prosecutions 

for theory test fraud. The current pass rate 

for the theory test is just 45.4%. 

Recent analysis by the AA Driving 

School showed waiting times to book a 

practical test were still higher than the 

pre-pandemic average of 6 weeks at 75% 

of test centres. Many test centres still 

show average waiting times in excess of 

five months. 

Camilla Benitz, AA Driving School 

managing director, said: “The jump in 

reports of theory test fraud is alarming, 

but indicates the lengths people will go to 

secure that all important pass. 

“The increase in cheating coincides with 

the waiting times for booking a driving 

test shooting up massively as well as the 

pass rate for the theory test remaining 

stubbornly low at just 45.5%. 

“While passing the theory test does 

require revision and time spent practising, 

it shouldn’t have learners turning to illegal 

fraudsters to pass. There is lots of help out 

there, including our theory test app, which 

can help you prepare and take the next 

step in your driving journey.” 

Rise of the theory test cheats 

2015-16 467 

2016-17 414 

2017-18 537 

2018-19 653 

2019-20 848 

2020-21 568 

2021-22 1,151 

2022-23 1,652 


Area News 

An ADI on holiday... 

is still an ADI 

Brian 

Thomson 

MSA GB Scotland 

It’s been 20 years this year since I became an 

ADI, and with that became self-employed. 

Working for yourself has it’s ups and downs, 

as we all know. There’s the chance to work 

your own hours, a plus; doing all your own 

admin, a minus; not getting paid for downtime 

or illness, a minus; taking your unpaid holidays 

when you like, a plus. 

That takes me seamlessly onto my topic for 

this issue of Newslink– I managed to do that 

thing we all say we’ll do, but rarely get round 

to, which is take a quick break for some much 

needed R and R. At the end of January I took in 

a bit of sun, sea and strolling about in Gran 

Canaria. Temperatures at that time of year are 

a nice 25-27’C during the day. 

But as well as know, a driving instructor on 

holiday is still a driving instructor, so after a 

quick word with some of the hotel reception 

staff, I found myself outside a local driving 

school office. However, what the receptionist 

omitted to tell me was that in Gran Canaria, 

unlike the UK, they shut between 1pm and 

4pm! 

So it was a return trip the following day to 

meet Selvia, who arranged lesson bookings 

and theory classroom sessions. The school 

had its own classroom equipped with various 

models of working parts of a car that, in olden 

days, had been used as hands-on training 

material. I also met one of the instructors who 

was coming in to pick up two students at the 

same time. They go out for a lesson together, 

one driving and the other taking notes or at 

least paying attention, before they swap over 

and the second lesson commences. 

They sometime have three students in the 

car at once. 

The lessons at that school were 31 euros 

for a 45-minute lesson, roughly equivalent to 

£37.50 for a one hour lesson here. Fuel was 

slightly cheaper, around £1.20 for petrol and 

£1.31 for diesel. So with the ‘busman’s holiday’ 

information gathered, off I set to see what 

other subtle differences I would come across. 

Electric scooters are really common on the 

island and look as though they are used by all 

walks of life. Indeed they seem to be 

considered a main form of transport around 

town, and even used on urban dual 

carriageways (didn’t personally see any on the 

main motorways!). The ones I saw were 

always ridden on the road and not the 

pavements. 

Another ‘anomaly’ was some parking; there 



Park anywhere? How do those in the bay get out? What the blazes is that ... 

‘The school had its own 

classroom equipped with 

various models of working 

parts of a car that, in olden 

days, had been used as 

hands-on training material.’ 

were cars parked in bays but other cars just 

parked on the road directly behind them, fully 

blocking the bay parkers. I never found out 

why this is accepted; my ‘Gran Canarian’ is 

sketchy so I couldn’t ask. 

I don’t have a photo to show this, but while 

on a local bus I noticed that they have 

designated bus stops on roundabouts, so 

when the bus enters the roundabout it may 

stop on the right side. 

This didn’t seem to cause a lot of 

frustration from other drivers, but I wonder 

how that would bode here ?. 

Then I saw what has to be described as a 

‘something at the side of the road’. 

This ‘car’ has to take the title of the car 

with the least number of features in one 

place. I think the doors are spare 

supermarket exit/entry gates and a list of 

interior extras as long as your eyelashes, but, 

hey ho, no doubt it’s somebody’s pride and 

joy (see photo top of the page). 

That’s my Gran Canaria report complete, 

where to next? 

“Electric scooters are really 

common and look as though 

they are used by all walks of 

life. Indeed, they seem to be 

considered a main form of 

transport around town...” 


Life as an ADI 

A cautionary tale of the toll work can have, by Bryan Phillips 

A pain in the chest – and you’re 

glad you’ve got health insurance! 

Sunday 19th May 2019: for me a typical 

Sunday. Day off work, cleaning the car for the 

week ahead and the standard personal trainer 

session at the gym. However, this gym 

session was to change my life forever! 

I was doing some bench presses, which was 

nothing unusual for me, with weights that 

were comfortable for me to use. However, the 

personal trainer kept telling me I was doing 

things wrong and that my right arm was doing 

all the work, and the left arm was being lazy. 

After this gym session I returned home, and 

soon the top of my left arm was agony. My 

immediate thougt was I had pulled a muscle, 

so I took the standard paracetamols and got 

on with things. 

Monday 20th May, I left for work. This day 

was different as I had Pass Plus course 

booked with a recently passed pupil. All is well, 

but later that night I was in pain again with the 

top of my left arm, cold sweats and I felt like 

death. Again I took the standard paracetamols 

and went to bed. However, the pain came and 

went though the night and I can’t get to sleep. 

Something was not right so I decide to go 

to the hospital to get checked over. Off I drive 

to Glasgow Royal Infirmary. The receptionist 

takes my details and asks what my 

symptoms are, then asks me to take a seat. 

Abdominal 

injections 

for blood 

thinners... 

ouch! 

Within seconds my name gets called and I 

was taken into the casualty department and 

put on to an ECG machine. I had a series of 

needles into my arm and blood tests 

conducted. Half an hour passes and I’m then 

moved to another section of the hospital and 

told the doctor is on their way to speak to me. 

Mr Phillips, says the Doctor, it appears you 

have had a myocardial infarction. Me being 

from the east end of Glasgow and not being 

the sharpest tool in the box says to the 

doctor, ‘oh ok and what exactly is that’, and 

the doctor replies, you are currently having a 

heart attack. 

My instant thought was, oh no, I have not 

got time for a heart attack, I have a pile of 

driving tests this week! I say to the doctor ‘oh 

what happens next because I have got work 

to go to tomorrow and driving tests to do’. The 

doctor looked at me and said “Bryan you will 

not be working for some time.” 

Everything happened so fast it was a total 

blur; I remember getting an injection of 

Looking 

groggy after 

a little bout of 

heart 

surgery... 

at least the 

morphine 

was good! 

anti-sickness medicine and an injection of 

morphine (that stuff was great) the pain went 

away within seconds! 

An echocardiogram scan was done and I 

was put into an ambulance and transferred to 

the Golden Jubilee Hospital in Glasgow for an 

immediate operation. This is when it hit home 

to me how serious things were. I felt 

overwhelmed and embarrassed at the 

ambulance sirens going and seeing all the 

vehicles moving out the way to allow the 

ambulance a path through the traffic. 

Arriving at the Golden Jubilee Hospital I was 

taken to the ward where the heart surgeon 

came to see me prior to the operation. I had to 

sign a consent form, so jokingly I said to the 

surgeon “is this my death certificate I’m 

signing”, to which he said if I didn’t sign it, then 

it would be! 

Form signed and I asked for a few moments 

to speak with my dad before going to theatre. 

It’s a conversation I’ll never forget, telling him 

where all my important documents were in 



“Here I am now, almost five 

years on, 42 years old, I’ve lost 

around three stone in weight 

and I’m living a perfectly 

normal and healthy life. 

The moral of this story is look 

after yourself, you only get one 

shot at life, do not make 

yourself sick for a job where the 

clients will drop you at the first 

chance.” 

case the worst was to happen, but most 

importantly, to make sure it was steak pie 

that was on the menu at the wake, (there’s 

nothing worse than soup and a sandwich 

after a funeral!) 

The next thing I was being wheeled round 

to the operating theatre. The two girls 

pushing me asked what I did for a living. 

Predictably, just as I tell them I’m a driving 

instructor, they crash the bed against the 

wall. “You’ve got a serious driving fault there,” 

I say. We all laugh! 

Into the operating theatre I go. The place is 

full of students watching in the gallery which 

the surgeon asked me if it was ok for the 

students to watch before I went in. My 

thoughts are, we all need to learn so why not. 

The surgeon preformed an angiogram and an 

angioplasty and fitted a stent to the lower left 

artery on my heart. 

The entire process took less than 20 mins, 

and I was then taken back to the ward for 

recovery. By the time I got back to the ward 

the whole family was there to welcome me 

back. 

I was in hospital for three days, every 

morning started with an injection in the 

abdomen with blood thinners – wow that 

was sore! I was anxious to get released from 

hospital as there was an election on the day I 

got released and I wanted to go and vote! 

Phone call to the DVLA to inform them and 

I told my driving licence was revoked for one 

month; this was the longest month of my life! 

Colleagues all came and visited and helped 

out, covering driving tests for those pupils 

who had a test booked. It shows how great a 

community driving instructors are, helping 

out in our hour of need: Tom McDermid, 

Michael Toal, John Archer, Alan Henderson, 

Cheryl Lynch and Len Ratcliffe, I can’t thank 

you enough. 

Recovery was well underway. I could get 

used to this relaxing malarky, I even went to 

sunny Spain for two weeks after the doctors 

said I was okay to travel! 

I was fortunate enough to have taken out a 

sickness insurance policy which safeguarded 

my wages while I was off work for three 

months and it also covered critical illness, 

which I received a large pay out for! 

Here I am now, almost five years on, 42 

years old, I’ve lost around three stone in 

weight and I’m living a perfectly normal and 

healthy life. 

The moral of this story is look after 

yourself, you only get one shot at life, do not 

make yourself sick for a job where the clients 

will drop you at the first chance. 

Having a heart attack at 37 certainly never 

crossed my mind. Listen to your body and if 

any of you ever experience chest pain, cold 

sweats, or pains at the top half of your left 

arm, go to the hospital straight away and get 

checked out. Don’t do what I did and leave it 

24 hours! 

PACTS savages 

Government over 

failure to legislate 

over e-scooters 

The Parliamentary Advisory Council for 

Transport Safety (PACTS) has criticised the 

Government after it ruled out legislating on 

e-scooters. 

In a statement issued last month PACTS 

said: “We have been informed that there is 

insufficient Parliamentary time to consult 

on e-scooters. It means that the likelihood 

of legislating for private e-scooters with 

regulations that set safety as the main 

priority in 2024 is zero. This is a setback.” 

PACTS accepted that the extension of 

rental trials to May 2026 will enable the 

Government to continue evaluating the 

usage and safety impacts of e-scooters, 

but “that will go no way towards dealing 

with the over one million privately owned 

e-scooters which are evidently being used 

illegally on public roads.” 

PACTS said that these vehicles “do not 

pass testing, standard setting, or type 

approval because they are not regulated for 

use a motor vehicles. As such they bring 

unnecessary hazards to riders and danger 

to other road users.” 

PACTS stands by its recommendations 

made in March 2022, that the DfT needs to 

take urgent action to address dangerous 

and illegal private e-scooter use by: 

n issuing clear information to the public 

that it is illegal to use a private e-scooter 

on public roads and in almost all public 

places in the UK, and that they could incur 

substantial fines and penalties if caught; 

n taking action against retailers which 

fail to properly inform customers of the 

risks and illegality involved in the use of 

private e-scooters, and 

n supporting the police in taking 

enforcement action against illegal and 

unsafe use. 

PACTS ended with a barbed criticism of 

the Government’s grasp of road safety: “If, 

as the then Minister Baroness Vere 

announced in May 2022, ‘Safety is also at 

the heart of our plans’, then a new Bill is 

needed specifically to create a regulatory 

framework for smaller, lighter, zeroemission 

vehicles, as part of a new 

low-speed, zero-emission vehicle 

category. 


Members’ discounts 

Members’ discounts and benefits 

MSA GB has organised a number of exclusive discounts and offers for members. More details can be found on our website at www.msagb.com 

and click on the Member Discounts logo. To access these benefits, simply log in and click on the Member discount logo, then click the link at the 

bottom of the page to allow you to obtain your special discounts. 

Please note, non-members will be required to join the association first. Terms and conditions apply 

Access to a replacement dual 

control car after a crash 

EXCLUSIVE DEAL FOR MSA GB MEMBERS 

MSA GB has arranged to provide members with a replacement dual controlled car when 

things don’t quite go to plan. 

If you lose your dual-controlled tuition car in a crash, MSA GB’s new partnership will have 

you back on the road and teaching in no time. 

Our exclusive agreement will supply a replacement vehicle to you should the need arise 

– at no cost. Contact 07914 275539 for more details. 

Ford updates special 

members’ offer 

Ford has partnered with MSA GB to offer exclusive 

discounts on all car and commercial Ford vehicles. 

Take a look at the Ford website www.ford.co.uk 

for vehicle and specification information. See the 

Members’ Benefits page on the MSA GB website 

and follow the Ford link for more details.. 

Please note these discounts are only available to 

MSA GB members and their immediate family if they 

are members who pay annually. 

ACCOUNTANCY 

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Join now to receive three months free. 

ADVANCE DRIVING 

AND RIDING 

As the UK’s largest road safety 

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proud to partner with the 

Motor Schools Association 

GB. Working together to promote and 

enhance motorists skills on our roads. 

MSA GB OFFER:: Get 10% off Advanced courses; 

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Driving shouldn’t just be a 

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Packages for MSA GB members. 

FUEL CARDS 

Save up to 10p per litre of fuel with Fuel Card 

Services. Fuel Card Services offers a large 

choice of networks from leading brands, such 

as BP, Shell, Esso and UK Fuels so you can 

decide which networks you wish to include on 

your business account. 

MSA GB OFFER:: An MSA GB fuel card will save 

you up to 10p per litre. 

HEALTH / FINANCE COVER 

The Motor Schools Association of Great 

Britain has agreed with HMCA to 

offer discounted rates for medical 

plans, dental plan, hospital cash 

plans, personal accident plan, 

travel plan, income protection 

and vehicle breakdown products. 

MSA GB OFFER:: HMCA only offer 

medical plans to membership groups 

and can offer up to a 40% discount off the 

underwriter’s standard rates. This is a 

comprehensive plan which provides generous 

cash benefits for surgery and other charges. 

To get the full story of the 

discounts available, see 

www.msagb.com 



PUPIL INSURANCE 

Join the Collingwood 

Instructor Programme and 

refer your pupils for learner 

insurance. 

MSA GB OFFER:: MSA GB OFFER:: £50 for 

your first referral and £20 for all additional 

referrals. 

PSYCHOLOGY TRAINING 

Confident Drivers has the only 

website created especially for 

drivers offering eight different 

psychological techniques 

commonly used to reduce stress and nerves. 

MSA GB OFFER:: One month free on a monthly 

subscription plan using coupon code. 

PUPIL SOURCING 

Go Roadie provides students 

when they need them, with all 

the details you need before you 

accept. Control your own pricing, 

discounts and set your availability 

to suit you. Full diary? No cost! 

MSA GB OFFER:: Introductory offer of 50% off 

the first three students they accept. 

QUICKBOOKS 

50% Discount on two 

packages for MSA GB 

members 

Quickbooks is offering an online 

50% discount for MSA GB members on two of 

their premium accounting packages. 

Essentials Package For small businesses 

working with suppliers. Manage VAT and 

Income Tax with up to three users. 

Plus For businesses managing projects, 

stock, VAT, and Income Tax. Up to five users. 

The packages are contract-free throughout 

with no cancellation fee. This exclusive 

member offer can only be secured by 

contacting our MSA GB representative at 

Quickbooks - Ollie Nobes, on: 07723 507 026 

or email: Ollie_Nobes@intuit.com quoting: 

**MSAGB** 

To get the full story of the 

discounts available, see 

www.msagb.com 

Membership offer 

Welcome, new ADIs 

We’ve a special introductory offer for you! 

Congratulations on passing your 

Part 3 and becoming an ADI. 

There’s an exciting career 

open to you from today, 

one that’s alive with 

possibilities as you build 

your skills, your client base 

and your income. 

But for all the excitement, 

it can also be challenging; 

who can you turn to if you’re 

struggling to get over key driver 

training issues to a pupil? Where can 

you go to soak up advice from more 

experienced ADIs? Who will help you if you 

are caught up in a dispute with the DVSA? If 

the worst happens, who can you turn to for 

help, advice and to fight your corner? 

The answer is the Motor Schools 

Association of Great Britain – MSA GB for 

short. 

We are the most senior association 

representing driving instructors in Great 

Britain. Establised in 1935 when the first 

driving test was introduced, MSA GB has 

been working tirelessly ever since on 

behalf of ordinary rank and file ADIs. 

We represent your interests and your 

views in the corridors of power, holding 

regular meetings with senior officials 

from the DVSA and the Department for 

Transport to make sure the ADIs’ voice is 

heard. 

SPECIAL OFFER 

Join MSA GB today! 

SPECIAL OFFER: Join for just £60 with your 

PI & PL insurance included immediately! 

No joining fee - saving you £25 

Call 01787 221020 quoting discount code 

Newslink, or join online at www.msagb.com 

We’d like you to 

join us 

We’re there to support you 

every step of the way. 

Our office-based staff are 

there, five days a week, 

from 9am-5pm, ready to 

answer your call and help 

you in any way. 

In addition our network of 

experienced office holders and 

regional officers can offer advice over 

the phone or by email. 

But membership of the MSA GB doesn’t 

just mean we’re there for you if you’re 

in trouble. We also offer a nationwide 

network of regular meetings, seminars and 

training events, an Annual Conference, and 

a chance to participate in MSA GB affairs 

through our democratic structure 

In addition, you’ll get a free link to our 

membership magazine Newslink every 

month, with all the latest news, views, 

comment and advice you’ll need to become 

a successful driving instructor. 

You’ll also automatically receive 

professional indemnity insurance worth up 

to £5m and £10m public liability insurance 

free of charge. 

This is essential legal protection covering 

you against legal claims ariving from your 

tuition.

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