Who We Are
We are a volunteer organisation, part of RoSPA’s Advanced Drivers and Riders network of groups around the UK who provide free driver and riding tutoring to help members improve their skills and prepare them to take the RoSPA Advanced Test. Taking the test is encouraged but isn’t necessary for being a member of the Group.
We have members who come from all backgrounds: some drive as a living or profession, some are driving instructors, a few are ‘petrol-heads’ (or ‘e-heads’!), but most just want to feel safer, more confident and relaxed when every-day driving or riding. Our Group isn’t about what kind of vehicle you have; it’s your knowledge of it, how you use it and how you manage to negotiate around other road users.
Above all, we pride ourselves on being friendly, supportive and all-inclusive. Lots of us have been members for many years – driving or riding at an advanced level is a constant learning process!
We will frequently be publishing interesting and informative articles on the members' area of this website. This will be taking the place of our publication Radiator.
Our Group’s History
Our Group was originally created in 1988 as the South Devon Group. An early member was David Palmer. He was a passionate advanced driver who joined this Group of driving instructors and fellow advanced drivers from other walks of life soon after it was set up.
It was quickly obvious that this was the ‘go-to’ Group for advanced driving in the area. It became a lively and busy one, with many enthusiastic and skilled members. David was a dynamic leader for over a decade. Sadly David passed away in 2004. The Group has a trophy given in his memory, this is awarded annually to a member who has taken part in some of our driving activities or quizzes and come out with a high score.
Over time, most of the original team have moved away, stopped driving or riding or have passed away. There are few left now who remember David, but we try to maintain his energy for safe, skilled driving and the passion for imparting our knowledge to others.
The name of our Group was changed in 2018 to reflect more accurately the area we serve: “Advanced Drivers and Riders, Central and South Devon”. The change of name also reflected opening the Group to riders as well as drivers. This has proved very popular, the mix of drivers and riders greatly enhancing the Group.
Since then, the Group has gone from strength to strength with many new members, many exemplary Test passes and a full programme of evening meetings, Sunday drives and rides, masterclasses and social events. These are descrived across this website.
Our Tutors
All of our tutors are experienced drivers or riders and have passed their RoSPA Test at the top "Gold" or "Silver" level. A list of our current tutors is below. This list is constantly growing, as members often want to "give something back" and pass on the valuable knowledge that they have gained.
Car Tutors
Ajoy Chundee
Andy Phillips
Chris Bell
Claire Hancock
Damian Lee
David Johnson
Jason Simons
Keith Hayman (paused)
Meg Privett
Nick Greensmith (paused)
Paul Abrey
Russell Palmer
Tim Privett
Will Stewart
Motorcycle Tutors
Andy Phillips
Andy Shearer
John Patrick
Jon Mendez
Martin Warren
We are recruiting new tutors!
If you are interested about the possibility of becoming one of our tutors, please contact us using the button below.
Our Committee (click on photo to see more details)
A gift of an advanced driving day with a former Police Class 1 driver sparked my journey into advanced driving and led me to join the RoSPA Group. Since then, I’ve found that the structured approach has improved my driving, reduced stress, and made motoring even more enjoyable.
Outside of work, I enjoy music, mountain biking, photography – and of course, driving. I find it a relaxing and rewarding experience, especially on an open road with a good soundtrack. I am also a car tutor for the Group.
I've been interested in cars and driving since I got a Standard 8 (yes, 8 hp) in my last year at school, many moons ago! A steep learning curve ensued: mechanical (eg broken spring, wheel falling off - really, the pressed steel rim fractured), electrical and paintwork (by brush with a white stripe along the bonnet!). At university (now a very ex-physicist) I progressed to a Mk1 Cortina and became an active member of the car club (still has the “Driver of the year” cup somewhere). Again, lots of learning about rebuilding and tuning engines (two blown on rallies) and rebuilding a gearbox – those were the days. I’ve still got fond memories of twin downdraft Webbers (for the younger people reading this, try Google)
Fast forward via two children, four grandchildren (more interested in trains than cars) and many cars. Some years ago, I felt that the standard of my driving had slipped and although talking about advanced driver training for a long time, finally got around to doing something about it in 2009 when the pressure of work subsided. Initially training for, and passing, the IAM test, later the Masters and becoming an observer, I was told by his wife (and others) that my driving had transformed - hopefully for the better! Also far less chance of being caught exceeding the speed limit!
I joined RoSPA Central and South Devon in early 2021. After some excellent refresher training from Damian, managed a Gold in the test a couple of months later (Damian’s comment was something like: “Who was Roger writing about?”). Since then, I’ve tried to help the Group and the Committee in any way that I can. My time as a tutor within the Group has taught me a lot, hopefully my Associates too! I’m looking forward to the Group going from strength to strength and further expanding, with even more training and events leading to safer and more enjoyable driving and riding.
Since I’ve gained so much from being part of an advanced driving/riding group, the next logical step was to do for others what the group has done for me, and was hugely pleased to be asked to join the Committee and to begin training as a tutor. It is very encouraging to know that many of my fellow members feel as I do; there is rarely a shortage of people willing to spend time talking about any aspect of driving, and most importantly, getting out on the roads with me.
I’m also involved with delivering driver improvement courses where necessary. Similarly, I enjoy honing my own driving skillset constantly, and enjoy the continual learning that comes with advanced driving. Being a person with an analytical mind, I’m our go-to person when we need any kind of statistics around driving!
When I’m not driving, I enjoy a really good cup of coffee. I’m a keen gardener and enjoy growing, and eating my own fruit and vegetables.
As an educationalist, I firmly believe that everyone can improve their driving and consequently improve their enjoyment. My enthusiasm for CPD led to me to successfully achieving the (RoSPA) RoADAR Level 3 Award Advanced Driver Coaching qualification in 2024.
Driving does not have to be dull so if you have to drive, why not do it with high personal performance satisfaction. It has the added bonus in that it might just save your life one day!
Part of my enjoyment comes from my love of BMW ‘M’ cars alongside track days where some of the available power can be ‘let free’. I’m is a firm believer in the safe and timely use of a vehicle’s capabilities to maximise safety as well as enjoyment.
Having many years in road safety and data analysis, I enjoy statistical analysis to reveal what the data (actually) tell us rather than what some claim, an approach that generates interesting discussion!
What some of our members say about us
John Patrick LCG, D&T Technician, Retired.
What I like about the Group is the variety of people and their thinking. I’ve been involved with advanced riding for over 10 years and have met enthusiasts from various clubs, both RoSPA and IAM. The obvious common denominators I see is that members are almost all men, and men between 40 and 70. I’m not complaining as I fit this category exactly. The really great thing about this Group is that there are more younger people and women riders and drivers. This mix seems to bring a greater variation of thoughts, experiences and interests. The mix also means a greater variety in the events and their content that we organize, for instance I was fascinated to hear about an older driver’s experience of delivering cars all over the UK way before the advent of Satnav and many of the motorways we have today, I imagined that must have been an exciting and edifying experience.
Of course, the prime reason for the Group is to promote road safety for all road users so its not just about seeing things from a two wheeled perspective and being a member of just a motorcycle club. I can see that this in itself could cause people to imagine things from another person’s experience and that must mean a safer and more enjoyable motoring outcome.
Samantha
Having recently passed my DVSA test, I discovered a real passion for driving and wanted to continue learning advanced techniques. I was also looking for a social community that offered group drives and other activities alongside advanced tutoring. This was the perfect fit! Everyone is so friendly and welcoming, I immediately felt right at home and love being a part of the group!
Chris
The main thing that struck me on my initial contact with the Group was just how friendly, positive, committed and professional people were, especially our membership secretary, Ajoy! I remember talking to him on the phone (during one of the Covid lock-downs); many minutes (hours?!) later, I agreed to join!
The friendliness, positivity, commitment, inclusiveness and professionalism of people has continued -one of the things that I believe sets us apart form other groups I’ve been in. My journey of learning and development has been great too, and passing the Test was the ‘icing on the cake’ – oh, and the cakes at our evening events are also good!
As the Group’s promotional leaflet says, “We pride ourselves on being a fun, friendly, all-inclusive and supportive Group, passionate about [the quality of] our driving and riding”. Do please pass on this message to all your road-using friends who may benefit from, and enjoy, the Group’s mix of professional coaching and social activity.
David
As a person who enjoys learning new things and sharpening-up those things I already enjoy, joining the Group was a huge benefit. In just a year of membership, my proficiency in the skills I already had has risen markedly thanks to the excellent advice from my fellow members. I've been able to try new things (such a skid-pan training and high-speed braking manoeuvres off-road) that would have been hard to do as a non-member.
The Group also makes a point of actually engaging with the members and using their strengths for everyone's benefit - we have a diverse range of backgrounds and levels of experience, and everyone enjoys sharing their knowledge. Many of the talks given during the past year have been from other members, on a wide variety of topics. Not only that, but the Group is great at putting theory into practice - if you love being on the road, then this is the Group for you.
Finally, I really like that the Group has a strong contingent of motorbike riders as well as car drivers, and that the members mix freely instead of being separate cliques. Talking to some of the bikers has got me looking into taking my own bike test in the near future, even if it's only to see the roads from the biker point of view...
Wendy
I passed my driving test a very long time ago and loved driving from the start. As I grew older I thought of doing the Advanced Test but ‘life’ intervened so it was not until I had a significant birthday coming-up that I decided to go for it before it was too late. I joined an IAM group and passed the test. I liked the idea of carrying on and seeing if I could do better but the group I was with didn’t suit me. A friend then suggested that I joined the RoSPA group which covered my area. This has proved to be a great move in many ways. I am an older woman driver who has been accepted into a group which is diverse, has many different abilities, is very knowledgeable and friendly. The monthly evening meetings are educational, drive/ride outs are fun and instructional and other occasional social events are good too. The emphasis is on road safety which is an admirable aim.
Sheila
With road safety in mind, one of the key lessons in advance driving is that of observation. When you are out driving with your ROSPA tutor you will learn the skill of observation and thus find you are observing all manner of things going on around you that maybe you hadn’t even noticed before, the way a line of trees may indicate how the road ahead bends away, seeing over hedges and observing cars on the road long before they are near you. So when out driving just this one skill means you can plan what action to take next, hopefully, making a bubble around you to keep yourself and other road users as safe as can be. So if this appeals to you then look no further than joining our ROSPA Central and South Devon Group where at our monthly meetings, drives/rides and social events you will meet a mix of men and women some of whom are already advanced drivers and some others learning with our friendly group of tutors.