Goodmayes driving test centre
98 Goodmayes Road, Ilford, Greater London, IG3 9UZ
A swap only works when one of you moves forward and the other moves back, so the date somebody cannot use is worth as much as the date somebody wants. DVSA will exchange the two bookings over the phone, free. What they will not do is put the two of you in touch, and that is the part this page is for. Not ready for your Goodmayes date? How to postpone it without losing the fee.
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No test booked yet? There is nothing to swap until you have one. Book on GOV.UK, then come back.
Goodmayes in numbers
43.7% of car tests at Goodmayes end in a pass, 6.3 points below the national average of 50%. Within London it ranks 27th of 30. It is also one of the busiest centres in the country, putting roughly 411 car tests through every week, which means a lot of learners holding a Goodmayes slot at any one time.
Pass rate
Below average- Passed here
- 43.7%21,374 tests, Apr 2025 to Mar 2026
- National average
- 50%same period
- On last year
- =level (43.7% the year before)
Waiting time
About typical- Median wait
- 11.8 weeks0.6 weeks shorter than the national median of 12.4
- Still free to book
- 2.7%of the next 24 weeks
- Already taken
- 5,673of 5,833 slots in that window
Centres you can swap with from Goodmayes
GOV.UK allows a swap with a learner booked at the same centre as you, at one of your three nearest, or at a centre you first booked at. Three nearest is measured by driving distance avoiding motorways, and DVSA publishes the list. A swap moves both learners, so the condition has to hold from each side, and the centres below are the ones that work in both directions from Goodmayes. Anywhere else is refused on the call.
| Centre | Distance | Wait, weeks | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hornchurch | about 5 miles | 22.3 | 46.3% +2.6 |
| Wanstead | about 6 miles | 13.0 | 44.4% +0.7 |
The four rules, applied here
You both need a change left
Two changes per car test, and a swap spends one of them. How changing a test works.
10 working days' notice
To whichever of the two tests is first. Monday to Saturday count; Sundays and public holidays do not.
Centres near each other
Goodmayes's own three nearest are Hornchurch, Wanstead, Loughton.
Same test type
Weekday with weekday; evening and weekend tests only with each other.
Getting to Goodmayes, and what to take
Straight from DVSA's own list of test centres. Worth reading the week before rather than the morning of.
Where it is
98 Goodmayes Road
Ilford
Greater London
IG3 9UZ
- There are parking spaces at this centre
- Toilets
- Arrangements will be made at this test centre if you have a disability
What to take
- Your UK driving licence. No photocard means a valid passport and your paper licence.
- Your theory test pass certificate if you have it. If it is lost the examiner can look the pass up.
- A car. Most people use their instructor's.
Driving around Goodmayes before test day
Nobody can give you the examiner's route. DVSA stopped publishing routes in 2010, and four tests in five are led by a sat nav the examiner sets up, so there is no sequence to learn. The roads are a different matter: which roundabout, which multi-lane junction, where the limit changes. Instructors film those, and watching them is the cheapest practice available.
6 practice routes from the Goodmayes test centre. Real roads, turn by turn, with the roundabout exits numbered and a manoeuvre to try on each one. Built from OpenStreetMap. Practice loops, not the examiner's route, because nobody has that.
The roundabouts around Goodmayes
Every named roundabout with three or more exits within three miles of the centre, nearest first, read off OpenStreetMap. DVSA stopped publishing test routes in 2010, so this is not a route and nobody can tell you which of these you will be sent round. It is the ground the test is driven on, and these are the junctions worth having met before the morning rather than on it.
| Roundabout | Exits | From the centre | Roads that meet there |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern Roundabout | 4 | 1.4 miles | Griggs Approach, Riches Road, Winston Way (A118) |
| Gants Hill Roundabout | 4 | 2.1 miles | Clarence Avenue, Cranbrook Road (A123), Eastern Avenue (A12), Woodford Avenue (A1400) |
| Ripple Road | 3 | 2.1 miles | Alfred's Way (A13), Lodge Avenue (A1153), Ripple Road (A123), Ripple Road (A13) |
| Fullwell Cross Roundabout | 5 | 2.3 miles | Craven Gardens, Fencepiece Road (A123), Forest Road, Fullwell Avenue, High Street (A123) |
| St Paul's Road | 4 | 2.4 miles | Broadway, Gascoigne Road, St Paul's Road (A123) |
| Woodford Avenue | 4 | 2.6 miles | Beehive Lane (B192), Longwood Gardens, Redbridge Lane East, Woodford Avenue (A1400) |
| Langdon Crescent | 3 | 2.9 miles | Langdon Crescent, Sussex Road |
| Redbridge Roundabout | 4 | 3.0 miles | Eastern Avenue (A12), North Circular Road (A406), Redbridge Lane East, Royston Gardens |
Swaps at Goodmayes, month by month
Most people know the month they need rather than the date. Each of these says how much of that month can still be swapped into under the ten working day rule, and which centres a Goodmayes booking can move to. DVSA releases slots in a rolling 24-week window, so these are the months anybody can be holding a test in.
Three quick questions
One each on the car safety questions, road signs and warning lights: the parts of the test you can learn off the page. Have a guess, then open the answer.
-
Show me, tell me
Open the bonnet. Tell me: how would you check you have a safe level of brake fluid?
- Check the brake warning light with the ignition on
- Press the brake pedal and see if it sinks
- Brake fluid is sealed and cannot be checked
- Find the reservoir and check the level against the high and low marks
Show the answer
Find the reservoir and check the level against the high and low marks. Identify the reservoir and check the level against the high and low markings.
-
Road signs
What shape are most warning signs?
- An octagon
- A triangle
- A circle
- A rectangle
Show the answer
A triangle. Warning signs are mostly red-bordered triangles, point up.
-
Warning lights
What does a green or blue light on the dashboard tell you?
- There is a fault to check soon
- Something is switched on
- Stop as soon as it is safe
- The car is in eco mode
Show the answer
Something is switched on. Green and blue lights are information: dipped headlights, front fog lights, main beam, indicators.
Swapping at Goodmayes: questions
Can I swap a test at Goodmayes for one at another centre?
Only if it is the same centre, one of your three nearest, or a centre you first booked at. A swap moves both learners, so it has to work from each side. From Goodmayes the list is Hornchurch, Wanstead. Anywhere else is refused on the call.
What is the pass rate at Goodmayes?
43.7% of car tests at Goodmayes ended in a pass between April 2025 and March 2026, from 21,374 tests. The national average over the same period was 50%, so Goodmayes is 6.3 points below it, ranking 280th of 314 centres in Great Britain. These are DVSA's own published figures and they describe the centre, not you.
Which nearby centre has a better pass rate than Goodmayes?
Of the centres you can legally move a Goodmayes test to, Hornchurch has the highest pass rate at 46.3%, against 43.7% here. That is a difference in the centre, not a promise about your test, and a swap has to suit the other learner too.
How long is the wait for a driving test at Goodmayes?
11.8 weeks. That is the median wait between booking and taking a test for people who sat one at Goodmayes in September 2026, from DVSA's own monthly figures, so half of them waited longer. The national median that month was 12.4 weeks. 2.7% of the slots in DVSA's 24-week booking window here were still free to book. A swap sidesteps that queue entirely, because you are moving into a date another learner has already booked.
How long does it take to find a swap at Goodmayes?
That depends on how many learners hold a slot here and whether any of them want the opposite of what you want. DVSA runs about 411 car tests a week at Goodmayes, so the pool holding a slot is large. Join the list at the top of this page and we email you when a learner who could swap with you joins. A three-way chain often resolves faster than waiting for a perfect pair.
Does swapping at Goodmayes cost anything?
No. You exchange slots rather than rebooking, so you keep your original booking reference and payment. Matching here is free, and DVSA does the swap on the phone at no charge.
How much notice do I need?
At least 10 full working days before whichever of the two tests comes first. Monday to Saturday count as working days; Sundays and public holidays do not, so the real deadline falls earlier than the calendar suggests.
Can my instructor arrange it for me?
No. Since 12 May 2026 only the candidate can book or manage their own test, and that applies to instructors too. Yours can sit next to you while you make the call.
Is this the same as a cancellation app for Goodmayes?
No. A cancellation app scans the booking service for unclaimed appointments, and since 12 May 2026 learners are not allowed to use services that do that. A swap works the other way round: the date you want is already booked by another learner, the two of you agree to exchange, and you make the call yourself.
Your Goodmayes date is somebody's dream date
Somewhere there is a learner holding the slot you want, who would rather have yours. Join the list and we email you when a learner who could swap with you joins. Free, no card, nothing to pay when it works.