DRIVING STANDARDS
AGENCY News Release (DSA 21/09) issued by COI News Distribution
Service on 23 April 2009
* Reform of
learner driver training and testing process
* Introduction of the new motorcycle test
* Driver Certificate of Professional Competence for professional
lorry drivers
Changes to the driver training and testing process, the launch of
a new motorcycle test, improved customer service criteria and the
introduction of a Certificate of Professional Competence for
professional lorry drivers are some of the highlights for the
coming year in the Driving Standards Agency's Business Plan
2009/10, published today.
Chief Executive Rosemary Thew said: "Our key focus will be
continuing and improving road safety across Great Britain and
contributing to the Department for Transport's
'Transport Story' that has five goals:
* supporting the economy;
* reducing carbon emissions;
*
promoting safety, security and health;
* promoting equality of
opportunity;
* improving quality of life.
"A major feature of our work this year will be to move
forward with a reform of the way that learner drivers are trained
and tested following the successful Learning to Drive consultation
held in 2008, which attracted over 7,000 responses. The results
from this consultation will inform our plans to ensure that new
drivers are better prepared to cope with modern driving conditions
and how we might best encourage qualified drivers to continue to
take training and further education post test, so that our mission
of Safe Driving for Life becomes a way of life for all drivers."
DSA also intends to introduce a series of Customer Service
Promises as well as making £4m of efficiency savings during the year.
The Business Plan is published on our website: http://www.dsa.gov.uk
For more information please contact Chris Lee at DSA's Press
Office on 0115 936 6135 or email chris.lee@dsa.gsi.gov.uk
Notes to Editors:
1. The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) is an executive agency * of
the Department for Transport.
2. The DSA's vision is "Safe Driving for Life"
with an overall mission to contribute towards a Government target
of achieving a 40% reduction in riders and drivers killed or
seriously injured in road accidents, in the age group up to 24
years, by 2010.
3. Current information on road casualties is available from the
Department for Transport website: http://www.dft.gov.uk
4. The Agency's aim is to promote road safety through
setting standards for drivers, riders and trainers, testing
drivers and riders fairly and efficiently, maintaining the
registers of Approved Driving Instructors; Large Goods Vehicle
Instructors; Fleet Trainers; Driving Instructor Trainers and Post
Test Motorcycle Trainers; supervising Compulsory Basic Training
(CBT) for learner motorcyclists; and driver education and the
provision of learning resources.
5. DSA is a trading fund * with an expected turnover of around
£199 million for the year 2008/9, fully funded by fee income and
revenue from its activities.
6. DSA employs over 2,700 staff, of which some 2,000 are driving
examiners based at over 400 test centres across mainland Great
Britain. In 2007/2008 the Agency conducted 1.8 million practical
tests for car drivers, over 95,000 vocational tests and 94,000
motorcycle rider tests. A total of 1.7 million theory tests were
carried out at 158 centres. At the end of the year there were
around 43,600 people on the Register of Approved Driving Instructors.
7. DSA was one of the first Government Agencies to introduce an
online booking service. Candidates can book and manage their
theory and practical test appointments on line at http://www.direct.gov.uk/drivingtest
* Executive agency:
An executive agency is semi-detached from its parent department
and manages its own budget with freedom from ad hoc, day to day
intervention and much of central, government-wide regulation. They
are run under the organisation and direction of a Chief Executive
recruited through open competition. An executive agency has
accountability for the performance of specific operational tasks
as a corporate unit, including focused performance targets set by
the parent department and personal accountability of the chief
executive for performance.
* Trading Fund:
A trading fund is a means of financing trading activities
undertaken by Government that would previously have been financed
by annual appropriation from Parliament. A trading fund permits
the establishment of a self-accounting unit that remains under the
control and management of Ministers and accountable to Parliament
through Ministers, but has greater freedom to manage its financial
affairs. Effectively that means the trading fund body can use its
income to settle its liabilities and retain year-end cash balances.
Establishing the trading fund does not alter the Agency's
constitutional position and it remains part of the Department for Transport.