Bristol (Kingswood) Driving Test Centre
The Bristol (Kingswood) driving test centre is located in Bristol, England. Below are the official pass-rate statistics, multi-year trend, demographic breakdown, and how this centre compares against the UK average and its neighbours, all drawn from the DVSA quarterly statistical release.
Pass vs fail at a glance
15.7K passed, 8.9K failed, 24.7K total
How Bristol (Kingswood) compares
Bristol (Kingswood) performs well above the UK average. Learners passing here are more likely to pass than at most other UK centres, though this can also reflect quieter test routes and fewer challenging junctions.
Where Bristol (Kingswood) ranks among 152 centres
Pass-rate trend by year
Most common faults at this centre
The fault categories most frequently recorded against learners on test. Knowing them lets you target practice on the things examiners are most likely to penalise.
- 1Junctions - observation10
- 2Mirrors - change direction9
- 3Move off - safely8
- 4Junctions - turning right7
- 5Response to signs - traffic lights6
Per-centre fault breakdowns are derived from the DVSA national fault distribution applied to centre-level test outcomes.
Pass rate by demographic
Estimated wait time and demand
Wait times at Bristol (Kingswood) have been gradually shortening as DVSA recovers post-pandemic capacity. Booking is achievable but not immediate: learners booking at Bristol (Kingswood) typically wait around 13 weeks from booking to test day.
Wait time is estimated from regional demand patterns reported in the National Audit Office investigation into car driving test waiting times (Dec 2024) and the DVSA Despatch blog updates, combined with this centre's test volume. Real availability fluctuates with examiner staffing and cancellations, always check the official DVSA booking service for live slots.
Centre details
Address
Source: DVSA find a driving test centre (Open Government Licence v3.0), captured 2026-05-12.
Tests offered at Bristol (Kingswood)
- car
- ADI part 3
Accessibility & facilities
Parking and toilet details aren't included in DVSA's published feed. For the current on-site facilities, check the DVSA find a driving test centre tool with postcode BS11 8AQ, or call DVSA Customer Services on 0300 200 1122.
About this test centre
Drivers booked at Bristol (Kingswood) report to a DVSA centre in Bristol, West of England. The hgv/lgv routes used here are drawn from the streets the centre's examiners drive every week, so the test reflects local conditions rather than a generic syllabus. 24.7K tests through 2017-18-2024-25 puts Bristol (Kingswood) in the comfortable middle of the volume distribution. The pass rate moves with real signal, not noise.
By raw pass rate Bristol (Kingswood) sits at 74.6%, with the DVSA's national hgv/lgv average over the same window running at 48.7%. The gap (25.9 points clear of the UK figure) places the centre at rank #63 of 152, inside the upper half of the country's hgv/lgv test centres. First-attempt data for Bristol (Kingswood) is missing from the DVSA's DRT122C release. It's not a low number, it's no number, the centre is small enough that DVSA omits it from that particular table.
All figures shown are aggregated from the DVSA quarterly statistical release covering the most recent reporting periods available. Pass-rate calculations exclude tests cancelled by the candidate or examiner. Sample sizes and methodology are described in the source attribution at the foot of this page.
What learners should know about Bristol (Kingswood)
- Don't read a higher pass rate as a softer test. Bristol (Kingswood)'s rate reflects route geography more than examiner discretion, DVSA marking is centrally trained. Prepare for the same fault categories you'd prepare for anywhere.
- Ask any instructor working Bristol (Kingswood) about the centre's "usual fails", they'll have two or three specific junctions or manoeuvres in mind. Practise those until they're automatic before your date.
- Book through the official DVSA service (gov.uk/book-driving-test). Third-party "fast-track" sites charge a premium for the same booking; the DVSA's own cancellation feed is free.
Other test centres nearby
On the day at Bristol (Kingswood)
Plan to arrive at Bristol (Kingswood) about ten minutes before your slot. Parking varies between DVSA centres, so check the route and the surrounding streets on the DVSA centre finder a day or two ahead. Demand here is moderate with waits around 13 weeks, so there is usually a little more slot choice than at the busiest urban centres. Bring your provisional photocard licence; the examiner will not start without it, and you will need a roadworthy car with L plates and a working interior mirror.
Plan for a drive of roughly 40 minutes, identical in structure to every other DVSA centre. First comes the 20-metre eyesight check and a pair of vehicle-safety questions, one show-me, one tell-me, then the examiner joins you for the road section. About 20 minutes is independent driving by sat nav or by following signs to a named target, you tackle one of four set manoeuvres, and around a third of candidates get an emergency stop. The drive covers the local mix of road types within roughly a twenty-minute radius of the centre. Across recent DVSA marking, the fault logged most often at this centre is junctions - observation, worth drilling on the local routes before your date.
There is no wait for the verdict, the examiner delivers it at the centre. They go over each fault recorded, hand you the DL25 feedback form, and on a pass retain your provisional licence so the full version arrives by post. To pass you need no more than 15 driving faults and not a single serious or dangerous one; 74.6% of candidates at Bristol (Kingswood) currently clear that.
Frequently asked questions
What is the pass rate at Bristol (Kingswood)?
Is Bristol (Kingswood) an easy or hard test centre?
How does Bristol (Kingswood) compare to the UK average?
How many tests are taken at Bristol (Kingswood) each year?
Which driving test centres are near Bristol (Kingswood)?
When is the best time to book a test at Bristol (Kingswood)?
How do I book a test at Bristol (Kingswood) and what do I need?
How long is the wait for a driving test at Bristol (Kingswood)?
Data: DVSA quarterly statistical release, released under the Open Government Licence v3.0. PassRates.uk aggregates DVSA centre-level totals across reporting periods.
Edited by Vikas. DVSA data period: 2024-25.