HGV Training

Pants

Pants

Pants

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
3,176
Location
Leicester
Hello chaps,

I'm sick of my office job and have 2.5K saved up to invest in myself.

I fancy giving HGV driving a go, ideally class 1 so I have more job opportunities rather than being limited with a class 2 or 3...

Can anyone reccomend some driving schools near leicester? And do you think 2.5K will be enough?

Cheers! :D
 
For class 2 around her is ~£1200 for fees/tuition, £100 odd for 2 tests (theory+practical) and then £50-£100 for medical

You cant go straight to a 1 you have to do 2 first even if you only have it for a week, however if you did one after the other you might have difficulties finding anything other than agency work for a while
 
£2.5k should be plenty! (depends if you pass first time I suppose!) :)

You have to get your category C (Class 2) prior to your C+E (Class 1) depending on your age, you may even need a category C1 licence first, in which case £2.5k could be pushing it to get you all the way to Artics in one go.

At least you can have one test & then take the next staright away, there is no waiting period as such between you gaining your Class C then C+E.

As daft as this may sound, next time your around town, find a local driver and ask him for his recommendation's - word of mouth & all that. :)

You will find anything other than Agency work nigh impossible to obtain without experience.

Best way to do it is get your Class C then get a job with an employer who runs Artics, then let him pay for the C+E upgrade - Worked for me.

Artics are where it is at for work & rig enjoyment for sure, that said, don't dismiss a class C, they are still trucks! but, you may well be called a "Puddle Jumper" from time to time by people like me. ;):D:p

http://www.widdowson-group.co.uk/ - A truck operator who trains drivers also, a good place to start & I know a few of their drivers, nice rigs too.
Driver Training Opportunity
We at the Widdowson Group are also looking for young drivers who can grow with the company as we provide the necessary training to allow them to attain a class 1 licence.
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http://www.hughesdrivertraining.co.uk/

http://www.alertlgvtraining.com/

http://www.alertlgvtraining.co.uk/specialtraining.html

http://www.yell.com/ucs/UcsSearchAc...dex=&lastClarifyOptions=&lastSearchall=&ssm=0

Good luck.
 
Last edited:
Hi,

Thanks for the advice!

I'm 23 by the way, and on my current licence I can only go up to 3.5T not 7.5T like older licences. So I take it I need C1, C and then C+E!? Oh well It will be worth it I think.

My best mate drives artics and is based in sheffield. He says he could get me a job at his place if I got my class C+E (he gets 24K) but unfortunately it's too far for me to commute.

I would be happy to start on just a class C licence but I worry I won't find a job... or not a regular one at least. Won't mind agency work to get me started but I need about 1K a month to survive on. Is this realistic for a noob on a class C licence?

Cheers!
 
You can skip the 7.5t one and go to the class2
Agency work around here is £8 an hour upto £12 depending on experience

I've loked into it and just need to save money up and then come march i should be doing mine *finger crossed*
 
Pants said:
Hi,

Thanks for the advice!

I'm 23 by the way, and on my current licence I can only go up to 3.5T not 7.5T like older licences. So I take it I need C1, C and then C+E!? Oh well It will be worth it I think.

My best mate drives artics and is based in sheffield. He says he could get me a job at his place if I got my class C+E (he gets 24K) but unfortunately it's too far for me to commute.

I would be happy to start on just a class C licence but I worry I won't find a job... or not a regular one at least. Won't mind agency work to get me started but I need about 1K a month to survive on. Is this realistic for a noob on a class C licence?

Cheers!
Click to expand...

Totally realistic if your prepared to do whatever work is offered to you and you don't mind long hours (65+ is normal in this job).

That said 65+ hours in a truck is very very different to 65+ hours doing some office job, or, putting it another way, I'd hate to go back to working in an office / factory enviroment.

Be prepared to work nights & work away from home (i.e. sleeping out in the truck) and you can easily add another £150 to your weekly wage.

Even with little experience, if your prepared to graft, you will suceed and earn a lot more than £1k per month.

I'm currently earning around £30k pa.
 
ste_bla said:
You can skip the 7.5t one and go to the class2
Agency work around here is £8 an hour upto £12 depending on experience

I've loked into it and just need to save money up and then come march i should be doing mine *finger crossed*
Click to expand...

Pretty sure he has to get his C1 first ste_bla due to his age.

I may be wrong though! :o;)
 
Looking as various websites nowhere seems to mention I need a C1 first. It's something I need to look into more.

My old man recons J Coates are a good one for leicester and reading here I seem to like the sounds of it. The price seems very reasonable too, assuming i'm not going to take ages to learn then fail 5 times! :eek:

http://www.jcoates.co.uk and the FAQ here.

13. How much is it going to cost me?

13A. Prices will vary; expect to spend around £1000 for Category C and a further £600 - £800 for C+E.
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14. Costs vary between training companies, how do I know if I am getting a good deal?

14A. With most things in life you get what you pay for!

Even with a “cheap” course you are going to invest a lot of money learning to drive a truck, as with any purchase you should check out your supplier.

Look at their training vehicles; are they the type of vehicles you expect to drive for a job? Are they clean and well maintained?

Some training companies will train you in a “Minimum Test Vehicle” which will be much smaller than is used by an employer and may not prepare you for driving after the test.

How experienced are their instructors? How well trained are they? Are they on or working towards the DSA Register of Instructors?

Ask other drivers where they did their training, a good training company will have satisfied customers.

Go and talk to the training company and make sure they are the sort of people you want to deal with.
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Before you shell out the money don't assume an agency will take you on. I work in a Driving agency based in Leeds and without at least six months verifiable work history (not just having held a licence for 6 months) We wouldnt touch you with a barge pole. That said every driver we employ is just that a full time employee with holiday sick and gtd wages etc so we tend to take the pick of the available drivers.

just ring round a few agencies and talk to them i went from an office job to driving about 4 years ago and have only recently gone back into the office (not sure it was a wise move lol). Because i could string a sentence together and i was friendly willing and more than able an agency took a chance on me. I did my six months on rubbish money then moved to a good agency where i work now.

That said this is the very worst time of year to be asking an agency for a job as it is the quietest period.
 
I think this I why I need to be doing C+E really, more options!

I know what you rsaying about previous work history, but it's a shame. Everone has to start somewhere! This is a worry for me though. Spending the dough and then not being able to get a job.
 
hey just to say.. I have my C+E but my little brother (21) just completed his C and didnt have to do a C1. Aslong as you are over 21 years old you need to do your C then C+E..


hope this helps
 
I was toying with the idea of getting a class 1 license a while back ;

What are the medical requirements for getting one - I am partially sighted in one of my eyes (Can't read out of it, can make out shapes and colours thouhg) - would this prevent me being allowed to drive a truck?
 
Pants said:
I think this I why I need to be doing C+E really, more options!

I know what you rsaying about previous work history, but it's a shame. Everone has to start somewhere! This is a worry for me though. Spending the dough and then not being able to get a job.
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This is a common problem with new drivers, when I first started driving, I worked for a depot of ANC (now Fed-Ex) driving vans & 7.5 tonners , getting agancy work for me was not an issue, but I had to take whatever jobs were offered.

I've done agency work since I got my C+E but found that the more picky I was the less work was available.

Iirc, one day I drove a Merc Sprinter, next two days were in a Scania 530 Artic, then a day in a Transit finally, a day in a 17 tonner.

The point was I got my face known in 3 different companies within one week's work.

Fill in an application form at each employer and you soon find you have a choice of job offers despite your relative lack of experience.

Prove that you can drive and drive safely, be reliable (i.e. turn up when they want you to) and have a pleasant manner and I think you'll find little issue with getting work.


HaX said:
I was toying with the idea of getting a class 1 license a while back ;

What are the medical requirements for getting one - I am partially sighted in one of my eyes (Can't read out of it, can make out shapes and colours thouhg) - would this prevent me being allowed to drive a truck?
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I know of an artic driver with an eye patch, so I doubt you'd be affected.

Perhaps, you'd have to wear a patch also?
 
FrostedNipple said:
Being a lorry driver has always appealed to me. Need a few more years on me yet though! And a fair bit of cash as well by the sound of things!
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Few more years? - How old are you?

As long as your not thinking life out on the roads is great way of life where you receive respect from fellow road users, the Police and your customers, then you'll love it. ;) :D

P.S. Anybody who values any kind of Social life and / or a nice home life with your Wife & kids, need not apply!
 
R124/LA420 said:
Few more years? - How old are you?

As long as your not thinking life out on the roads is great way of life where you receive respect from fellow road users, the Police and your customers, then you'll love it. ;) :D

P.S. Anybody who values any kind of Social life and / or a nice home life with your Wife & kids, need not apply!
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I'm 17, so a few years yet! I just like the idea of being king of the road! Cruising along seeing the country and others possibly with music playing in a nice warm environment!

Can i ask if you have a wife and kids? My mates dad used to be/is a lorry driver, and he has kids n wife, they were a happy family (when he was around, mind)!
 
FrostedNipple said:
I'm 17, so a few years yet! I just like the idea of being king of the road! Cruising along seeing the country and others possibly with music playing in a nice warm environment!

Can i ask if you have a wife and kids? My mates dad used to be/is a lorry driver, and he has kids n wife, they were a happy family (when he was around, mind)!
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I am divorced, I have an 11 year old daughter. - We divorced when she was 17 months old - I was never home and the ex ended up with somebody else.

Same thing happened again to me a few years later,different relationship - same situation, I was away 4 - 5 nights of the week and things were happening whilst I was away.

Thats just it with being a professional driver, especially on general haulage / distribution work, you are rarely around to see the wife & kids, which is why so many truckers are divorced / un-married or single.

You can take your BMW's , Porsches, Ferrari's & shove them, You are the King of the road, as long as you appreciate that many fellow road users don't realise this, or, choose to ignore it completely!

A DAF, Scania, Volvo FH etc is a nice place to spend your time, some would say the same goes for Women / family life. :D

Take your pick - you rarely get both in this job.*


* Parking up near Avonmouth docks for example gets you plenty of Women, normally they want your "Business" though. :p:rolleyes:
 
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