What the New Driving Instructor Code of Practice Means for Learners This Summer

Every approved driving instructor in England, Scotland and Wales will be expected to work to a new code of practice from this summer, as the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency rewrites the rulebook that governs how learners are taught and how bad instructors get caught.

The update affects anyone choosing a driving instructor for themselves or their child, not just the instructors themselves. It adds fresh guidance on protecting vulnerable learners, sets out rules on social media conduct and the use of artificial intelligence tools in lessons, and tightens the rules around trainee licences that some instructors have used as a shortcut to start earning before they are fully qualified.

Thousands of approved driving instructors are registered to teach across Great Britain, and most parents booking lessons for a teenager, or adults returning to driving after years away, have no easy way of checking what standards that instructor is actually held to. The new code is meant to close that gap by giving both instructors and the public a single, plain-language document setting out exactly what proper conduct looks like.

A New Rulebook for Every Instructor

The updated code of practice has been developed with the National Associations Strategic Partnership, along with national driving schools and forum members representing a large share of the country’s independent and franchise instructors. It will replace the existing code entirely and use plain, graded language throughout: “must” for anything non-negotiable, “should” for strongly recommended practice, and “could” for good practice that remains an instructor’s choice.

Every instructor will be expected to read and follow the new code from the day it launches. Anyone joining the profession or renewing their approved driving instructor registration will have to formally declare they have read, understood and agreed to it. If the DVSA receives a complaint about an instructor’s conduct, the code becomes the reference point for judging whether they behaved appropriately, and it also feeds into the ADI Registrar’s Fit and Proper Person proceedings and any appeals that follow a decision.

The DVSA has been clear that the code is not designed to catch people out. Instructors will be told about any complaint made against them, given a fair chance to respond, and have any supporting context taken into account. Following the code properly counts in an instructor’s favour if a complaint is made, and the same rules apply consistently if a decision is disputed and appealed.

What Is Actually New in the Code

Four areas have been added or expanded following work with industry partners. The first is safeguarding and inclusive teaching, setting clearer expectations for how instructors should teach young people, vulnerable learners, and those with disabilities or special educational needs. The second covers social media, giving instructors guidance on promoting their business professionally and flagging the kind of content that could put their registration at risk.

The third addition covers the use of artificial intelligence tools within a training business, setting out where they can be used appropriately and where the limits sit. The fourth tightens the rules around trainee licences, which exist so that people on the path to full ADI qualification can gain supervised experience, not as a way to start charging for lessons before an instructor has actually qualified.

The DVSA has also been reviewing the ORDIT scheme, which governs the organisations that train new driving instructors, following a workshop with industry partners held in early June. The agency wants to check that the way new instructors are trained and assessed is still fit for purpose, and plans to run a webinar for existing trainers to gather their views before any changes to that scheme are confirmed.

Why It Pays to Check Before You Choose an Instructor

The update lands against a backdrop of real strain in the driving instructor pipeline. Data for 2024 to 2025 shows the pass rate for the part 3 test, the final stage of ADI qualification, was just 28.9%, and a recent survey of ADIs who had taken it found 80% felt the qualifying process was harder than they had expected. Becoming an instructor involves three separate tests, real time commitment, and cost, often while someone is still working elsewhere, and the DVSA says many people who start the process do not finish it, which adds further pressure to the part 2 and part 3 test waiting times affecting everyone in the system.

That pressure is part of why checking an instructor’s credentials directly counts for more than ever. A fully qualified approved driving instructor must display a green ADI badge in the windscreen of their vehicle; a trainee working on the path to full qualification displays a pink badge instead, and can legally charge for lessons only while that licence stays valid. Giving paid driving lessons without being registered at all is illegal, and it puts learners at risk while undermining instructors who have gone through the qualification process properly. Anyone with concerns about an instructor’s conduct or their right to teach can email the DVSA’s intelligence unit or call 0800 030 4103 between 7:30am and 6pm on weekdays, providing names, descriptions, dates and any other details that support the report.

The badge check takes seconds but catches a surprisingly common problem. Trading standards teams and local police forces regularly uncover people teaching learners for cash with no ADI registration at all, often advertising cut-price lessons on social media or through word of mouth in areas where legitimate instructors already have long waiting lists. A missing badge, a refusal to show one, or a price that looks too good given local going rates for lessons are all reasons to walk away before getting in the car.

The rules also apply to anyone helping a learner practise privately rather than through paid lessons. A supervising driver must be over 21, have held a full licence for the type of vehicle being driven for at least three years, and follow the same legal responsibilities as if they were driving themselves, including drink drive limits and the ban on using a mobile phone. It remains illegal to accept payment for supervising a learner unless you are a registered ADI, and some insurers require the supervising adult to be over 25, so it is worth checking a policy before agreeing to sit in for private practice.

What Happens Next

The DVSA is aiming to publish the updated code of practice in summer 2026, with a webinar planned beforehand so instructors can ask questions about what it means for their businesses, trainees and pupils. The agency has also promised further updates on efforts to recruit more examiners and increase the number of standards checks it carries out, both of which have fallen short of target in recent years.

Longer term, the review of the ORDIT scheme could reshape how new instructors are trained in the first place, though the DVSA has given no firm timeline for any changes there. In the meantime, the agency’s message to instructors, driving schools and franchises is that clearer rules protect everyone: pupils get a consistent standard to expect, and instructors who already follow good practice get a documented benchmark to point to if a complaint is ever made against them unfairly.

For learners and parents, the practical takeaway does not wait for the summer publication date. Ask to see an instructor’s green or pink ADI badge before booking a course of lessons, confirm any trainee is working under proper supervision, and treat cash-only lessons from someone with no visible badge as a warning sign rather than a bargain. Clearer rules for instructors are only worth something if learners know enough to check them.

Sources:

• DVSA, “Working together to progress and protect the driving instructor profession”, Despatch blog, 2 July 2026
• GOV.UK, “Supervise a learner driver”
• GOV.UK, “Approved driving instructors” guidance