Drive with Jonathan

18/08/2026

Well done Rebecca Barnard who passed her Driving test at Clacton Test Centre this morning and with just a tiny number of driver faults. Enjoy your car, when it arrives and your New Drivewithjonathan mug!!

09/08/2026

If you're aged 15-17 and looking to get a head start on learning to drive, or an anxious beginner aged 17+, there's a great opportunity for you coming up.

On Friday 21st August there will be an off-road Young Driver Experience at Clacton Shopping Village. You can book a 30-minute, one-to-one slot with a driving instructor to learn the basics of driving before you've even got your provisional licence.

Sessions are running between 09.30 - 16.00, and I'll be one of the instructors there introducing new learners to driving.

You'll learn the basics, like moving off and accelerating smoothly, breaking and clutch control, and positioning and steering - all in a safe, controlled and relaxed environment.

The session will help you build confidence ahead of beginning formal driving lessons.

There will also be other things going on during the day, including a competition to win £200 worth of driving lessons!

You can learn more and book your slot here:
https://clactonshoppingvillage.com/events/ab-drive-anchor-young-driver-experience/

Hope to see you there?

Get Behind the Wheel Before You Pass Your Test at Clacton Shopping Village!

24/06/2026

There are lots of reasons you could fail your driving test, but there are some common errors. I've listed five of them in the image.

Here's another five:

❌ Poor response to signs and signals

Going through red lights, ignoring or not understanding road signs or markings, or not giving way when you should.

❌ Moving off safely

Not checking blind spots. stalling, rolling back or causing other drivers to take evasive action.

❌ Poor positioning and lane control

Driving too close to other cars (parked or moving), cutting corners or poor lane control.

❌ Poor manoeuvres

Poor control during manoeuvres, mounting the kerb or inadequate observation while reversing.

❌ Dangerous errors

Forcing other road users to take action to avoid you, not seeing pedestrians or losing control of the vehicle.

These ten errors are the ones that crop up again and again, so make sure you keep this in mind during your lessons and mock tests. 👍

Give me shout if you have any questions about any of these.

19/06/2026

I had a bit of an alarming incident recently which I think is worth mentioning for the lessons it can teach us about paying attention to our surroundings.

On a lesson near a primary school my learner was just turning left at a busy mini roundabout when a young girl (who only looked about six years old) stepped straight out in front of us without looking.

She was glued to her phone and not paying attention at all. Luckily, my learner was able to stop within about a metre of the girl, and we were only travelling at 10mph thankfully.

So she was unhurt, but it was still quite shocking for us. The girl, however, seemed oblivious to what had happened until she heard a beep from the car behind us because we had had to stop sharply in the road blocking the roundabout.

That was what caught her attention, not the fact that she was crossing a busy road at a roundabout. She didn't seem phased after hearing the beep though, only staring blankly before resuming her walk.

It's really bothered me since, and I've emailed the school to see if they can locate her because I really think the message isn't getting across about paying attention when crossing the road.

And of course there's another discussion to be had about staring at your phone at the same time! All the more relevant now with the ban on use of social media for under 16s coming in soon.

Please if you're a parent remind your children to stop, listen and look both ways when crossing any road, and put the phone down while doing so.

And if you're a learner driver, please be vigilant and don't assume people will do this before crossing, especially if they're on their phone.

It's awful to think that paying more attention to a phone than the road could cause death or serious injury, particularly in young people. Is it worth it?

13/06/2026

Completing a busy week was a great result for Bryn Cooper who planned to use the family Mini Cooper for the test, but due to a technical hitch swapped over to my Renault and had the added pressure of a completely different clutch to get used to.

Great pass at Clacton Test Centre yesterday lunchtime. Well done!!

Enjoy your new found freedom - and the Mug!

13/06/2026

A busy week for me and with a great outcome. A big well done to Reuben Freedman- Clarke who managed a first time pass at Clacton Test Centre on Wednesday morning with just a few driver faults.
Great Job Reuben! The icing on the cake is of course the Drive with Jonathan Mug!

Keep safe on the road!

20/05/2026

I'm whizzing through these mugs which I give to all my learners when they pass their test.

I've had to order the next batch of 20. 😊

I like to think It's a lovely reminder of a happy time for them when they gained the keys to driving freedom.

It's such a significant milestone in a person's life and one which opens up so many opportunities.

It's good to remember and celebrate our achievements, especially when having a cup of tea or coffee. ☕

Want to get your hands on one of these?

Pop me a message to get yourself on my waiting list for driving lessons in North Essex.

I cover all of Clacton and Colchester, and everywhere in between. 👍

13/05/2026

The new rules around booking car driving tests have now come into force.

It's now officially against the law for third parties (including driving instructors) to make a test booking for a learner. This also includes unofficial test booking and cancellation finder services.

This will stop third parties reselling tests to make a profit.

This change follows the previous change in March which saw a reduction in the number of test booking changes that can be made from 6 to 2.

From 9 June, further restrictions will come into force limiting learners to moving a test to only one of the 3 nearest driving test centres.

As an instructor I can still advise you on when you're ready to take your test and offer ongoing support, and I can set my available times so that your test booking coincides with them.

This all gives learners a lot more control over their tests.

Give me a shout if you have any questions about any of this. 👍

30/04/2026

Well that was a very early start this morning with a 06.00am lesson - yawn! and then a 07.13am test where Anna Lower from Clacton passed her driving test at first attempt with just two driver faults. Great result!! Well done Anna and enjoy the Drive With Jonathan Mug and your new freedom! Very Well deserved.

10/04/2026

Hope everyone's had a great Easter!

Following my last post about changes to the driving test booking system, the exact dates the rest of these changes will come into effect this year have been announced.

🚗 From 12 May, only learners will be allowed to book a test and make changes to their booking.

🚗 From 9 June learners will only be allowed to move a booked test to a nearby centre (restricted to the 3 nearest centres to wherever the test was originally booked).

These changes run alongside the previous announcement about a reduction in the number of times learners can change a test from 6 to 2, a change which has already been implemented.

These changes are happening to reduce misuse of the test booking system and give learners full control over booking and managing their driving test. Driving instructors will no longer be able to do this for their learners.

When booking a test (through the official channel), learners will have to declare that they are booking their own car test and agree to a new set of terms and conditions.

It's important to note that this means learners cannot use unofficial booking and cancellation finder services. These services will no longer be lawful.

Hope that all makes sense, but do drop me a message if you have any questions. 👍