The Department for Transport has consulted on whether learner car drivers in Great Britain should complete additional requirements before taking a practical test.
The consultation opened on 7 January 2026 and closed on 11 May 2026. As of August 2026, the government had not published its response or announced a final policy. A minimum learning period was therefore still a proposal, not a current requirement.
Under the present system, a learner can apply for a practical driving test once they hold a provisional licence and have passed the theory test. The consultation asked whether this should change through one or more mandatory measures.
Options included a minimum period between passing the theory test and taking the practical test, a minimum number of supervised driving hours, a structured learning syllabus, a logbook and required online learning. The consultation did not state a preferred combination.
The proposal is intended to give learners more time to encounter different roads, weather, traffic and light conditions while they still have support. Driving safely requires vehicle control, but it also requires judgement built through experience.
Time by itself does not guarantee better preparation. A learner could wait several months without gaining varied practice or confronting the decisions that become more difficult once supervision ends. What happens during that period will determine what the learner gains from it.
DriverReady is designed to cover the human and social side of driving that practical instruction alone is not intended to deliver. Across six weekly classroom modules, students aged 14 to 17 learn why risks such as peer pressure, distraction, fatigue and speed develop. They practise strategies and make plans they can use once they are travelling and driving independently. DriverReady complements professional instruction and supervised practice; it does not replace either.
The next formal step is a government summary of consultation responses and its own response. Until that is published, reports that a minimum learning period has already been introduced in Great Britain are incorrect.