Westmorland and Furness · North West
Barrow In Furness driving test centre
69.6% of car practical tests taken at Barrow In Furness passed in 2025-26, from 1,699 tests. Pass rates, local road types and how we prepare you for this centre.
Barrow In Furness pass rates
Pass rate 2025-26
69.6%
1,183 passes
National average
50%
+19.6 points here
Tests conducted
1,699
about 142 a month
Best published year
69.6%
2025-26
1,699 car practical tests were taken at Barrow In Furness in 2025-26. 69.6% passed, 19.6 percentage points above the national average of 50%. It is up on 2019-20, when 56.4% passed.
Over the published years the rate has moved between 56.4% in 2019-20 and 69.6% in 2025-26, so a single year's figure is a weak guide on its own. In 2025-26 the rate was 71.2% for male candidates and 68.1% for female candidates. That works out at roughly 142 tests a month, which is what waiting times at Barrow In Furness depend on more than the pass rate does.
- Barrow In Furness
- National average
| Year | Tests | Passes | Pass rate | National | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 1,699 | 1,183 | 69.6% | 50% | 71.2% | 68.1% |
| 2024-25 | 1,735 | 1,074 | 61.9% | 48.7% | 62.9% | 60.7% |
| 2023-24 | 1,796 | 1,190 | 66.3% | 47.9% | 67.3% | 65.1% |
| 2022-23 | 1,929 | 1,250 | 64.8% | 48.4% | 68% | 61.5% |
| 2021-22 | 1,958 | 1,150 | 58.7% | 48.9% | 61% | 56.6% |
| 2019-20 | 1,888 | 1,065 | 56.4% | 45.9% | 60.6% | 52.4% |
Source: DVSA table DRT122A, car practical driving test pass rates by test centre, published on GOV.UK. Figures are financial years running April to March.
Driving out of Barrow In Furness
Instructors who teach out of Barrow In Furness report the same road mix on most routes: unlit lanes with passing places, sharp unsigned junctions and a short built-up section. Learners who have only driven quiet estate roads tend to find the pace higher than they expect.
National-speed-limit single carriageways are near-certain — progress is marked as well as caution. The built-up section is short, so the limit changes come quickly and get marked. Most candidates here travel in from around Westmorland and Furness, so allow for the journey when you pick a slot.
Barrow In Furness takes candidates from across Westmorland and Furness, so plenty arrive having learned on a different road mix. That usually shows in the first five minutes of the drive.
The aim is simple: nothing on the drive should be new on the day.
Roads you are likely to meet
Unlit lanes with passing places
Sharp unsigned junctions
A short built-up section
- National-speed-limit single carriageways are near-certain — progress is marked as well as caution.
- The built-up section is short, so the limit changes come quickly and get marked.
- Most candidates here travel in from around Westmorland and Furness, so allow for the journey when you pick a slot.
Test routes are no longer published by the DVSA, and examiners vary them. Treat this as a guide to the local road types rather than a route list. Book your test and check availability on GOV.UK.
Where marks are lost at Barrow In Furness
Judgement on unlit lanes
Passing places, mud on the road, horses and tractors are all part of the marking here — and so is progress once the road opens up.
How we prepare you for this centre
Time on the real roads
We plan the final sessions around Barrow In Furness itself, so the unlit lanes with passing places you meet on test day are ones you have already driven.
A full mock test
A full-length mock from the Barrow In Furness area, scored on the DVSA sheet so you see exactly where the marks went.
Manoeuvres in real locations
All four test manoeuvres, practised in the kind of streets examiners around Barrow In Furness actually use.
The paperwork and the routine
We walk the whole sequence — arrival, documents, eyesight check, independent drive — so nothing on the day is new.
Courses that suit test-centre prep
Barrow In Furness test centre FAQs
What are the test routes like at Barrow In Furness?
The DVSA stopped publishing official routes, and examiners vary them. In practice, routes from Barrow In Furness draw on unlit lanes with passing places, sharp unsigned junctions, a short built-up section, so those are the conditions to rehearse rather than a fixed sequence of streets.
What do learners most often fail on at Barrow In Furness?
judgement on unlit lanes — all of which come directly from the road types on the local network.
Can I take an intensive course and test at Barrow In Furness?
Yes. We match you with a DVSA approved instructor who teaches on these roads day to day, and we look for the earliest practical slot at Barrow In Furness.
How do I book a practical test at Barrow In Furness?
Practical tests are booked through GOV.UK with your provisional licence and theory certificate numbers. We can check cancellations for you once your course dates are set.
How early should I arrive at Barrow In Furness?
Ten minutes early is enough. Bring your provisional licence; the eyesight check happens outside before you get in the car, so know which plate you can read.
Should I travel to a different centre instead?
We will not sell you a pass rate. Published DVSA figures reflect who books there as much as the roads, and a centre an hour away that you cannot practise around is a worse bet than the one your instructor drives every week.
Not sure how many hours you need?
Answer four quick questions and we will recommend a course based on your experience, not a sales target.