From a lad with a passion for motoring in Cornwall to a life-long vocation as a driving instructor, Martin Caswell runs the Acclaim Motor School, which serves Thatcham and the surrounding area.
Here he speaks with Theory Test Pro, revealing how he got started, his rich and varied instructing experiences, and why he wrote a book to help learners.
Why did you make the move into instructing?
Growing up in Cornwall, I loved driving and thought it would be great to have a job which involved something that I was passionate about. As I had always wanted to live in London, I moved there and started my instructor training with BSM, becoming a qualified ADI in December 1974.
Tell me about some of your early big experiences as a driving instructor?
There are so many! For instance, I got an opportunity to teach under-17s at a driving school in Crystal Palace. There I taught sixteen-and-a-half year-olds at the purpose-designed off-road centre. It was laid out with tyres to make roadways and separate areas to carry out driving test manoeuvres.
I also used to teach skid control to the London Ambulance Service, Metropolitan Police and even anti-hijacking techniques to US Embassy staff. This involved reversing at high speed onto a skid pan and spinning the car 180 degrees whilst selecting first gear before driving off in the opposite direction!
How did you career progress?
I met a girl from Ireland and decided to move to Belfast with her in 1978. I managed to land an ADI job within three days and had a good income.
However, there was nowhere to spend it: This was in the middle of ‘The Troubles’ and being English meant I had to be careful where I went. Alas, after 18 months, I got threatened one night and I left.
I returned to London and worked at a variety of driving schools. During this time, I met my future wife and we decided that if we were to have children, it would be nice to bring them up in the countryside. That decision saw us move to Thatcham in 1984 and I set up my driving school.
How has your business evolved in recent years?
My driving school has gone from strength to strength. A key to this success have been my lesson prices. Each year when I wanted to increase my price, out of respect, I would ask other local instructors if they were going to increase theirs and they said they always waited until one of the local family-run driving schools increased their lesson price.
By now though I had two young children and couldn’t necessarily wait. So I went ahead and increased my lesson prices with the others soon following. I have done this ever since.
As a result I am still the most expensive ADI locally, but still have a full diary. Bottom line? I take being extremely busy as a signal to increase my lesson prices.
This not greed – but simply securing the financial stability I need so I can pay my bills while affording holidays and eating out occasionally.
What motivated you to create your CD about coping with driving nerves and write your award-shortlisted book?
I specialise in teaching those who suffer with anxiety, autism, Asperger’s, ADHD, Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, etc, and I used to get quite frustrated because my pupil would get to driving test standard but then the nerves would kick in. It often resulted in them taking actions out of character during the test.
To help people like them, I sought out a hypnotherapist and together we created a two-CD set that I also had turned into an app. The first CD goes through the procedure of the driving test from arriving at the test centre to the conclusion of the driving test itself. The second CD is mainly about helping the listener get their head in the right place as the right mindset is key to driving test success.
I wrote my book Learn to Drive… an Easier Way as I found that my pupils would find some of the official explanations confusing or couldn’t get their heads around the solution to a particular problem.
The book got published and is not only read by learner drivers but, to my surprise, by many driving instructors too who have bought my book as a simplified teaching tool!
Turning to the pandemic, how have you and your business coped over the last two years?
The pandemic was a turning point for all of us, not only in this industry but nationwide as we’d never experienced locking down the healthy in such numbers. This is why it is so important to charge a proper lesson rate.
Charging a proper rate not only covers your costs and pays you a living wage – but also enables you put away some as savings.
Fortunately, this meant I could weather the lockdowns and keep paying my mortgage and bills.
Turning to you personally, what kind of ADI are you?
I remember when I was training to become an ADI, our trainer said your pupils will teach you how to teach. This is so true. My key philosophy is that no one makes mistakes on purpose. If a mistake is made, it is because the problem hasn’t yet been mastered or understood.
Ultimately, I don’t regard mistakes as negatives, but as positives. If mistakes aren’t being made, then progress isn’t being achieved either!
What’s your favourite part of the job?
It’s exploring different ways of getting points across to very different pupils so I am always adapting my style to suit the particular learner.
Also taking on someone with anxieties or other problems and getting them all the way to a full driving licence is a real boon.
What are your plans for your driving school moving forward?
My badge expires at the end of December 2022. I was going to retire then but have now decided to continue until May 2023.
From that point, I will not take on any new pupils but instead see all my existing pupils through to a successful driving test. This way, rather than finishing completely in one go, I will gradually wind down to full retirement.
I will miss meeting so many different people and helping them to overcome their difficulties so they can successfully master the art of safe and competent driving.
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