Stafford Driving Test Centre
Stafford posts a 46.1% pass rate, with Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-Under-Lyme) the nearest alternative about 14 miles away. Read on for its full DVSA history, first-time pass rate, waiting time and demographic breakdown.
DVSA data last updated September 2026
Stafford sits in the bottom quarter of car pass rates nationally (Bottom 23%, rank #251 of 323). The strongest car alternative nearby is Lichfield, about 14.8 miles away.
Pass vs fail at a glance
All-time 25.0K passed, 25.6K failed, 50.7K total
How Stafford compares
Stafford is 2.6 points behind the national figure and ranked 251 of 323 in its category, a difference most candidates will not feel on the day.
Where Stafford ranks among 323 centres
Pass-rate trend by year
Stafford has given up 3.5 points since 2017-18 (49.6% then, 46.1% now); the low water mark was 46.1% in 2024-25.
Pass rate by demographic
Waiting time at Stafford
The headline figure for reaching 10% availability is 24 weeks, but the typical (median) learner who took their test at Stafford in August 2026 had waited 17.7 weeks from booking to test day.
Official DVSA data, August 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 Stafford
- 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 ST16 2RF, or call DVSA Customer Services on 0300 200 1122.
About this test centre
Stafford is in Stafford, Staffordshire and runs DVSA car tests for learners across the local area. Your examiner picks the route on the day without telling you which, and the DVSA does not publish them. Volume is not the issue at Stafford. 50.7K tests sit on the record across 2017-18-2024-25, so the trend line below reflects real movement, not sample noise.
Out of 323 UK car test centres, Stafford ranks 251, which lands it in the bottom quarter nationally. The 46.1% pass rate is 2.6 points below the UK figure of 48.7%. Stafford is one of the tougher venues for a first attempt. The DVSA reports 44.9% first-time pass against a UK average of 49%, 4.1 points down on the national figure.
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 Stafford
- Stafford 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.
- Volume at Stafford is among the highest in the network. Don't take the first available date on faith, refreshing the DVSA booking page across a few days regularly turns up cancellations.
- If you can, take at least one lesson with an instructor who specifically works the Stafford area. Local instructors know which nearby junctions are demanding and will drill them.
- Don't pay third-party sites for booking access at Stafford. Use gov.uk/book-driving-test directly; cancellations show up on the same booking flow.
Whether you pass at Stafford is not decided by the centre. It is decided by the 15 things an examiner can mark you on, and response, traffic lights is one of the ones that ends attempts early.
DVSA publishes all 21 vehicle safety questions in advance, 14 tell me and 7 show me. You get 2 of them on the day, one at the roadside and one while you are driving. Get one wrong or both wrong and it counts as one driving fault, not two.
Amber-light decision practice: at every amber, the instructor calls "stop or go" so you build the muscle for the right call. Practise multi-stage junctions. Free to use, no sign up. Everything for the day itself is on the practical test hub.
Other test centres nearby
You cannot book a practical test at Stafford until you hold a theory pass, and it has to still be valid on the day you sit it. Nationally 44.8% of candidates pass the theory.
Loads, roof racks, towing and keeping the vehicle stable and legal. All 14 DVSA topics are free to practise, with no sign up. See the theory pass rate by centre or the full practice hub.
On the day at Stafford
Plan to arrive at Stafford 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. With demand running high here and waits near 17 to 21 weeks, it is worth holding any earlier cancellation slot you are offered. 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. If Stoke-on-Trent (Newcastle-Under-Lyme) is fully booked, Stafford is the next closest centre, roughly 14 miles away.
The test runs for around 40 minutes and follows the same DVSA format used at every centre. The examiner checks your eyesight at 20 metres, asks you a tell-me safety question, then sits in for the drive, with one show-me question while you are driving. About 20 minutes of it is independent driving, either following a sat nav the examiner sets up or following road signs to a named place. You will do one of four set manoeuvres, and roughly one in seven candidates is asked to perform an emergency stop. The drive works through whatever mix of urban and outlying roads sits within about a twenty-minute radius, and at a centre this busy that usually means heavier traffic to read. Across DVSA marking nationally, the fault recorded most often on car tests is junctions - observation, worth drilling on the local routes before your date.
You find out there and then, back at Stafford. The examiner runs through the faults on the DL25 feedback form and, on a pass, keeps your provisional licence so a full licence follows in the post. Clearing the test means staying under 16 driving faults, that is 15 or fewer, with no serious or dangerous fault; 46.1% of candidates here manage it on the current marking.
Frequently asked questions
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Data: DVSA quarterly statistical release, released under the Open Government Licence v3.0. PassRates.uk aggregates DVSA centre-level totals across reporting periods.
DVSA data period: 2024-25.