We continue our ascent up the UK by looking at great driving schools in the North. We've selected 5 of our favourite driving schools in the North of England, stopping just before Scotland - we're saving that for next time!  

121 Driving School - Blyth

121 Driving School is a family run business, providing tuition to those seeking manual or automatic lessons. They have 30 different instructors employed across various locations in the North East. Students clearly have few complaints about the school, with 80% of new business coming from referrals. The appreciation goes both ways, with 121 Driving School proudly posting the names of all their successful students on their ‘Hall of Fame’ list. 121 is also a great driving school for those under 17. People under 17 can receive tuition on the driving basics and test their skills on 121’s Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum mini courses.  TESTIMONIAL

"Thanks to your driving school and top instructor (David), my daughter Andie had a 'faultless pass' 11 weeks after her 17th Birthday. Highly recommend your school of motoring!" Judith

Hourly Rate: £19 Manual / £20 Automatic (see website for offers and block bookings).

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GEM Driving School - Liverpool

GEM Driving School has over 25 years of experience providing their ‘no nonsense approach to learning to drive’. Keen to see their high pass rates increase, GEM has created offers they hope will entice all types of learners. These include University discounts and a ‘Buddy Offer’, where people can obtain a free lesson by introducing a friend. GEM Driving School can even provide tuition to disqualified drivers who must re-take their driving test. TESTIMONIAL

 “I had taken several tests before contacting GEM Driving School. I found GEM Driving School extremely professional, courteous and they filled in the areas that several previous instructors had left out.” A. Berry

Hourly Rate: £19 (see website for offers and block bookings).

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Learn Smart Driving School - Lincoln

Learn Smart Driving School aims to turn their nervous novices into safe drivers for life. Instructors are professionally trained, lessons are well structured and information is plentiful. See their site and app, both choc-full of helpful information and theory test guidance. Learn Smart Driving School are so confident with the quality of their tuition that they even offer a money back guarantee. In addition, why not take advantage of their ‘Eco-Driving Training’? You could potentially save 25% on your fuel costs, by learning valuable techniques for driving economically. TESTIMONIAL

"Passed my test earlier in the week after several months of lessons with Craig, and was very impressed with the tuition that I received. Originally failed my test several years ago; his patience, easy going attitude and adaptability to my personal strengths and weaknesses increased my confidence and made lessons much more enjoyable."  Andy

Hourly Rate: £25 (see website for offers and block bookings).

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Premier Driving School - Southport

Premier Driving School not only provide high quality learner training, but also the chance to obtain a BTEC qualification in safe driving, an opportunity not offered by many other schools. Lessons are fun and enjoyable and everything is taught at a pace the learner is comfortable with. The school has a passion for their community; Premier Driving School are not just satisfied with providing high quality learner driver lessons, they also regularly get involved with the charitable cause – ‘The Galloways Society for the Blind' driving event in Three Sisters. The day provides people who are blind / partially sighted with the opportunity to do what they can’t under normal circumstances - drive a car around a track! TESTIMONIAL

"The best driving school in the UK!" - Erika

Hourly Rate: £22 (see website for offers and block bookings).

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Franklin and Morville School of Motoring - Hebden Bridge

Providing tuition to people of all driving abilities, Franklin and Morville School of Motoring is run by partners Alan Franklin and Andrea Morville. Alan is an instructor with years of experience and an advanced driving diploma, given to him by a senior police trainer. Andrea works on the admin side of the business, but offers a great deal of support to students, willing to answer their calls anytime. Alan does not believe in restricting your tuition to the set routes that will appear on your driving test. You are prepped for the future and Alan will happily take you on routes outside the testing area. You’ll learn in a kitted out Citroen DS3 that has a CCTV black box system built in. Learners need only provide their own SD card and they can get a full video recording of their lesson, inside and outside of the car. TESTIMONIAL

"Can not believe how much Alan helped me out when I was I need of a driving instructor last minute for my test! Did everything he could to help me and managed to find me someone to cover my test!! What an amazing person and company" – Carrie

Hourly Rate: £21 (see website for offers and block bookings).

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Do you live in the North? Do you think you know a great driving school? Let us know in the comments below!