Newslink April marketing special

Conference 2024 Telford: Full report
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.
22 NEWSLINK n APRIL 2024