It was 2016 ago when I decided to go for a career change. Having worked for many years shifts in the aviation industry I decided it was time to have a little more of a social and family life.

I knew there were many big players out there when it came to qualify as a driver instructor, like for example RED and BSM. In this day and age I did some research over the ratings and reviews of those companies and didn’t quite like the idea of going with them.

I live in the Redhill area and was lucky enough to stumble on Elite Driving and Instructor School. Somehow I was drawn towards Elite because I felt it was more of a family run business rather than “a business”. The next natural step was to have a preliminary chat with the instructor trainer Ian Sedgwick, at the end of the day I wanted and needed to make contact to have a feel of who was going to become my trainer and also to understand what to expect along the learning path.

I immediately liked Ian for several reasons. He was approachable, clear, experienced and had a human side to him. He didn’t make me feel pressurised to go for the instructor job at any stage.

Ian has been there for me from day one, helping me to sort out my DBS and other paperwork,  supporting me in preparation of the theory test, pointing out my bad habits as a driver in preparation of the driving test and got me through those tests first time. The natural next step was to sign up with Elite franchise and start working as a trainee, having completed the mandatory training requested by the DVSA, a step I wasn’t going to regret as Elite was very proactive in supplying pupils to me. Two years down the line, I still have my diary full most of the time, which is great when you work free-lance.

Along the way to my Part 3 test Ian was always there, it was my mentor and was willing to accommodate ad hoc training mixing up different teaching styles so I could get where I am today. Thanks to Ian my confidence steadily grew over the months I felt it wasn’t just me putting the hard work in, he was too, we had become a team. Although there were obstacles along the way and I stumbled on them, Ian was my reference point, always bringing on the plate his calm human side and accurate technical information. Today I passed my Part 3 test, I feel 2 years of hard work have paid off!

I have been going on a little, but it was a long journey. I want to thank Ian for his hard work, I would recommend him to anyone that is looking to qualify as an instructor and Elite as your driving school for a fair well-structured franchise, run very well by Eloise, your contact point for customers and admin queries.

THANKS!