The Ultimate PDI Podcast

So I thought we'd just skim over in the show the eligibility aspect of it.

I don't think we need to spend too much on this, but I'm just going to run through it and then give you guys a chance just if there's anything you want to touch on that before we move on to the process.

And then we'll look at things like the training, how you train, where you go.

I would decide who's right, whether you go on pink or any of that kind of stuff.

So first of all, eligibility is a word I struggled to say, but I've pronounced it twice now.

So that's really good.

First of all, you need to be 21 or over.

It needs to be a full license holder for three or more years.

Can't really been banned or disqualified from driving in the last four years or have more than five penalty points.

And you are highly unlikely to be accepted if you have been convicted of sexual or violent assault.

Financial or drug related crimes are banned from working with children.

So that's the basic criteria from the DVSA.

Tom, anything that stands out to you there? Anything you want to add?

Yeah, I think my add-on is, and I think this should come under the eligibility of it, I'm just impressed I said that on my first go, is that...

I've seen quite a lot over the years where people want to come into the industry because they like driving.

And I think in order to be eligible to do this job, you need to recognize that it is very much an educational role and that our driving for ourselves is quite minimal compared to us being able to teach that.

So even if you've come from another job that has had driving as a baseline, I think that's good because we talk about transferable skills, but it should really be that people are coming into the industry because they want to change road safety and they want a positive effect as well as educating the new and not so new drivers that we're going to have on the road.

interesting because it was one of the reasons I became an instructor was because I like driving.

And then as you say, pretty quick when you realize, oh, hold on, I'm not driving.

And also when you are driving, it's often a demonstration, which is less fun.

Emma, anything you want to add onto this?

Only something similar to what Tom said, but I've always been baffled over the years why at that eligibility point, we don't have something where we can have like...

Like a question bank where you will select one of the answers and that will kind of give you the type of person you are and whether you're suited to the role.

That type of, just to give people an idea.

So similar to what Tom said as to what the role is and how they would fit into that.