MiDAS is made up of three parts - a classroom-based theory session, an on-road assessment (minibuses) or observed drive (cars/MPVs), followed by emergency evacuation training. You can drive after having done the first two parts.

To drive an MPV (i.e. a Vito), you must be aged at least 18 and have held a full licence for at least 1 year. If holding a non-UK/EU licence, you must be over 21 and the licence must be "in date" for this country - contact the Transport Office for advice (generally, only UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, and EU licences are accepted, due to extremely high insurance excesses for other licences. Additionally, Isle of Man & Channel Islands licences expire for students after 12 months & have to be exchanged for a UK licence)

To drive a Minibus, you must be aged at least 21 and have held a full UK licence for at least 2 years (sorry - due to insurance regulations, only UK, Isle of Man & Channel Islands licence holders can drive minibuses in the UK) 

In all cases, you need to have had sufficient driving experience, as tuition is not given. You need to be able to control a car satisfactorily, be responsive to what the car is "telling" you (e.g. are you in the right gear? Do you need to brake more gently in this particular car?) and generally be confident (but not over-confident) in a car. When people have problems with the on-road element of MiDAS, it's generally because they haven't gained enough previous experience of driving, to be able to build on that to deal with the demands of a much larger vehicle.

To book a place on a MiDAS Theory course, please download the application form. Note: you must have macros enabled in Microsoft Word. If a window pops up before Word opens, please click "Enable Macros." If you still can't fill in the form, follow the instruction in red on the form.

Forthcoming MiDAS Theory dates:

The fee for all 3 parts of the MiDAS course is £20, which is billed directly to your Club/Society/Area

For MEEP training dates, please click this link: MEEP training

MiDAS theory training comprises: information about how BUSU Transport operates, defensive driving (how to avoid collisions and points!), driving hours, personal driving improvement plan, new legislation, ethical and environmental considerations, emergency procedures & contingency plans. Most of our drivers have been driving for a few years since passing the test and this is the first additional training which they will have received. The aim is to invite you to think more deeply about your driving and to prepare you for the assessment/observed drive, where you will be expected to put defensive driving into practice. 

I've got points on my licence. Can I still drive?

Yes, although there may be an additional insurance premium which will be charged to your Club, and you may attract an additional excess in the event of a claim. Generally (but not always), one SP30 which is over a year old will not attract an additional premium. We are unable to insure anyone who has been disqualified for any reason in the past 5 years, has more than 6 active penalty points, or who had his/her licence revoked under the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act 1995 within the last 3 years.