Update: This interview was first published a number of years ago. Since then, Queen Elizabeth's Foundation for Disabled People (QEF) has closed. The charity began a wind-down process on 11 November 2025 and later entered administration, which means QEF Mobility Services in Carshalton and its outreach centres no longer take bookings. If you are looking for a driving assessment or specialist tuition today, please skip to Where to go now at the end of this article. Chris's advice about the realities of learning to drive with a disability is still just as relevant, so we have kept the interview in full.
So, you've checked you're allowed to drive and you've found out about any adaptations you might need to help you to drive more easily. Now, it's time to actually learn to drive! Excited? We spoke to Chris Kingsley, a specialist driving instructor, about his career and about the extra challenges that disabled people can face when learning to drive. At the time, Chris was an ADI lead at QEF Mobility Services in Carshalton. We started by asking him what made him interested in teaching disabled people to drive.
I enjoy being a driving instructor, for that reason I’ve always attended training courses to improve my skills. When I went to QEF for the three day course to teach people with disabilities I was amazed at how little I knew and how the training fitted nicely with the teaching I was already doing. I became keen to learn more. Luckily for me I lived close enough to offer to take on some of their pupils.
What challenges do you think disabled learner drivers face that non disabled learners do not?
Many driving instructors fear disability, and the challenges can be numerous. For example: For some, even deafness seems an impossible and specialist task; for others, they can be a little gung ho and not consider the reason their pupil is deaf, and any other impairment that might be associated with deafness, so they might not ask the right questions.
Because driving instructors who have had some training are often far apart, there can be implications with travelling time for the instructor, which they often pass onto the pupil in terms of cost.
The person with a disability also needs to prepare for their first driving lesson better, as they may need an assessment to find out which controls they need.
Finding a driving instructor with adaptations can be difficult, and if anything more than hand controls or a left foot accelerator is needed, then tuition may need a weekly trip to a mobility centre, or learning from their own vehicle, which has cost implications.
Cognitive difficulties may require particular teaching techniques, which is not part of the statutory training for becoming a driving instructor.
There are many different types of disability and impairment. How does your training equip you to work with people who could have any condition from deafness to paralysis?
I’m extremely lucky at QEF, we have a team of occupational therapists and very experienced driving instructors to ask questions of, we hold regular meetings to review our work and consider our pupils' needs, there are opportunities for someone to sit in on a driving lesson and the progress of pupils is monitored to make sure people continue learning. Also, I have attended and continue to attend various training courses and meet people with a range of disabilities on a daily basis.
What do you enjoy about your job?
I enjoy the variety of my job. Mostly, I am a driving assessor and we are looking to enable someone to drive either for the first time or to return to driving after an illness or trauma. Driving is a life skill and can be an important part of someone’s rehabilitation, a return to normal and it can be a help in finding employment.
What is your experience of teaching disabled drivers like? How would you describe it?
For the most part it’s fun. I have had one or two hairy moments however, once someone is sitting down and driving you mostly don’t notice any impairment. The smile is just as broad on test pass for those who are learning to drive for the first time and for experienced drivers who are returning to driving, the relief you see on their faces makes this a very rewarding job.
What happened to QEF
Queen Elizabeth's Foundation for Disabled People had supported disabled people for more than 90 years, and its mobility arm in Carshalton became one of the largest providers of driving assessments and specialist tuition in the south of England, with outreach services in Leatherhead, Southampton, Twickenham and Worthing.
On 13 November 2025, Driving Mobility confirmed that QEF had begun a wind-down process two days earlier, with the intention of entering administration. In its statement, Driving Mobility acknowledged the concern this would cause for anyone with an assessment already booked, and thanked the QEF team for their long contribution to safe, independent mobility.
If you had an appointment booked with QEF, or you were part way through driving tuition with them, you will need to arrange a new assessment through a different accredited centre.
Where to go now: Driving Mobility
Driving Mobility is the UK charity that accredits and oversees the national network of independent driving assessment centres, and QEF was one of its member centres. The network is still running, so the support Chris describes above has not disappeared, it is simply provided somewhere else.
There are around 20 main centres covering the whole of the UK, many with smaller satellite or outreach locations that may be closer to you. Some are independent charities and some sit within the NHS. Each centre has healthcare professionals, usually occupational therapists, working alongside Approved Driving Instructors, and the network is supported by the Department for Transport and works with the DVLA, the DVSA, Motability, NHS trusts and the police.
Accredited centres can help with:
- Driving assessments – for people learning to drive for the first time, returning to driving after an illness, accident or injury, or checking they are still safe to drive at licence renewal.
- Vehicle adaptation advice – recommendations on hand controls, left foot accelerators, steering aids and other bespoke solutions, with the chance to try them out.
- Driver training and retraining – building confidence and skills in an adapted vehicle.
- Wheelchair and scooter loading assessments – working out how to get your wheelchair or scooter in and out of a car, or whether a Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle (WAV) would suit you better.
- Passenger and transfer assessments – advice on getting in and out of a vehicle comfortably, including seating and posture.
You do not always need a referral. You can contact your nearest centre yourself, or go on the recommendation of a GP, occupational therapist or other clinician. Many people are also signposted by the DVLA or Motability. Costs vary depending on how you were referred and which centre you attend, so it is worth asking when you book.
To find your nearest centre, use the Find a Centre tool on the Driving Mobility website, or call their head office on 0800 559 3636. If you ring from a landline, your call is automatically diverted to your nearest Mobility Centre. If you call from a mobile, you will reach the head office, who can pass you the direct contact details for your nearest centre. One thing to note: assessments in England are funded separately from those in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so you will need to attend a centre in your own country of residence even if another one looks closer on the map.
Finding a specialist driving instructor
As Chris pointed out, one of the biggest hurdles is simply finding an instructor with the right training and an adapted car. That has not changed. Fewer than one in a hundred driving instructors in the UK has a car adapted for disabled learners, so it is worth starting your search early and being prepared to wait.
Alongside your local assessment centre, the Association of Disability Driving Instructors runs a free online register of specialist instructors, including those trained to teach deaf learners and people with special educational needs. It is a not for profit organisation set up in partnership with Driving Mobility, and it is a good place to start if there is no centre within easy reach of you.
Once you are back on the road
Getting your licence, or getting back behind the wheel, is a milestone worth celebrating. If a Blue Badge is part of your journey, our Blue Badge holders and permit wallets are handmade in the UK, come with a free timer clock and use our Hologram Safe design, so your permit stays protected and legally displayed on the dashboard.
Here's to staying active, independent and stylish, wherever the road takes you.