I signed up with one way in August, but had 15 hours of driving experience with another company. My former instructor was unreliable – often cancelling without giving any notice – would take me on the same route every time I did go out, and generally didn´t use the time I was paying for in a very constructive way. I felt like I wasn´t learning much and quickly lost faith in my instructor.





By contrast, after my first few hours with Paul Heard I was confident he would be professional, dependable and understanding. At the end of each lesson, Paul outlined the things I had done well and what I should concentrate on, before briefly going over what I would do the following week. This simple act allowed me to mentally prepare for every session, which improved my confidence on the day and made me self-aware of progression as it happened.





From a technical view, Paul showed great situational awareness and driving knowledge. This meant he could tailor lessons for my needs, explaining in relatable terms how to perform each new manoeuvre and what factors to be considerate of. His instructions were very easy to follow and for more specific practices his methods were reliable and memorable, as he would mention any mistakes I made in his feedback and remind me of what to do before subsequent attempts. He picked up on details about all aspects of my driving and gave constructive suggestions on how to improve, instead of generalisations that are less helpful for beginners.





I was very impressed and grateful for Paul’s reliability. If he was held up before a lesson – which only happened once or twice – he would send a text to let me know in advance, even if he was only going to be 5 minutes late. Similarly, when organising next week’s session I could be sure he would show up on time, allowing me to fit in work activities before or after my lesson. I gather from a friend – who had previously learnt with one way – that his instructor al