RoadSmart Driver Coaching & Development Reviews 

Les was an amazing instructor who helped me work through all of my anxiety surrounding driving. From the beginning, Les was calm and informative and adapted to my style of learning. He boosted my confidence and always worked with me to reflect on any mistakes and helped me realise on my own what I needed to change. Les created fun yet educational lessons, and I always looked forward to my lessons each week. I enjoyed the reflective aspect of the lessons, writing notes about what I enjoyed, what I struggled with, and what I would like to work on moving forward. I found that Les made learning to drive enjoyable and never pushed me to do anything he didn't believe I was capable of. Without Les' belief and confidence in me, I would still feel unconfident and anxious on the roads. After 8 months of hard work with Les and his guidance, I was able to pass first time with only 2 minors!

I couldn’t be more satisfied with my experience learning to drive with Les! Thanks to Les, I have become a safe, competent and confident driver. His style of teaching, combined with the regular opportunities for reflection, makes learning both easy and enjoyable. I highly recommend Les to anyone looking for an excellent instructor!

From beginning to end Les helped me improve my confidence and ability when driving and i’m so grateful for the help on both my theory and test passing both first time. So friendly and helpful which helped me so much as I was so nervous about my lessons at the beginning. Every lesson was a new milestone with my driving and i felt so comfortable every time. I couldn’t recommend anyone better☺️

Les is a truly outstanding instructor and I would never have learned to drive, let alone pass my test first time, without him. I found driving very challenging as a process that involves skills I was completely unfamiliar with. Les was exceptionally patient, and empowered me to find a commentary driving technique that works extremely well for me.

Les has unparalleled knowledge and passion for his profession, and I am convinced that he could teach any learner of even the most limited understanding to be a safe and successful driver. He is very conscientious and has advanced expertise in teaching, coaching and professional skills. He is also a really lovely person who is extremely friendly and kind, as well as genuinely interested in his students and how they learn.

As someone who found driving so difficult, Les never gave up on me and supported me through every challenge and success. I would recommend Les to anyone who is considering learning to drive - he is a star, and I will always be so grateful to him!

When I started learning I was really nervous, I’d tried to learn years ago and had it in my head driving was stressful and difficult. Les was a brilliant coach right from the start, encouraging me to go at a pace that felt right for me, plan and prepare to reduce the stress, and helping me come up with strategies to deal with problems. I struggled with my nerves a lot of the time but Les really helped me with this, and being able to prepare for each session made me feel in control. Thank you Les! Now I feel confident to get out on the roads.

Les was a great instructor throughout my experience learning to drive who provided multiple resources and methods to help me improve my ability to handle the road.

My driving experience was! I had started my driving experience with a previous instructor however, after starting my driving lessons here I have learned so much and was able to pass my driving test first time! The support and patience definitely helped me pass thank you!

Les is a great instructor - he is very knowledgeable, patient as well as a very lovely person. His method of teaching makes it so easy to learn, and I like the way he makes you constantly reflect on your lessons and learn from your mistakes. I would definitely recommend him to anyone - I managed to pass first time with no minors because of him which proves how great he is!

I started learning with Les in 2020 and experienced having a lot of time off between lessons at first due to the pandemic. Having two years off and coming back to Les to continue my driving was the best decision I made!

Les is an excellent instructor - personable, friendly, knowledgeable and always patient. When learning, he ensures that you to go at a pace you feel comfortable with in each session. I found there was always a good balance between driving instructed in the beginning and driving independently as I became much more confident and more ‘test ready’, which I found really beneficial. I would 100% recommend Les to anyone who’s wanting to learn to drive.

Les is an amazing and extremely patient instructor. After being through 2 previous instructors i came to Les quite nervous and anxious to get back on the roads. Les helped me become a lot more confident and knowledgeable. The lessons were always structured around me and what i felt i needed work on. Massive thank you!

Les was incredibly knowledgeable and patient as an instructor, which I valued lots. He really lets you figure things out by yourself, so as to adequately prepare you for independent driving. By the time I sat my test I felt confident enough I could drive on any road I was taken on - all from the experience I gained in my lessons. I started my lessons in February 2023 and passed first time 6 months later - I’m so glad I went with Les! I honestly cannot recommend him enough for anyone wanting to become a safe and competent driver :)

I would definitely recommend learning with Les. He was always very patient, and helped me to gain confidence quickly. I enjoyed how lessons were structured around my needs, and I was able to pick themes for each session.

I had started driving with no experience behind the wheel and was very anxious about being out on the roads. Les from the very start gave me that peace of mind and knowledge that I needed on how to drive and to do it safely and week by week my confidence grew. I cannot thank enough for his teaching and support. Highly recommend Les to anyone who’s ready to drive!

I'm so pleased I went with Les for my driving lessons. Throughout the process, Les kept me calm and guided me from being a complete learner to passing my test while keeping up my confidence even through some challenging times. I would thoroughly recommend Les to anyone who is looking to start learning to drive and know they will be very well looked after.
Thank you Les once again.

Chris Milsted
March 2023

Les is an absolutely fantastic instructor. I had about 20-30 hours driving experience before started lessons with Les, thinking I was already a fairly competent driver. Although he was only ever was supportive of my skills, his depth of teaching and the effort he puts into every lesson made me realise I had only scratched the surface of what truly safe and skilled driving looked like. Les isn’t the type of instructor that teaches you to “pass” a test. He isn’t the type of instructor to only take you on test routes or teach you gimmicky ways of passing. He is the type of instructor to teach you how to drive for the rest of your life. He focuses on awareness, planning, hazard perception, progressive driving and so much more, all while giving you an individualised, client centred experience. Personally, moving from a very quiet rural area with little traffic and barely any junctions, I never thought I would feel at ease driving on unknown roads, let alone all over the Newcastle city centre and all over the North East! As a learner you can really tell he is passionate about safety and making sure he would be happy driving alongside you in the real world. I owe all of the freedom I have gained since passing first time to Les and I can’t thank him or recommend him highly enough.

I started learning with Les last August, after failing my first test with a different instructor. Despite not starting from scratch, it felt that way after lessons being paused due to lock down. I suffer with anxiety with driving but Les's calm demeanor and teaching style put me at ease quickly and he takes the time to talk through your struggles clearly. He goes above and beyond to make sure you are as prepared as you can be for your test and encourages you to plan out what you want to improve on with helpful criticisms. After just over 6 months I passed my test with flying colours and great confidence to be an independent driver at last. Id highly recommend Roadsmart driving school for anyone looking to learn how to drive and I'm very grateful for all Les's help.

I couldn’t recommend Les enough! I passed first time with only 2 minors! He’s extremely patient, knowledgeable and passionate about his job. I always felt safe and confident learning with him which in turn allows you to become a safe and confident driver. Thank you again Les!

I can’t thank Les enough for being such a fab instructor! His instructor style is heavily client centred, enabling independent decision making and therefore independent driving. He is extremely knowledgeable/experienced on all things driving but also his ability to teach. Les is calm, patient and responsive to emotion/nerves/knowing when to challenge. He provides attentional content for self study/self reflection, adding a tailored and structured approach to lesson planning. You will not leave les’s lessons ‘fluking’ a test but instead a confident driver! You’ll also have a laugh along the way! Would highly highly recommend.

Les is a skilled, reflective and patient practitioner. He offers a differentiated and learner-centred approach, no lesson ever felt generic; instead each lesson was tailored using my individual reflection and guidance from Les. I delayed learning to drive for years due to anxiety and a lack of confidence of my abilities. Without Les and his unwavering support, I truly believe I would not have developed the skills in order to have passed my test. Les is calm, compassionate and considered at all times which created a holistic and adaptable learning environment. I not only learned to pass a test, but to be a safe and confident driver for life and ultimately I learned to love to drive (something I never thought I would say!)

Great instructor helped me to pass test first time, highly recommend