Hi Trucker Jimbob,
I thought I’d post a reply on this as it sounds very similar to my situation. I’d been self-employed for 10 years in I.T and then self-employed for another year in a more manual job, so as far as having anything related to HGV driving or even having a large company to vouch for me as a reference were non-existent - my CV looks very plain indeed.
I just used my previous skills and adapted them for the HGV industry e.g self-sufficient at problem solving. I sent an application to a well known postage company and after having a driving assessment I was offered a job as a class 2 driver. I also had no problems with agencies but preferred the reliability of a proper job so opted for that.
I think you’ll be fine mate.
Best of luck to you.