BILL PLANT Driving School, have made decided to postpone all driving lessons and driving instructor training for the safety of everyone involved, due to the Coronavirus outbreak.

Driving lessons will stop by 8pm on Monday, at the latest.

The team at Bill Plant Driving School are currently working around the clock to finalise a financial support package for their self-employed nationwide Driving Instructors. This will be announced to their Driving Instructors within the next 48 hours.

The team at www.billplant.co.uk said: “We have taken the difficult decision to postpone all driving lessons and training by 8pm on 23rd March at the latest, with the exception of teaching key workers where necessary."

“This is not a decision we are taking lightly, but one made with the health and wellbeing of all our pupils, instructors, trainers and staff in mind.

“For those currently talking driving lessons with Bill Plant Driving School, your local driving instructor will be in touch shortly to postpone your next lesson and will contact you again in the future to recommence.

“We are still taking Learn to Drive and Driving Instructor Training enquiries via billplant.co.uk and 0330 555 2254 and we will simply schedule these to commence when it is safe for us to do so.

“Thank you to our fantastic driving instructors for their continued support during this incredibly challenging time.

“From everyone at Bill Plant Driving School, thank you for your on-going support and stay safe.”

The National Associations Strategic Partnership, which comprises several driving instructor groups, backed Bill Plant's stance.

It advises: "At an extremely difficult and worrying time for us all, taking into account the Government public health advice regarding social distancing and trying to control and delay the spread of the COVID-19 virus, NASP would urge all instructors to stop delivering driving lessons, if you have not already done so, with the exception of teaching key workers where necessary. This should be until the end of April and then we can then all review the situation again.

"We fully appreciate the worry of financial loss that this brings, and we hope that our calls for Government to offer a rescue package to the self-employed are acted upon, but we consider it is not possible for us to comply with current social distancing measures whilst teaching in a car.

"We realise that any decision regarding your business is ultimately your own to make, but hope that this announcement might help those of you with uncertainty about the appropriate course of action to take in these unprecedented circumstances. We will keep you updated as times go on and if the situation changes, please keep checking NASP website for current updates and advice."

For those instructors continuing supplying driver or rider training (to key workers etc) there is guidance at: https://driving.org/coronavirus-advice/.