News & Blog

Learning to drive was the most difficult thing I have done. After having 2 instructors who did not have enough patience for me to learn, I started lessons with Lin. I was very anxious when driving and had difficulties with left and right. Lin was patient with me and focused on the positives from each lesson. I never felt that I would learn to drive but Lin believed in me. The day I passed my test I was so shocked and happy. I would definitely recommend Lin to anyone learning to drive. Choosing a good instructor is so important and I am so glad I learned with Lin. Thanks Lin!

Getting started with any Driver Trainer is a difficult task at the moment. All those trainers that have established businesses are pretty busy, I know.

I’d like to give a massive thank those on my waiting list for your patience while a regular, suitable slot becomes available. I know it’s been a crazy long wait for some of you already: thanks so much for hanging around.

Hannah, Colette, Jackie and Lauren – I’m looking for evening and weekend slots for you guys.

Jade, Donna, Michael, Dipal (and her husband), Toby and Titia have some daytime availability.

I’ll keep in touch with you all individually, but feel free to get in touch if you want reassurance that I haven’t forgotten you!!

Those that are looking to become drivers will have login details for my Theory Test Pro site. Keep practising and if you need any additional support or input, please get back to me.

Thanks for putting your faith in me…… I hope to start working with you very soon.

Lin xx

I had a lovely working day yesterday! ….. My Edenbridge driver worked hard to achieve her session goals. In the past she has felt that anything other than perfection was failure, at whatever task she was attempting. It was great yesterday to hear her talk about how much she had improved in our time together. She made a comment at the end of our lesson about how it’s easier for people that are born in this country….. when I asked ‘what is easier?’, she replied that, ‘people from xxxx don’t like to follow rules’. This will be a really interesting start to our next lesson!!….. I went into Sevenoaks next, to meet a guy that travels a long way to meet me. He has had many lessons with three different trainers over nearly 20 years!! He lives (and drives) with dyspraxia and yesterday, he used strategies we had highlighted to drive on a mix of different for the whole of his 2 hour lesson!! Massive success!!

Working with anxious folk today. I’m so please they think I can help them….. This morning I was supporting a full licence holder, who currently restricts her driving to local, well known routes. We found strategies that helped her overcome a few limiting beliefs this morning and managed to venture further from home than she had driven before. Loved the smile and all the tears of relief!! Then a familiarisation lesson in the automatic car with a young dyspraxic and ADD girl who has been referred by another local driving instructor. Appropriate speed and positioning had been massive issues in the past, but we worked on these issues today with positive results. Finally a second lesson with another girl that wants to overcome feelings of high anxiety. We drove much further this evening on a mix of different roads and she managed to do some accurate reversing, something that she had felt was beyond her. What a lucky lady I am……. all those smiles!!

A great day ….. A morning spent with a guy training to be a driving instructor and working on the teaching and communication skills he will need in the future. It was great to have a longer session today to really ensure that learning had taken place. Then an afternoon with a young driver who was referred by a local trainer some months ago and who had her first lesson with me today. She loved her longer drive, using prior knowledge to reverse the car for the first time and managed to improve her control of speed and road positioning issues that had been so tricky before . Lovely to see her smile as she achieved her lesson goals!

After a bit of family time, its back to work for me today….. I’ve a trainee driving instructor observing lessons today: An anxious driver in Reigate with dyslexic tendencies wants to work on adding planning skills in traffic. Then a couple of autistic lads. The first, in Sevenoaks, has difficulties taking in information on the move, as there is a delay between him hearing something, and understanding and responding to it, so we plan a few junctions at a time to make sure he is able to keep us safe. The other, in Oxted, finds it tricky to cope with new situations, so we will play a ‘prediction’ game – An introduction to the bigger subject of anticipation.

Looking forward to spending time with lovely drivers in Keston and Borough Green today: I love their positivity, its quite infectious!!….. The first driver has a disabled daughter and is determined to get more control in her life, by increasing her independence with regard to travel. She knows the car she ultimately wants to buy and is working at the little intermediate steps she needs to make in order to achieve her ‘safe driving’ goal. We’re going to add greater depth to existing skills today to add understanding……This afternoon, I’m being chauffeured by a guy determined to become a thinking, independent driver capable of getting his girlfriend to her health appointments and to develop an interesting life for them both post-test.

Two training sessions today helping drivers with differing needs: The first is highly motivated to learn and has been working on sensible planning, controlling impulsivity during our drive and considering the consequences of her actions. We define and redefine her expectations throughout the lesson, use a mix of breathing exercises and chunk the lesson into 10 minute sections, which all seem to help. Today we’re going to look at driving in busy Croydon traffic……. The next is a new client with high anxiety, who has had lessons with others and has felt overwhelmed with the process so far. Today will be interesting!

After my morning walk, I’m just getting ready to share time and a coffee or two with a friend….. Later I have a final training session with a lady who has been changing her control of the car to hand controls. It’s been great to see how she has relaxed as her use of the controls has improved and as she became more aware of how she could better interact with other road users. She’s just ordered a brand new Lexus NX300 and the hand controls she now needs…. Very posh!!

After a lovely family day yesterday, it’s back to work today:

Supporting an autistic lad that is beginning to overcome his fears and his knowledge about traffic movement. We have agreed to work on road markings and signs to get even more understanding. Always Unique, Totally Interesting, Sometimes Mysterious!!…….Then a lady that passed her driving test over 15 years ago, but never had the confidence to drive alone. She wants to look at reversing in busy shopping areas!!

After a lovely family day yesterday, it’s back to work today:

Supporting an autistic lad that is beginning to overcome his fears and his knowledge about traffic movement. We have agreed to work on road markings and signs to get even more understanding. Always Unique, Totally Interesting, Sometimes Mysterious!!…….Then a lady that passed her driving test over 15 years ago, but never had the confidence to drive alone. She wants to look at reversing in busy shopping areas!!

A mixed day of training today: An ADI Part 2/3 session, a bit of ADI Standards Check planning and a learner lesson……. Starting in Reigate today looking at anticipation and planning with a trainee, looking for a smooth business like drive. Adding knowledge of the ‘independent driving’ element of the test today…… Then meeting an ADI to find out what they want from their Standards Check training. Is it test focussed or looking to the future?….. My final driver will be looking at judgement regarding distance, speed and timing.

An early start, but an early finish too today…… My first driver has started to drive later in life and has previously found it tricky with other trainers. We’ve had to spend considerable time at the start of each drive setting appropriate session goals, as her initial expectation was that she would only need half a dozen lessons to be at test standard. Today she wants to improve her entry and exit on dual carriageway slip roads and for it to feel calm and controlled, so we’ll be heading for Sevenoaks…… Then a longer session with a highly anxious young lady that has some dyslexic tendencies: she likes that I use hand signals for directions and that I don’t give too many instructions at once, giving her time to plan the important stuff!!

Off towards Croydon first thing this morning to deliver some in-car driver training for a local retailer. Looking at where crashes happen and how to avoid them, encouraging reflective thinking styles and reducing risk…… Then a nervous, dyspraxic learner driver approaching her test and wanting to further refine reversing manoeuvres….. Finally some ADI Part 2 driver training developing a business-like progressive, yet defensive style. This is really important as its forms the foundation upon which the Part 3 skills are built.

Off to Sevenoaks, looking at a variety of instructional techniques with an instructor trainee this morning. Particularly asking effective questions on the move as well as in a briefing……. Later, I’m supporting an experienced lady driver on her final lesson with me. She has successfully completed the transition from using feet to hand controls when driving and is feeling more confident now. We’ll look at any remaining niggles she has today…… Finally, I’m meeting a nervous young lady in Woldingham, who could do with a lesson without torrential rain, ice or fog!! Starting with some reversing and then how she interacts with others in traffic.

Sunday this week, means driver training in Reigate, Sevenoaks and Oxted….. My first driver is highly anxious and has tried to learn to drive many times before. Because she’s had a hectic week and is starting a new job tomorrow, she has decided that this week needs to be a drive well within her comfort zone. She has decided to focus on local driving routes to supermarkets she uses and to park in shopping centre car parks…… Next, a full licence holder that has begun to dread driving on dual carriageways and motorways. We need to have a chat and find out what this fear is all about and begin to formulate a coping strategy for her moving forward…. Finally, an autistic lad having his third lesson. He is very concerned about other traffic even in extremely quiet areas at the moment. We’ll see what we can do 🙂