Scarborough Driving Test Centre
Scarborough in Scarborough currently passes 51.7% of tests, 3 points above the UK average of 48.7%. The sections below cover the year-by-year trend, who passes most often, how long learners wait, and how it stacks up against neighbouring centres.
DVSA data last updated July 2026
Scarborough sits in the top half of car pass rates nationally (Top 43%, rank #140 of 323). The strongest car alternative nearby is Malton, about 18.9 miles away.
Pass vs fail at a glance
All-time 18.8K passed, 16.7K failed, 35.6K total
How Scarborough compares
At 3 points above the UK figure and ranked 140 of 323 in its category, Scarborough offers a modest but real edge, typically a product of its local road layout rather than the venue itself.
Where Scarborough ranks among 323 centres
Pass-rate trend by year
The longer arc at Scarborough points down: 58.2% in 2017-18 against 51.7% now, a 6.5-point slide, though 2017-18 showed what the routes allow at 58.2%.
Pass rate by demographic
Waiting time at Scarborough
The headline figure for reaching 10% availability is 18.5 weeks, but the typical (median) learner who took their test at Scarborough in May 2026 had waited 7.3 weeks from booking to test day.
Official DVSA data, May 2026. The median is the time between booking and taking the test; for live availability use the DVSA booking service.
Centre details
Address
Source: DVSA find a driving test centre (Open Government Licence v3.0), captured 2026-05-12.
Tests offered at Scarborough
- car
- motorcycle module 2 (on-road)
- 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 YO12 4AY, or call DVSA Customer Services on 0300 200 1122.
About this test centre
If you've got a test booked at YO11 1LP, that's Scarborough in Scarborough, York and North Yorkshire. Examiners drive a mix of the roads immediately surrounding the centre; the DVSA does not publish its test routes. 35.6K tests across 2017-18-2024-25. That's a working sample, enough to take the pass rate at face value but not so large that a single quiet quarter passes unnoticed.
Rank: #140 of 323. Pass rate: 51.7%. UK average: 48.7%. That's a upper half centre by the DVSA's own published figures. 51.4% of first-timers pass at Scarborough, 2.4 points above the UK figure of 49%. A prepared first attempt has a real shot here in a way it doesn't at every centre.
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 Scarborough
- Scarborough doesn't deviate much from the national curve, so generic preparation advice (mock tests, mirror discipline, junction observation) applies here in the same shape it would anywhere.
- If you can, take at least one lesson with an instructor who specifically works the Scarborough area. Local instructors know which nearby junctions are demanding and will drill them.
- Don't pay third-party sites for booking access at Scarborough. Use gov.uk/book-driving-test directly; cancellations show up on the same booking flow.
Other test centres nearby
On the day at Scarborough
Ten minutes early is the right target at Scarborough. Parking differs between DVSA centres, so it pays to scout the route on the DVSA centre finder (postcode YO11 1LP) the day before. This centre sees high demand, modelled at roughly 12 to 16 weeks to a slot; booking well ahead and watching for cancellations both help. Bring the provisional photocard licence, the examiner checks for it first, and make sure your car is roadworthy with L plates and a working interior mirror. If Bridlington is fully booked, Scarborough is the next closest centre, roughly 16 miles away.
Expect about 40 minutes once you set off, to the same national DVSA script. It opens with an eyesight check at 20 metres and one tell-me question, after which the examiner rides along for the drive and asks one show-me question on the move. Around 20 minutes of that is independent driving, guided either by a sat nav the examiner provides or by road signs to a named destination, with one of four set manoeuvres and a one-in-seven chance of an emergency stop. The drive covers the local mix of road types within roughly a twenty-minute radius of the centre. Across DVSA marking nationally, the fault recorded most often on car tests is junctions - observation, worth drilling on the local routes before your date.
The result is given immediately when you get back. Whatever the outcome, the examiner reads through the marked faults and prints your DL25 feedback form; pass and they take the provisional licence to trigger your full one by post. The threshold is the national one, 15 driving faults at most and zero serious or dangerous, which 51.7% of Scarborough's candidates reach right now.
Frequently asked questions
What is the pass rate at Scarborough?
Is Scarborough an easy or hard test centre?
How does Scarborough compare to the UK average?
How many driving tests does Scarborough record?
Which driving test centres are near Scarborough?
When is the best time to book a test at Scarborough?
How do I book a test at Scarborough and what do I need?
How long is the wait for a driving test at Scarborough?
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.