Driving Mobility is pleased to announce new dates for the FREE Powered Wheelchair and Mobility Scooter (PWMS) Retailer Training Scheme practical sessions in 2025. 

This essential training, supported by the Department for Transport (DfT), aims to improve road safety and ensure end users receive tailored advice when purchasing or hiring mobility vehicles.

Upcoming practical sessions in 2025:

• 29th January – RDAC Manchester, Salford
• 4th March – William Merit Centre, Leeds
• 2nd April – East Anglian DriveAbility, Thetford
• 25th April  – Devon Assessment Centre, Exeter
• 8th May – RDAC Manchester, Salford
• 20th June – Cornwall Mobility, Truro
• 18th September – Herts Ability, Welwyn Garden City
• 21st October – RDAC Solihull, Hampton in Arden

Why is this free training being offered?
Until now, there has been no consistent national industry scheme for assessing and training new mobility scooter or powerchair users. This has often led to individuals purchasing vehicles unsuitable for their abilities, compromising their safety and that of others.

The PWMS Retailer Training Scheme improves road safety by:

• Ensuring retailers can assess and advise their customers effectively on the right product
• Promoting safe use of mobility vehicles in public spaces
• Giving the public confidence they are purchasing from reputable, trained retailers.

Retailers who successfully complete the course will receive a DfT-approved certificate and an eye-catching window sticker to display, showcasing their commitment to high standards of customer care.

The training consists of two parts:

• A short online module
• A hands-on, half-day session at one of our specialist Driving Mobility centres.

 

“By undergoing this employee training, staff at mobility retailers will be better informed and more confident, ultimately leading to a safer ownership experience for end users. I encourage all mobility retailers to take advantage of this free training not only to gain official accreditation but also to influence future safety legislation from the Government. This will not hinder customer purchases; in fact, it will enhance customer support and lead to more recommendations.”
Edward Trewhella, CEO, Driving Mobility.

 

It’s crucial that we improve road safety for everyone, including owners of powered wheelchairs and mobility scooters. This scheme, backed by the Government, will help ensure that individuals with restricted mobility can navigate independently and confidently by providing user training. I am pleased to support it through our funding.”
Richard Holden MP, Roads and Accessibility Minister.

To find out more or to register yourself or your colleagues for the PWMS Retailer Training Scheme, contact us at info@drivingmobility.org.uk or click here

#MyDrivingMobility

Fatal Accident Inquiry determination highlights

Alexander Paul Thomas Irvine (“Xander”) died as a result of having been struck by a motor vehicle on Morningside Road, Edinburgh, on 30 June 2020.

The cause of the collision was the loss of control of the vehicle by the driver and owner, Edith Duncan. who was aged 91. Ms Duncan lost control of the vehicle while attempting to perform a turning manoeuvre on Morningside Road, Edinburgh, a two-way street in an urban area. As a result she drove her vehicle onto the opposite carriageway, over the kerb and onto the pavement, striking Xander and his mother. The loss of control was entirely caused by Edith Duncan’s inability to perform safely what would otherwise have been a routine turning manoeuvre. She was, at the time, suffering from significantly impaired cognitive ability as a result of undiagnosed frontotemporal dementia, and was unfit to drive or hold a driving licence.

Driving Mobility response

Like everyone else we are deeply saddened by this tragic event and our thoughts are with the family of Xander Irvine.

We noted the recommendations of the Sherriff’s Fatal Accident Inquiry. Particularly the statement that drivers should only continue driving if they have ‘successfully undertaken a short initial cognitive assessment. Failure to pass that assessment should result in both the application for renewal, and any current licence, being suspended pending further assessment’.

Driving Mobility is a charity dedicated to providing help and advice to older and disabled people on safe independent mobility. We accredit a network of independent and NHS ‘fitness to drive’ assessment centres across the UK. These centres already routinely provide this type of assessment either on self-referral by the older person or their family or through a referral from DVLA, the NHS, Motability or the police.

Our clinical assessment services help to enable drivers, of all ages and abilities, to retain or regain the ability to drive safely. Older drivers make up a significant proportion of the clients who come to our centres for assessment by a qualified clinician (generally an occupational therapist) and an Approved Driving Instructor.

Our professional teams carry out cognitive and practical driving assessments, to identify clients who are able to continue to drive safely, those who are not considered safe and individuals who may need tuition. We also provide help and advice on alternatives to driving for those not considered safe to continue behind the wheel.

Driving Mobility centres carry out some 13,000 assessments annually.  Between 3,000 and 4,000 each year are people who have some form of cognitive impairment including dementia. Approximately half of those tested are likely to be found to be unfit to drive.

#DrivingMobility

Attended by a healthy number of local mobility equipment dealers, Herts Ability, the accredited Driving Mobility centre based in Welwyn Garden City, has hosted the latest Powered Wheelchair and Mobility Scooter (PWMS) Retailer Training Course.

Supported by the Department for Transport in England, the charity Driving Mobility provides this customer assessment and safety training scheme for mobility scooter retailers. The courses aim to improve road safety for all – through a process that ensures people looking to purchase, or hire mobility vehicles, are given comprehensive advice on the right product for their individual needs along with safe driving guidance.

The course at Herts Ability was split in two halves, welcoming two different groups to complete the training. Attendees had a range of expertise from new starters to assessors and manufacturers of specialist equipment. Following an indoor presentation and discussion, the trainees completed a test drive on different scooters and wheelchairs and experienced what this element of an assessment would involve. The participants also learnt about visual field deficits and other vision impairments, using specialist glasses which proved to be an insightful exercise. Both groups came together for lunch where some good quality networking took place.

James Hinkins, who led the course said: “It was a pleasure to support these independent companies in completing the PWMS retailer training. I believe we all formed new professional relationships which will be beneficial to not just us, but individuals living in the local area with restricted mobility. By working together, we can ensure better, more appropriate mobility product provision for greater independence and road safety in the community.”

To sign up for a free training course near you, contact Driving Mobility on: info@drivingmobility.org.uk

#DrivingMobility #HertsAbility #PWMS

Cornwall Mobility, the accredited Driving Mobility centre with headquarters in Truro, was proud to recently host the latest Powered Wheelchair and Mobility Scooter (PWMS) Retailer Training course.

The course aims to provide safer roads for all, by ensuring retailers are trained to carry out appropriate client assessments so the most suitable mobility equipment is prescribed.

PWMS Assessors Shelly and Shawn ran this engaging and insightful course from Cornwall Mobility’s centre at Skypark, Exeter.  All retailers who attended became qualified to ensure their customers only receive equipment that they can control safely. These approved skills can be displayed through a qualification certificate and eye-catching window sticker.

It was a positive day with fantastic feedback from attendees – Cornwall Mobility would like to thank everyone who took part.

To sign up for a free training course near you, contact Driving Mobility on: info@drivingmobility.org.uk

#PWMS #DrivingMobility

With funding from the Government, the charity Driving Mobility is introducing new training for staff at mobility scooter and powered wheelchair showrooms so more customers buy products that they can drive safely.

This new voluntary scheme is being launched in June as the number of scooters and powerchairs is on the rise. With more products being driven on the road and pavement, retailers need to make sure they are matching vehicles with customer capabilities and advising on the Highway Code. The new ‘PWMS Retailer Training Scheme’ will offer, for the first time, a consistent and approved way of providing mobility scooters or powerchairs.

Once trained, suppliers will be officially accredited by The Department for Transport and Driving Mobility – the national charity which is running the scheme. Consumers will then be able to pick retailers that display these credentials which will provide confidence and peace of mind.

Up until now there has never been a standardised way to assess the needs of mobility scooter and powerchair customers or provide safe driving guidance. In addition, there continues to be several grey areas of understanding when it comes to the law regarding mobility vehicle use on the highway. Safe driver training has also been inconsistent across the UK whereas if retailers sign up to the new scheme, they will be able to apply expertise from Driving Mobility’s Occupational Therapists.

Driving Mobility Centres work with the DVLA, Motability, NHS and the Police to offer ‘fitness to drive’, equipment and accessible travel assessments for people with restricted mobility. Qualified healthcare professionals at several centres will be providing the PWMS training so retail staff can benefit from a better understanding of customer medical conditions and capabilities now and in the future. With this knowledge the scheme aims to ensure that the right vehicle is supplied to the right person, so competent and considerate driving is possible. Add to this the latest, easy to remember road safety advice, drivers should benefit from a more positive ownership experience whilst protecting other highway users.

Edward Trewhella, CEO at Driving Mobility concludes by saying: “Alongside the Department for Transport, we are aware that the way people are travelling is changing especially with increased ownership of mobility scooters and powered wheelchairs. In response we completed a successful pilot last year which underlined the need for a retailer training scheme. Our launch is timely and promises to enhance road safety for all through more suitable mobility vehicle provision and greater awareness of the Highway Code.”

Roads and Accessibility Minister Richard Holden said: “It’s really important that we improve road safety for everyone, including owners of powered wheelchairs and mobility scooters. This scheme, supported by Government, will help to ensure that people with restricted mobility can get around independently and confidently by training users, and I’m pleased to support it through our funding.”

For further information email: info@drivingmobility.org.uk

#MyDrivingMobility