After the Department for Transport announced plans to consult on a minimum learning period for learner drivers including a potential three to six-month gap between theory and practical tests, many learners and parents are questioning what this could mean in practice.
While the proposal has been framed around improving road safety, it also raises practical concerns around delays, costs and how learners can make productive use of the waiting period.
Here is how learners can safely and legally build experience during longer waits, including guidance around being added as a named driver, avoiding fronting, and ensuring insurance remains valid.
The Department for Transport has recently announced its Road Safety Strategy, which proposes consulting on a minimum learning period for learner drivers, potentially requiring a three to six-month wait between theory and practical tests to encourage more supervised practice and improve road safety outcomes1.
Amy Rootham, at Compare the Market, said, “Longer waits between theory and practical tests could feel frustrating at first, but there is a potential upside if that time is used well.
“A longer gap can give learners more opportunity to practise on real roads, build confidence behind the wheel, and gain experience in a wider range of driving conditions before taking their test.
“While waiting, learners can be added as a named driver on responsible driver’s policy, as long as the insurance provider is aware it’s for a learner driver. This can allow them to get more regular practice outside of formal lessons, as long as they’re accompanied by the policyholder, which may help them feel more prepared when their practical test comes around”
The Highway Code is famously dull, rarely revisited and essential for road safety, which is exactly why it’s now been released as a sleep-friendly audiobook, softly narrated by Vicki Butler-Henderson.
Created by Scrap Car Comparison, the UK’s biggest scrappage comparison provider, The Highway Code: Bedtime Story turns one of Britain’s most ignored texts into an unlikely sleep aid, with every rule read slowly and soothingly by the Fifth Gear presenter. Research shows more than half of drivers haven’t opened the Code since passing their test, while nearly six in ten struggle to get consistent sleep – making the pairing surprisingly timely.
Rather than fighting the boredom of pelican crossings and lane discipline, the audiobook embraces it, transforming the rules of the road into a calming bedtime listen. The idea is backed by sleep science too, with expert insight into hypnagogic learning (how the brain absorbs information as we drift off).
Vicki Butler-Henderson describes the project as “a wonderfully quirky way to highlight road safety,” adding that if listeners absorb even a little of the Highway Code while falling asleep, “that’s no bad thing.”
The audiobook is free to listen to now on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Podcasts and YouTube, positioning itself as the first Highway Code you’re genuinely meant to fall asleep to.
