Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency
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DSA Business Plan published
* Reform of learner driver training and testing process
* Introduction of the new motorcycle test
* Driver Certificate of Professional Competence for professional lorry drivers
Changes to the driver training and testing process, the launch of a new motorcycle test, improved customer service criteria and the introduction of a Certificate of Professional Competence for professional lorry drivers are some of the highlights for the coming year in the Driving Standards Agency's Business Plan 2009/10, published today.
Chief Executive Rosemary Thew said: "Our key focus will be continuing and improving road safety across Great Britain and contributing to the Department for Transport's 'Transport Story' that has five goals:
* supporting the economy;
* reducing carbon emissions;
*
promoting safety, security and health;
* promoting equality of
opportunity;
* improving quality of life.
"A major feature of our work this year will be to move forward with a reform of the way that learner drivers are trained and tested following the successful Learning to Drive consultation held in 2008, which attracted over 7,000 responses. The results from this consultation will inform our plans to ensure that new drivers are better prepared to cope with modern driving conditions and how we might best encourage qualified drivers to continue to take training and further education post test, so that our mission of Safe Driving for Life becomes a way of life for all drivers."
DSA also intends to introduce a series of Customer Service Promises as well as making £4m of efficiency savings during the year.
The Business Plan is published on our website: http://www.dsa.gov.uk
For more information please contact Chris Lee at DSA's Press Office on 0115 936 6135 or email chris.lee@dsa.gsi.gov.uk
Notes to Editors:
1. The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) is an executive agency * of the Department for Transport.
2. The DSA's vision is "Safe Driving for Life" with an overall mission to contribute towards a Government target of achieving a 40% reduction in riders and drivers killed or seriously injured in road accidents, in the age group up to 24 years, by 2010.
3. Current information on road casualties is available from the Department for Transport website: http://www.dft.gov.uk
4. The Agency's aim is to promote road safety through setting standards for drivers, riders and trainers, testing drivers and riders fairly and efficiently, maintaining the registers of Approved Driving Instructors; Large Goods Vehicle Instructors; Fleet Trainers; Driving Instructor Trainers and Post Test Motorcycle Trainers; supervising Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) for learner motorcyclists; and driver education and the provision of learning resources.
5. DSA is a trading fund * with an expected turnover of around £199 million for the year 2008/9, fully funded by fee income and revenue from its activities.
6. DSA employs over 2,700 staff, of which some 2,000 are driving examiners based at over 400 test centres across mainland Great Britain. In 2007/2008 the Agency conducted 1.8 million practical tests for car drivers, over 95,000 vocational tests and 94,000 motorcycle rider tests. A total of 1.7 million theory tests were carried out at 158 centres. At the end of the year there were around 43,600 people on the Register of Approved Driving Instructors.
7. DSA was one of the first Government Agencies to introduce an online booking service. Candidates can book and manage their theory and practical test appointments on line at http://www.direct.gov.uk/drivingtest
* Executive agency:
An executive agency is semi-detached from its parent department and manages its own budget with freedom from ad hoc, day to day intervention and much of central, government-wide regulation. They are run under the organisation and direction of a Chief Executive recruited through open competition. An executive agency has accountability for the performance of specific operational tasks as a corporate unit, including focused performance targets set by the parent department and personal accountability of the chief executive for performance.
* Trading Fund:
A trading fund is a means of financing trading activities undertaken by Government that would previously have been financed by annual appropriation from Parliament. A trading fund permits the establishment of a self-accounting unit that remains under the control and management of Ministers and accountable to Parliament through Ministers, but has greater freedom to manage its financial affairs. Effectively that means the trading fund body can use its income to settle its liabilities and retain year-end cash balances.
Establishing the trading fund does not alter the Agency's constitutional position and it remains part of the Department for Transport.
