UK driving test appointment availability and actual waits: September 2026

Coverage of this month's figures

The two measures have different coverage: DVSA published numeric actual-wait medians for 315 centres and numeric appointment-availability figures for 248 of the 321 centres in our directory. Missing or withheld values are shown as not published, never estimated or treated as zero.

The month-on-month appointment-availability comparison uses only the 248 centres with numeric values in both August 2026 and September 2026. Both monthly averages in that comparison use the same centres; the latest-month headline average uses all 248 published availability records.

Executive summary

• Learners actually waited 12.8 weeks on average across centre medians. This is an unweighted average of 315 centre-level medians for people who took a test in September 2026.
• 115 centres recorded a median actual wait below 10 weeks. That is 37% of centres with a published median.
• Only 65 of 315 centres recorded at least half of completed tests taking place within seven weeks of booking. That is 21% of centres with a published value.
• Current appointment availability fell by 0.8 weeks on average. Across comparable centres, the unweighted average moved from 20.5 weeks in August 2026 to 19.7 weeks in September 2026.
• Local changes give context to the average. Basingstoke rose by 10.8 weeks, while Scarborough fell by 18.6 weeks.

Two measures—not one waiting time

At 226 of 248 centres (91%), current appointment availability was higher than the median time learners had actually waited. Across all centres with both measures, the average difference between the two figures was 7.8 weeks.

How long learners actually waited is the median time between booking and taking a test for people who completed one during the month. Current appointment availability shows how far ahead DVSA had to look before at least 10% of weekly appointments remained available. It is not the time every learner will wait or a live appointment search.

What this means: a centre showing 24 weeks of current appointment availability does not necessarily mean that a typical learner waited 24 weeks. Cancellations and newly released appointments can produce a much shorter actual wait.

Only 65 centres recorded at least half of completed tests within seven weeks

Across the 315 centres with a published value, the centre-level median was 37.4%. 65 centres (21%) recorded 50% or more of completed tests within seven weeks of booking, while 59 centres (19%) recorded fewer than one in four within that period.

This is a historical measure of completed tests. DVSA counts the time from the original booking date to the eventual test date, including where the appointment was rescheduled.

These are counts of centres and an unweighted centre-level median—not a national percentage of learners. Table DRT122F does not publish the monthly completed-test count alongside this percentage, so unusually high or low centre percentages should not be treated as volume-weighted national evidence.

What this means: this percentage adds useful context to the median actual wait by showing how widely completed-test experiences were distributed, but it still cannot show whether an appointment is available today.

Where learners actually waited the shortest and longest times

The rankings below use the September 2026 median actual wait. Current appointment availability is shown beside it so the two official measures can be compared without treating them as interchangeable.

Current appointment availability fell at more centres than it rose

Centre-level changes were not uniform. A lower figure was recorded at 98 centres, compared with 54 centres where the measure rose. The measure was unchanged at 96 centres.

What this means: the overall average does not describe every centre. Learners should check their practical nearby options because local changes can move in different directions.

The largest appointment-availability movements

Basingstoke rose by 10.8 weeks, while Scarborough fell by 18.6 weeks. The ranked bars use the same scale and show up to eight of the largest increases and decreases. Exact August 2026 and September 2026 values are included beneath each centre.

What this means: a national average is useful context, but it cannot replace checking the centre that is realistic for your lessons and travel.

Find how appointment availability changed

Search all 248 comparable centres. Filter by region or direction, then sort the results to find the largest local movements. These are changes in the published 10% appointment-availability measure, not changes in how long learners actually waited or live appointments.

South West recorded the largest regional change

South West had the largest movement in its unweighted regional appointment-availability average, at -3.7 weeks. Averages rose in 2 regions and fell in 9; the remainder were unchanged. Regional averages give context but can hide large centre-level differences.

How learners can use the report

1. Start with centres you can reach and practise around. Use the linked centre pages to compare published figures without choosing an impractical journey solely for one statistic.
2. Check the official service when you are ready to book. These statistics cannot show whether an appointment is available now.
3. Recheck after the next DVSA release. A large one-month movement may not persist, so treat the report as a snapshot rather than a forecast.

What the next release should tell us

The next useful question is whether this month's pattern and the sharpest local changes persist. This dataset records the published measure but does not explain what caused an individual centre to rise or fall.