Of the three vocational licence tests I’ve taken, I do remember feeling that the ‘independent drive’ was the most stressful part.
I did my PCV at Wolverhampton, LGV C at Garretts Green and LGV CE at Mansfield. Of course, by the CE I knew it was coming and had had some of the area drummed into me by the trainers but the first two times it was pretty stressful.
The PCV one, my trainer accompanied me on the test as a ‘silent observer’ with the examiner until after a while they started cracking jokes to each other, and so I just got on with it of driving around Wolverhampton…
I had already thought I’d taken it a wee bit close to a kerb a few times and backed off when I should have used a bit more power but apparently they were satisfied with my driving. Apart from that last roundabout, back under instruction where I fluffed it up so badly I had to do a 3 point turn on it 
Oops.
So on the C at Garretts Green I was a bit off with the geography of that area but halfway through the independent part thought I got marked down for undue hesitation, I definitely saw his pen move so felt the need to tell him that although the road is clear and I’ve a green light there is an ambulance on blues and twos coming up the outside on the wrong side of the road and if I pulled out we’d collide. The test sheet had that mark crossed out later, and I took on board what my trainer had said as well experience from the buses of reading the road.
Whilst taking my C another guy at the same training company had a different trainer every day, not as many hours as I and I am sure not consistent training. For one of those days he had my trainer and I had another trainer, who adopted a different style of training and drummed a few things into me that I was seemingly lacking on, but clearly it worked as I passed.
The other guy had his employer paying and was still umming and ahhing on the day of the test but pretty confident. I, on the other hand, was a bag of nerves.
For the CE, I panicked more during my training and didn’t think I’d pass but I did, but the days were pretty tiring but I think those were for other reasons. The trainers did a good job and I’m glad I went to Mansfield for my training. A friend is now booked in with them in January for his training and test. Not sure if I should warn them, he’s a bit of a opinionated handful sometimes
The training can be stressful, it’s a lot to take in, and having things like trainers dozing off, not being critical of your driving, not drumming in the basics into you and all sorts like that isn’t going to help is it. But, don’t let this deter you and good luck for the future 
I can totaly understand why this is in the test as finding your own way round a city is what you’ll have to do when driving for a living.
i was woundering if other people had not been aware of this aspect of the test or is it a well kept secreat amoung the trainers and examiners to relly test you ? i have also not heard or read about it anywhere in all the time iv been researching.
. I dont know if the first trainer should have got me doing this form the start or if the second trainer just likes it done this way or if he had assumed the first trainer had been doing this with me alreddy ? thay also both had diffrent points on the ground on where to turn on reversing. dispite this diffents i did’nt fail because of messing the gears up. my failing was purly down to my state of mind on the day.
i think there alrite but i got the impression there abit stressed out and up agaist it in more ways than one. dont want to sound like im knocking them as we can all go throw times like that.