Tony From Newington Passes First Time — Bound for America!
University Life, Weekly Lessons and a First-Time Pass at Currie Test Centre
Tony came to me as a complete beginner in the middle of January this year. Originally from Liverpool, he was living in the Newington area of Edinburgh and was in the final year of his university degree. Tony had decided that graduating with a full manual driving licence would be a brilliant skill to add alongside his qualifications — and what a great decision that turned out to be.
On our very first lesson, we headed to a quiet housing estate and covered the fundamentals — starting and stopping, clutch control, and changing gear. From the very beginning, Tony showed great enthusiasm. He was never shy about asking questions, which always made lessons enjoyable and kept things moving along at a great pace.
It wasn’t long before Tony had the basics firmly under his belt, and we shifted our focus to putting everything together. We went out weekly, scheduling lessons around his university timetable, and steadily worked our way through everything he’d need for his test. After some practice around the Currie test area, we ran a mock driving test. As is completely normal, Tony did well in some areas and had things to work on in others. We talked everything through clearly and spent the following weeks practising and perfecting those key points.
One challenge Tony faced was the current test waiting times — around six months across Edinburgh and the rest of the UK. He had been well organised and booked a test for July, but with university finishing and a summer in America planned before returning to Liverpool, that date was no use to him. Tony kept a close eye out for cancellations, and I was on the lookout through other instructors in case a swap could be arranged.
As March arrived, time was beginning to feel tight — then a bit of luck came our way. I found another learner who had a test booked for Friday the 8th of May and was looking to swap to a later date. It was perfect. We secured the new date and both felt a huge sense of relief. With a few weeks now to go, we put in the final work, carried out another mock test, and the improvement was outstanding. Tony was well on track.
On the morning of the test, I picked Tony up at 6:30am for his 8am appointment at the Currie test centre. We used the time for one final practice run before arriving at the Currie test centre. Tony met his examiner, walked out to the car, and I settled in to wait.
Forty minutes later, Tony was back — and it was brilliant news. Tony passed his driving test on his first attempt, picking up just two driving faults. An absolutely superb result.
It was a fantastic way to round off Tony’s time in Edinburgh, and he now heads off to America and eventually back to Liverpool with a full manual driving licence to his name. Well done Tony — it was a pleasure!
