Driving test waiting times in East Midlands, August 2026

20 test centres in East Midlands, shortest wait first. For tests taken in August 2026 the median learner here had booked 9.7 weeks earlier, against 11.9 weeks across Great Britain. The shortest wait in the region was Boston at 4.5 weeks. 3 of them sat at 20 weeks or more, close to the 24-week limit of the booking window.

All regions East Midlands East of England London North East North West Scotland South East South West Wales West Midlands Yorkshire and The Humber

#	Test centre	Region	Median wait	Weeks to free slots	Still free	Pass rate
1	Boston	East Midlands	4.5 wks	24	15.4%	50.7%
2	Chesterfield	East Midlands	4.9 wks	23	18.2%	56.2%
3	Leicester (Cannock Street)	East Midlands	6.4 wks	24	24%	40.2%
4	Leicester (Wigston)	East Midlands	7.1 wks	23.8	27.9%	51.2%
5	Kettering	East Midlands	7.3 wks	24	32.5%	49.1%
6	Derby (Alvaston)	East Midlands	7.4 wks	24	38.1%	51.8%
7	Nottingham (Chilwell)	East Midlands	7.7 wks	24	30.4%	49.9%
8	Northampton	East Midlands	7.9 wks	24	24.5%	52.1%
9	Hinckley	East Midlands	8.3 wks	24	30.6%	46.4%
10	Nottingham (Colwick )	East Midlands	8.3 wks	23.2	30.1%	46.4%
11	Worksop	East Midlands	11 wks	22.4	22.3%	55.2%
12	Buxton	East Midlands	15 wks	24	23.6%	58.7%
13	Louth	East Midlands	15.1 wks	10	26.7%	53.9%
14	Grantham (Somerby)	East Midlands	16.3 wks	23.2	32.7%	57.9%
15	Lincoln	East Midlands	17.1 wks	24	35.6%	52.1%
16	Skegness	East Midlands	17.9 wks	11	21.7%	55.9%
17	Ashfield	East Midlands	18.2 wks	23.8	40.4%	57.3%
18	Wellingborough	East Midlands	21.4 wks	24	58.9%	60%
19	Loughborough	East Midlands	23 wks	19.6	36.6%	42.3%
20	Melton Mowbray	East Midlands	23.3 wks	21.8	45.8%	69.7%

Reading the waiting time numbers

DVSA opens the booking window 24 weeks ahead. The median wait counts back from the test date to the day it was booked, so a 20-week median means most people at that centre took whatever date they could get when they first looked. A low “weeks to free slots” figure with a long median usually means slots are opening up now after a long backlog, and it is worth checking again.

Tests are booked only at GOV.UK. Cancellation-finder apps that log in on your behalf breach DVSA’s terms and can get a booking cancelled; the honest route is to check the official site in the morning, when cancelled slots tend to be released.

A centre a little further out is often months quicker, so it is worth comparing against neighbouring regions on the national waiting time table. Addresses and route notes for these centres are in the East Midlands test centre directory.