Driving test waiting times in North West, August 2026

31 test centres in North West, shortest wait first. For tests taken in August 2026 the median learner here had booked 12.1 weeks earlier, against 11.9 weeks across Great Britain. The shortest wait in the region was Barrow In Furness at 4.4 weeks. 3 of them sat at 20 weeks or more, close to the 24-week limit of the booking window.

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#	Test centre	Region	Median wait	Weeks to free slots	Still free	Pass rate
1	Barrow In Furness	North West	4.4 wks	10.4	2.6%	69.6%
2	St Helens (Liverpool)	North West	6.6 wks	13.2	5.6%	40.9%
3	Widnes (Liverpool)	North West	6.9 wks	17.4	5.7%	42.7%
4	Bury (Manchester)	North West	7.6 wks	24	17.7%	46.3%
5	Speke (Liverpool)	North West	8.3 wks	16.6	16.5%	40.5%
6	Carlisle	North West	8.4 wks	20	24.3%	58.7%
7	Blackburn with Darwen	North West	8.6 wks	24	11.9%	46.6%
8	Blackpool	North West	8.9 wks	14.2	7.4%	51.8%
9	Rochdale (Manchester)	North West	9.1 wks	24	23.1%	48.3%
10	Cheetham Hill (Manchester)	North West	10.4 wks	24	18.9%	44.7%
11	Warrington	North West	10.6 wks	20.4	28.2%	55.5%
12	Kendal (Oxenholme Road)	North West	10.7 wks	9.4	9%	65.1%
13	Workington	North West	10.9 wks	19.8	21.5%	61.9%
14	Chadderton	North West	12 wks	24	29.7%	46.8%
15	Chorley	North West	12 wks	23.8	21.5%	52.8%
16	Upton	North West	12.1 wks	18.8	25.8%	52.6%
17	Chester	North West	14.4 wks	20.8	25.4%	47.3%
18	Atherton (Manchester)	North West	15.3 wks	24	29.7%	44.3%
19	Norris Green (Liverpool)	North West	15.3 wks	24	34.7%	37.8%
20	Sale (Manchester)	North West	15.4 wks	24	34.8%	51.4%
21	Crewe	North West	16 wks	22.8	23.4%	43.8%
22	Bolton (Manchester)	North West	16.2 wks	24	41.3%	51.8%
23	Southport (Liverpool)	North West	16.9 wks	23.4	38.4%	56.5%
24	Bredbury (Manchester)	North West	17.1 wks	24	36.6%	56%
25	Heysham	North West	18.1 wks	17.2	26.8%	59.2%
26	Preston	North West	18.4 wks	24	36.6%	56.3%
27	Northwich	North West	19.1 wks	16.4	47.2%	57.6%
28	Nelson	North West	19.7 wks	24	40.7%	51.7%
29	Wallasey	North West	20.5 wks	18.4	31.6%	54.3%
30	Macclesfield	North West	21.4 wks	22.8	45.9%	51.9%
31	West Didsbury (Manchester)	North West	22.6 wks	24	50.5%	47.7%

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 North West test centre directory.