JAMIE

Your journey to become a confident, safe and stylish driver begins here. Working with my students is an obsession for me. I love doing what I do. Every decision I make is checked against one question: will that decision continue to ensure that all my students receive the best possible learning experience to make them as safe, confident and stylish as they can be on the road?

If the answer is yes then it gets done. If the answer is no, it doesn’t.

I am very proud of the reputation that I have. I am also immensely proud of having achieved 96% on the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) Approved Driving Instructor Standards Check Test. This check assesses my ability to teach students and all driving instructors are required to do this. They can choose whether they would like their results made public. I do! Please also see a detailed explanation of this here – www.gov.uk/find-driving-schools-and-lessons high quality teaching page.

Choosing the right driving coach is one of the most important decisions people make; it’s vital that you find a teacher who is professional, personable and can help you enjoy the driving experience.

The Best in Everything I Do

I’ve always aimed to be, and encouraged other people to be, different. I don’t think anyone would ever label me as normal. It’s true to say that we have all been blessed with an element of OCD; I am more than happy to be regularly ridiculed for mine. The irony is that although I may be ‘obsessive’ and ‘compulsive’ there is no ‘dis-order’ to my business! My car is immaculate: not a speck of dust to be found. My hand sanitiser makes an appearance following every session, much to the amusement of my students, as it is applied with precision over the steering wheel, gear stick and hand brake (in that precise order!) I am incredibly thorough and this attention to detail is paramount. I strive to be the best in everything I do and my Driving Foundation is no exception. As you will see from my Testimonials page I have built up a great reputation over the years. I am not the cheapest driving coach on the market but, as all my previous students will testify, I am most definitely the best value for money.

Safe Driving for Life

My goal for each one of my students is not only to teach them to pass their driving test but also to deliver the skills to ensure they are safe drivers for life. The Goals for Driver Education, a fundamental part of my curriculum, are at the heart of my teaching. My ethos is ‘student-centred learning’ where, with my expert guidance, each student takes responsibility for his or her own personal development. I believe careful planning and preparation between lessons is absolutely crucial as there is no benefit in simply cramming in sessions back to back over a short period of time. My Student Dashboard is just one of the many innovative features distinctive to my business; it enables them to track their progress through my curriculum. As I always teach my students to think in moving pictures rather than still photographs, I have installed front and rear cameras in my car for instant playback facility on my iPad. This helps analysis and understanding to accelerate students’ learning.

At the heart of everything is my passion for what I do. I love my job and I really enjoy teaching people of all ages how to drive or how to improve their driving skills. I will happily go out, seven days a week, in all weather (my lessons don’t get cancelled if there is snow or ice on the road as it is vital that students learn how to drive in diverse conditions) and I believe my enthusiasm is contagious and easily passed on to my students. I make sure the lessons are educational and enjoyable, and take place in a relaxed environment where students can comfortably make mistakes and learn from them.

Respect for all Road Users

My current waiting list and glowing testimonials are clear evidence that I am extremely good at what I do. I will always look at each individual situation and reply to all communications as quickly as I can. I am a ‘people person’, and a great communicator with a good sense of humour (see gallery photos!). I love driving and I’m also fully aware of the joy, freedom and responsibility it creates for students who pass their tests and then get the use of, or even buy a car. Significantly, I also love motorbikes and in my younger years I rode one regularly. This made me aware of the lack of courtesy some road users show towards motorcyclists. I’m a very keen cyclist too and regularly cycle on-road and off-road during the more clement months. In inclement weather, you’ll find me at roko either spinning or training six or seven days a week. My students are taught, from the outset, to give everyone on the road the respect they deserve. We all know how impatient other road users can be with learner drivers, but my students will never react to such pressure.

I would say that a large majority of my students come from referrals and personal recommendations. I have a number of ‘sponsors’ whom I know will champion me when talking to their friends and family and I can’t thank them enough for their ongoing support. Younger brothers and sisters of my students tend to follow in their siblings’ footsteps. Please be assured that my supportive relationship with my students and their families does not end with the successful completion of the test. It’s more important than that. I make it my business to keep in contact in order to track everyone’s progress and be there to offer any advice they may need in the future.

Family

If you’d like to know more about my life and personality, I was born in Leeds, the eldest of four siblings. I moved to Nottingham in 1992 and worked in business management for 20 years. My parents Stan and Cath moved to Arizona USA in 1989 taking my youngest brother and sister (Adam and Fiona) with them. They all settled and still live in Phoenix with Adam married to Amy and Fiona married to Phil (it must have been something I said😂). Fiona has a daughter, my niece Grace.

My other sister Sonja lives on the Ayrshire coast in Scotland. My son Jack is a professional footballer married to Louise and they have a son and daughter, Leo and Mila. They all currently live in Indianapolis, USA. Naturally, I taught Jack to drive when he turned 17 and he passed first time with just three driver faults. (It would have been somewhat awkward had he not!)

The love of my life (see photo here) and a person who is key to the development and success of my business is my wife Rachel. I can’t thank her enough for her input from day one and her continued support. A lot of the original design ideas came from Rachel and, when the business was first launched, I could not have achieved my goals without the support and encouragement from Rachel and her (now my) family namely Bridget, Len, Flora, Grace, Janet and Brian.

The remainder of my family all live in Glasgow which was my Dad’s home city.

My business has developed over nearly two decades and I am proud of what has been developed. There are many other people to thank, too many to mention here, but I do hope they know who they are. Thanks to all my customers over all these years.