Driving Instructor
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Driving Instructor THE VOICE OF THE PROFESSIONAL DRIVING INSTRUCTOR White out DIA response to government consultation ISSUE TWELEVE 2015 Go Solo in style The complete car-only package for independent instructors. Just add pupils. Featuring the new Peugeot 208/308*. All-inclusive from £69+VAT per week Comprehensive insurance Fully taxed, serviced and maintained vehicles Breakdown cover & 48-hour vehicle replacement New car every 52 weeks Call 0800 316 3364 Visit www.bsm.co.uk/solo *12-month minimum term. Supplements may be applicable. Consumables and fuel is not included. *VAT not included BSM00255 BSM franchise press ad 210x297 v1.indd 1 23/09/2015 13:44 Driving Instructor WELCOME The official monthly magazine of the Driving Instructors Association MERRY CHRISTMAS EDITOR Simon Miller ELL ANOTHER YEAR has come to past and here at the DIA [email protected] it certainly was a busy one. From webinars and training days to DESIGN advice on the phones, to advice to ministers, DIA staff have been Matt Russell up and down the country spreading the ADI word. [email protected] W Here in the publishing arm, we said hello to ADI News, ADVERTISING transforming it into an online news service which is free to access Amy Turner for anyone interested in issues affecting the driver trainer world. 020 82530126 And it is everyone we are aiming at. While Driving Instructor is explicitly the [email protected] magazine for you the DIA member, we feel it is important to reach out to all in the CHIEF EXECUTIVE driver trainer world and ADI News helps achieve this aim. Carly Brookfield Speaking of the magazine, it’s been great how many of you have contacted me CHAIR about issues affecting you as it is you, the members, that help drive the content Dean Mayer every month. I would also like to thank our regular contributors who use their free time to bring you Driving Instructor is published monthly by DIA (Int.) Ltd their views and knowledge every month. Copyright © DIA (Int.) Ltd 2015 May you all have a wonderful Christmas and we’ll see you in the New Year. Printed by Warners Midlands plc The views contained may not be the views of the publishers. Simon Miller Publication of an advertisement does not imply approval for the goods or services offered. Reproduction by any means, electronically or otherwise, in whole or part, of any material appearing in this magazine is forbidden without the express prior permission of the publishers. ADI helpdesk Olivia Baldock-Ward Karen Bransgrove Training manager Helpdesk advisor [email protected] [email protected] Olivia has been a franchisee and a self-employed Karen is an experienced driving instructor and ADI. She knows how tough it is out there here to help with your training queries DIA membership helpdesk Carly Brookfield Matt Rathbone Chief executive Membership services administrator [email protected] [email protected] Carly oversees the daily work of the Driving Matt deals with membership Instructors Association enquiries and the DIA shop Tina Sellwood Amy Turner Administration manager Marketing manager [email protected] [email protected] Tina is charged with making sure everything Amy is our social media guru, helping our runs smoothly members find their online voice DIA MEMBERSHIP DRIVING INSTRUCTORS ASSOCIATION Call 020 8686 8010 | [email protected] | driving.org Leon House, 233 High Street, Croydon, CR0 9XT Driving Instructor 03 INSTRUCTOR CONTENTS MEMBER OF THE YEAR INTENSIVE 06 THE MONTH 16 IN FIGURES 21 COMMENT We caught up with Driving Instructor What was the Driving Instructors Association’s Noel Gaughan goes militant over the DVSA contributor James Whalen and had a chat year like when it came to the miles, meetings examiners strike and says the blame lies with about how he combined academia with driving and courses held in 2015? the agency READERS’ FEEDBACK DVSA PASSING 07 AND HELPDESK 19 COMMENT 22 COMMENT Members raise topical issues of interest, while Acting DVSA chief executive Paul Satoor Tim Clayton looks at how non-lessons can our ADI takes readers through the criminal explains the agency’s position over the actually help the learner in their quest to record check examiners’strike become good drivers ADI NEWS CHIEF EXECUTIVE KING’S 09 20 REPORT 23 COMMENT Competition invevstigations, fitness to drive Carly Brookfield takes a dim view over how Edmund King reminds drivers that to keep and the CBT Standards Check guidance head some organisations spend their time attacking the Christmas cheer, it is best to stay away up the topics this month the role of the ADI from the sherry 25 31 04 Driving Instructor WHITE EVENTS DIAMOND 25 PAPER 39 REVIEW 51 COMMENT DIA gives readers a look at its response to the Amy Turner looks back at all the DIA events Steve Garrod takes a direct route and avoids Department for Transport’s consultation into its and training days that were held around the going in circles over teaching about motoring services country over the last 12 months using roundabouts A YEAR DIA ROVER 31 IN REVIEW 43 TRAINING 53 REMEMBERED Simon Miller takes a look at what hit the In the first of a two-part series, James What happened in the decade since the headlines through the year from prosecution Whalen considers assessment from Longbridge car factory shut? Ken Gibson takes figures to strike action various perspectives a trip back to the plant TAX DRIVING FINAL 37 HELPDESK 49 70 WORD Keith Halstead asks whether HMRC The ADIs and Auto Express take a look at the Kevan Chippindall-Higgin casts a critical cutbacks could be the straw that breaks the Suzuki Celerio, Ford EcoSport and the Toyota eye over DfT test deposit proposals and finds taxman’s back Auris Hybrid the government wanting 39 43 53 49 driving Driving Instructor 05 MEMBER OF THE MONTH James Whalen Why did you become a driving What obstacles have you faced and instructor? how did you get over them? Driving Instructor contributor James has a PhD in cognitive psychology with driver behaviour, expertise, I had always been interested in cars Passing the Part 2 was a challenge due learning and memory structure being topics covered when I was young which developed a to the style of advanced driving I had in the thesis. He is a DIA regional trainer and helps second area of interest when I became a due to my police driver training. After deliver the Coach Approach course. driver myself. When it became apparent my first Part 2, the examiner told my that a career in the police force was instructor trainer that they should never not correct for me, the extra knowledge have a driver of my ability fail the Part 2 Congratulations James gained relating to driving dovetailed with test. The trainers I had never really were comments people had made about my strict enough about demonstrating driving teaching ability on various occasions. according to MSPSL and other routines Being able to help people learn a skill and that are necessary when teaching learners make use of the expertise I had developed, (e.g. braking whilst gear changing on made driving instruction a logical choice the approach to a side road (especially regarding my necessary career change. downhill)). Once I developed the correct style, I got through the Part 2. My first What do you get out of your Part 3 was affected by the way my profession? trainers had taught me to teach moving Helping people develop or improve off. Once again, keeping strictly to the an important life-long skill and seeing guidance given in the driving manual how much it means to them when they (as it was known then) produced a achieve their goal is very satisfying. It successful outcome. is also satisfying to help people who have struggled when learning to drive; Why do you explore the science unfortunately, this is sometimes due to behind training? how they have been trained and in these When completing the third year of my cases it can often be more difficult than undergraduate degree, it made sense to teaching a person from scratch. use driving as the topic for my dissertation. Since I wanted to go on to become a What differences were there lecturer in psychology, obtaining a PhD was between when you started and now? a necessary step. To increase my chances I believe that the core skills that people of success, I applied for PhDs or research need to acquire are still very similar. There posts where I had an advantage over other have been some minor changes to the test psychology graduates. I ended up at the that I feel have been an improvement – University of Surrey helping on a large DfT such as the show-me, tell-me questions funded project studying how people learn and the independent driving element. In to drive. I was told I could do a PhD on any terms of instructor development, probably aspect of cognitive psychology as long the biggest institutional change has as it involved driving. I therefore chose been to introduce coaching as a training to study memory, as I had developed an approach and the different emphasis seen interest in it during my undergraduate in the Standards Check when compared degree, in relation to learning a complex to the Check Test where only a few core skill as I had a long-term interest in how skills determined a person’s grade. people learnt skills as well as other related topics (e.g. expertise). I completed my What was the most unusual driving/ PhD in 2001 and have been finding ways training experience you had? of how different things affect how people I don’t think I’ve had any really unusual learn to drive and driving itself ever since.