Young couple advance together

A young couple have become two of the youngest advanced drivers on the road after spotting the IAM RoadSmart advanced course advertised on Facebook.

Having passed their driving tests in 2019, Jacob Dossett, 19, from Woodhall Spa and Ella Pearson, 18, from Nettleham thought the course would be the perfect way to make them more confident on the road. Jacob said “I saw the Police and Crime Commissioner advertise the courses on Facebook and spoke to Ella about it, we decided to apply. Luckily we both got places.”

The couple were paired with the same observer for the course and were able to share their experiences and encourage each other. Jacob became one of the first young drivers on the Police and Crime Commissioner Project to pass his test earlier this year, whilst Ella had to wait a little longer due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Both passed almost a year after their standard driving test and feel the course has made a huge difference to how they drive.

Jacob started a job as a supermarket delivery driver earlier in the year and the company were really impressed with his advanced driver status. “I’m the youngest driver at work and they were surprised when I told them I’d passed my advanced test. The course has definitely improved my driving, especially as the vans at work are tall so using limit points to read bends properly has really helped.”  

Jacob also found the course had a great impact on his car insurance renewal. “I drive a Peugeot 208 GTI and adding my advanced driver on when I renewed the insurance brought it down by around £150 which was brilliant.”

Ella said “I really enjoyed the drives with my observer, Simon and my confidence has improved so much. It’s a good thing to do at a young age whilst you have the time and before too many bad habits creep in!”

The pair are now heading off for university but say they would like to stay involved with IAM RoadSmart and become observers in the future to help share their new skills with others. They have already been trying to convince their parents to take the course themselves. “My Mum didn’t really trust my driving.” Jacob explained “She’s more relaxed now I’ve passed which is great.” Ella added “we’d definitely recommend other young drivers to do it. We’re already trying to persuade our parents and hopefully they’ll decide to give it a go.”