
Get on the road to driving test success, pass quickly and be a safe driver for life with Richard Atkins Driving School. Manual driving lessons in Southwark, Camberwell, Peckham, Canada Water and Surrey Quays, South London.
Latest Driving Test Success
Dora passed her driving test first time at Bromley on 6 July 2023
"Starting driving has been a very “big thing for me”, Richard always made me feel comfortable, safe and relaxed! Very easy to manage bookings, payments and schedules. I passed at the first attempt!!"

Quy passed his driving test 26th June 2023 at Hither Green
"Best driving instructor in london!"

Pass for Paulo at Bromley test centre 16th May 2023

Erin passes her driving test first time at West Wickham 5th April 2023
"Passed first time!! Such a great instructor with great technique, patient professional and always on time!! Would 100% recommend!!'

Anetta passes her driving test first time at Morden test centre 24th March 2023
"I would highly recommend Richard Atkins to anyone who wants to learn how to drive properly. He is an amazing teacher, calm and professional. Im highly impressed with his skills and i cannot thank him enough for passing on to me all his knowledge. May the sun shine on him at all times! Thank you Sir!"

Dom passed his driving test 1st time at Mitcham test
centre 22 February 2023
"Very good driving instructor. Always provided useful feedback, made me feel comfortable and relaxed throughout. Passed first time with his tuition, recommend to anyone looking for lessons. 10/10"

Edwin psses his driving at Morden 3rd February 2023
"Richard is a patient and reassuring instructor. He helped me to identify what I needed to work and had lots of helpful advice and encouragement. I highly recommend him!"

Matt passes his test at Hither Green 27th January 2023

"Richard‘s professional and thorough teaching style helped me pass my test first time with 2 minors in just over 30 hours. He allowed me to make my own decisions out on the road, whilst improving my judgement and approach to tricky situations, so that now when I’m driving on my own, I won’t feel unconfident because I don’t have a more experienced driver sitting next to me.
I’d highly recommend Richard to anyone looking for a relaxed and competent driving instructor."

James passed his driving test first time at Morden test centre on @4th November 2022
"I cannot recommend Richard enough. He was patient, encouraging and always pushed me to get out of my comfort zone and continuously improve. I went from having no driving experience to passing first time and being confident on the roads. Thank you Richard!
Thanks for everything!"

First time pass for Emily at Hither Green test centre 31 October 2022 with Zero faults! Amazing!!!
"Can't recommend Richard enough, really calm and encouraging instructor - he helped me pass first time with zero faults! Really enjoyed the lessons, it was a pleasure to learn with him."

Jude passes his test first time at Bromley test centre 13th October 2022

Giulia passed her driving test first time at Bromley test centre 11th October 2022
"Richard has been the most amazing instructor I could ask for! I knew it since the first lesson we had, when I realised how patient he was explaining every single feature of the car and what their use was, as I was a very first time learner. He’s taught me everything so perfectly without having to get on the driver seat but by making me do it! He has also definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone, realising my strengths and my weaknesses and how to improve everything. I passed my test on my first take, he made me feel so confident and he prepared me for literally anything the instructor would ask me to do! I’m so happy now with my driving licence :)
Could not recommend him enough, thank you Richard!!!"

Christa passed her driving test first time at Hither Green test centre 28th September 2022
"I passed first time with Richard and would 100% recommend having him as your instructor! He’s super patient and made the process of learning enjoyable"

Billie passed her driving test first time in 40 hours at West Wickham test centre September 2022
"Richard was an amazing instructor especially as I was so nervous to begin with. He made me feel at ease, everything he explained to me was very clear and helped me to feel confident and I managed to pass first time because of him"

Unity passes her driving test first time 23rd August 2022 at Mitcham test centre
"A brilliant instructor whose patient, detail-orientated approach helped me pass first time after never having been behind a wheel before!"

Maya passes first time with just one driving fault 22 June 2022 at Bromley test centre

Tom passes his driving test first time at West Wickham test centre 9th June 2022.
Taught from scratch to pass in 70 hours (Covid interuppted)
Learning to drive with Richard was a real pleasure. He's an attentive, friendly teacher who never makes you feel stupid or like a lost cause. I'm delighted to say I passed first time and I owe that to Richard 100%. I thoroughly recommend his driving school!

Pele passed his driving test 28th April 2022 at Hither Green first time
"I want to start off by thanking you Richard, without you I wouldn’t have accomplished passing my driving test - 1st time 😀 it’s a brilliant feeling!
Richard is an outstanding instructor who is very patient and encouraging , he gives the best advice for beginners , he is very calm and collected and helps you progress through the different stages of learning to drive.
Richard has built my confidence and made me feel secure I look forward to being on the road and I’ll definitely give you a beep whenever I see you.
I would recommend him 💯 Once again Richard thank you!"

Elyse passes her driving test first time at West Wickham 8th April 2022

Megan passed her driving test 23rd February 2022 at Hither Green test centre
"Since the beginning Richard has been a consistent and calm driving instructor. Learning to drive has been a long journey, with one pandemic, 2 moves across London and 3 driving instructors, however whenever I’ve been learning with Richard I feel confident and relaxed, but he also pushed me to be the best driver I can be. I passed 2nd time, but it’s the 1st time with Richard as my instructor, and that’s a credit to his teaching and preparation (he also gives a great pep talk!). For anyone taking on learning to drive in London, I couldn’t recommend anyone better to teach you. Thanks for everything Richard, it’s been a real pleasure!"
Megan

Zaynab passes her driving test 4th Febuary 2022 at Bromley Test Centre
"I would 100% recommend Richard as a driving instructor! Taught me from scratch and helped me become a confident driver, passing with only 2 minors. He’s very patient, reliable and encouraging which is very important. Had an amazing experience learning to drive with him!"

Molly passes her driving test 1st February 2022 at Bromley

Kaya passed her driving test first time 5 January 2022 at Hither Green
"I would 100% recommend Richard as a driving instructor. He taught me to drive from scratch and I was able to pass my test 1st time! He instilled lots of confidence in me and taught me great techniques to help with manoeuvres. He is calm and patient and very reliable! "

Ollie passed his driving test 1st time on 7th December 2021
Learnt to drive with Richard and passed first time with 5 minors! really good instructor, with a nice car to learn in, and super reliable - never late and he only cancelled one lesson in order to do another students hard to get test date. He took me from never really being in a car to driving confidently and gave me a lot of real world experience whilst nailing down test routes. would deffo recommend to anyone looking for a licence. Plus he's a really nice guy and pleasure to chat to whilst doing lessons, was almost sad to pass!!

Gabriela pass her driving test 1st time with ZERO faults on 3rd December 2021
"Richard is a wonderful instructor! He was patient and encouraging and had a great sense of humour which really put me at ease. I tried learning to drive once before years ago and didn't feel very confident, but learning with Richard was much more engaging and encouraging. I passed my first test with no minors and I couldn't have done it without such a great instructor. Would 100% recommend learning with Richard!"

Tom passes his driving test 1st time at Mitcham test centre 2 December2021
" Richard was a great instructor, patient and supportive, good feedback and good tips to make manoeuvres easy"

Poppy passes her driving test first time at Hither Green on 14th October 2021
"Richard is a great instructor, really calm and approachable and helped me pass first time! Would definitely recommend."

Carolyn passed first time at Hither Green 11October 2021
"Richard was a fantastic driving instructor! He is incredibly calm and instils confidence in his students. I passed my test on the first try and it was thanks to him! Highly recommend!"

Nasim passed his driving test first time on 5th October 2021 with just two general faults recorded
"Richard is an amazing driving instructor. He supported me patiently from scratch to feeling confident on the roads and passing my test first time. Truly great learning experience and atmosphere. I highly recommend his company."

Kasia passed her driving test 27th September 2021 first time with just two general faults
"Had a great experience learning with Richard. He had great techniques and tips which were easy to remember. I found it easy to learn with him as he always remained calm and never got frustrated with me if I found myself in a challenging situation or had made a mistakes. Highly recommended!"

Ashan passed his test first time at Croydon test centre 23rd August 2021
"Very good at explaining the steps of learning how to drive whilst being patient with the learner. Also easy to contact and knows when your ready for the test"

Nat passed his driving test first time with just two faults on 27 July 2021
"I’ve had a great experience learning to drive with richard. He’s a very knowledgeable and approachable instructor. I have greatly enjoyed and valued my lessons. I would highly recommend richard as a driving instructor. He’s taught my entire family and we’ve all had very positive experiences"

Alessia passes first time with just 1 driver fault at Hither Green 28th June 2021
"I would highly recommend Richard! He is a very talented driving instructor and helped me pass 1st time with just 1 minor! That is all down to Richard's amazing lessons. He is very professional and an absolute pleasure to be taught by. He's very thorough and pushes hard to ensure you drive the best you possibly can! Can't recommend him enough. What a legend!"

Talha passed his driving test first time 28th May 2021at Hither Green test centre
"Exceptional experience, helped me pass first time! Very patient and an all round fantastic teacher. Takes his work seriously whilst having a friendly vibe from the passenger seat. Compared to previous employed instructors, Richard is levels above. Reasonable pricing and definitely my top recommendation for the South London area." 👍👍


Hi im Richard and I operate an independent driving school in South London.
I have been teaching for 17 years and this experience means I have an excellent first-time pass rate for new learners, equally I enjoy working with learners who just haven’t managed to pass yet with other instructors.
I am friendly and patient and the majority of my learners come to me via personal recommendation.
I welcome learners of all ages and abilities. As well as teaching from scratch, I also offer refresher lessons and motorway lessons.