Local Driving Test Centre Manager (LDTM)

Job summary

Do you go above and beyond to ensure you give the best service?

Are you someone who is a strong advocate for change?

Can you use effective leadership skills to lead a team to drive forward service improvements?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.

Job description

As Local Driving Test Manager, you will be responsible for all aspects of Driving Test operational management within a given Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) sector. This involves leading, managing, motivating, and inspiring staff across the sector to deliver excellent service, with a strong commitment to driving and delivering business efficiencies, maintaining the integrity of the driving test and contributing to the wider safe driving principles. You will line manage up to 14 members of staff, who may be spread across several test centre locations.

Alongside this you will ensure a consistent high standard of customer service is delivered across the sector including professional and courteous customer contact.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

• Setting clear performance expectations, monitoring delivery, and providing feedback to ensure achievement of desired outcomes.
• Monitoring and managing performance of examiners to ensure correct assessment, controlling and conducting of tests, using appropriate metrics, monitoring tools, management information and processes.
• Ensuring that the Performance Management System is implemented uniformly and effectively and fairly.
• Guiding and influencing the behaviour of examiners to support organisational and individuals’ development goals.
• Working collaboratively with other areas of the business to deliver desired outcomes.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

For further information on the role, please read the attached role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Open Sessions: Would you like to find out more about the role, the team and what it’s like to work in our department? If so, we are organising an open session where you can find more information about who we are at DVSA and what we do to keep Britain moving, safely and sustainably on 12 August 17:00. A link to these can be found on our careers site: Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.

Person specification

Required Experience:

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

• Experience of successfully leading and managing teams.
• Experience of handling and resolving customer complaints in line with procedures and standards.
• Experience of analysing and interpreting data/information to make sound decisions and improve individual and team performance.

Additional information

Please note: if you do not already hold the following, you must be willing to work towards the following within the first 12-months of taking up post:

Authorised by the Secretary of State to conduct the official Category B Driving Test (Examiner Warrant Card – Driving Examiner NVQ level 3)

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week. Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 30 hours per week.

This role is not suitable for hybrid working and will require the successful candidate to work solely from their designated workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, from other offices/work locations/visiting stakeholders.

This role is fully office-based and requires the successful candidate to work from the designated office location throughout their working week. The nature of the role involves direct leadership and supervision of staff, alongside regular interaction with customers, and therefore does not support routine home or remote working arrangements.

Occasional travel to attend meetings will be required, with some overnight stays.

Visa Sponsorship

Please note that we do not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker Licence sponsor and are unable to sponsor any individuals for Skilled Worker Sponsorship. Candidates must ensure they have the appropriate rights to work in the UK before application.

Location Information

During your application, tell us which location you wish to be considered for. If successful, you will be placed on a reserve list of candidates for that sector and offers will be made in merit order. We advise you to carefully consider your choice, as declining an offer for your preferred location will result in your application being withdrawn. If your preferred location is already filled, we may offer you an alternative location within a reasonable travelling distance. Refusing this offer will not result in your application being withdrawn, however, there is no guarantee of a further offer being made for your preferred location. You will not be offered locations outside a reasonable travelling distance.

Licences

You must have held full Category B UK or EU licence continuously for the last 3 years and must have no more than 3 penalty points.
You will be required to provide evidence that you hold any essential qualifications/licenses at some point during the recruitment process. If you cannot provide evidence, your application will be withdrawn.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Changing and Improving

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Operational Leadership & Management
• Data and Insight

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £35,663, Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency contributes £10,331 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here

• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave).

• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King’s birthday.

• Access to the staff discount portal.

• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.

• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.

• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.

Find out more about the benefits of working at DfT and its agencies (opens in a new window).

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills.

How to Apply:

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's qualifications, skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV and Personal Statement

Stage 2: Assessment Day

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and Personal Statement (750 wordcount). Please provide evidence of your Experience of the following:

• Ensuring operational and/or organisational standards and key performance indicators (KPI) relating to customer service are achieved and maintained.
• Establishing and promoting a culture of continuous improvement to ensure high-quality customer service is delivered.
• Lead by example to influence individual and team behaviours, that creates a positive culture that supports high-quality service delivery.

The sift will take place week commencing 17th August 2026.

Stage 2: Assessment Day and Interview

At assessment stage, you will be invited to complete an interview and a drive assessment.

This interview will be conducted in person at a driving test centre listed in the attached document. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You will be assessed against the following:

At interview, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – Making Effective Decisions and Changing and Improving
• Technical – Core ODP Skills - Operational Delivery Profession
• Strengths

The driving assessments will take place after the interview. The driving assessment will be in a manual car provided by DVSA. You will be expected to drive on various types of roads and in different traffic conditions. This will include a section of independent driving. You’ll be asked to give a short talk-through of your observations, including how you prioritise risks and plan your responses accordingly. Safety and technique will be assessed, while being mindful of safe and sustainable driving techniques.

If you are a DVSA employee and currently hold an Examiner Warrant Card (Driving Examiner NVQ level 3), you will not be required to complete the Drive Assessment and will receive an automatic pass for this part of the interview process. We will confirm whether you are a Warrant Card holder before you attend the Assessment Day.

The interviews will take place week commencing 7th September 2026.

If you cannot attend on the dates outlined, we may not be able to reschedule.

More detailed guidance will be provided if you are invited to the assessment.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site (opens in a new window).

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further information on the selection process

We will hold a 12-month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for.

During your application, you should indicate which location(s) you wish to be considered for and, if successful, you will be placed on an individual list of candidates for your first choice location. Candidates will be held on that list and drawn from it in merit order.

We advise you to carefully consider which locations you wish to be considered for. If you decline an offer for a location you have expressed a preference in, you will be withdrawn from any lists you may be held on. We may also offer candidates a location that they have not expressed a preference for where we have the requirement to do so but this will again be done on the basis of your place in the overall merit order and, in this event, you will not be removed from the list if you decline.

Should we receive a large number of applications, we may invite a shortlist of the highest performing candidates to interview. This means that some applications that meet the required standard could be placed ‘on hold’ after the sift and invited to interview if the vacant position(s) remain unfilled. You will be notified if your application is being put ‘on hold’ once the sift has been completed.

Appointments for this position will be made in order of merit. If you are successful in the selection process but there are no further available posts for the advertised role, you may be contacted to discuss an offer for a lower graded role (with similar experience and responsibility requirements).

If you are unsuccessful in the selection process, your application may be considered for a lower graded position if your demonstrated skills and experience meet the requirements of the alternative position. Candidates will be considered in order of merit.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert or the information on our website, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Pre-employment Checking

If your application is successful but you have been dismissed from the Civil Service, your application could be removed at the pre-employment checking stage depending on the nature of the dismissal.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All external applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

• Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour
• Threats or acts of violence
• Illegal activity or substance misuse
• Sexually explicit material
• Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public. Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle - it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture. If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Recruitment
• Email : recruitment@dvsa.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website Here

Attachments

New LDTM v1 9.9.25 Opens in new window (pdf, 621kB)LDTM Sector Locations - Final Opens in new window (pdf, 43kB)