BOURNEMOUTH’S driving test centre is still closed three months after it suffered flooding.

The centre in Gillam Road has been shut since February 8 after rain water collected on the ceiling.

All learner drivers who had tests pre-booked for Bournemouth have had them moved to Poole's driving test centre on Nuffield Industrial Estate ever since.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency said staff at the Bournemouth centre have been temporarily moved to Poole to conduct tests.

Deborah Axworthy, chairman of the Bournemouth and District Driving Instructors Association, has written to local MPs expressing her concern over the ongoing closure of the centre and calling for it to reopen.

She said: "It's a very busy test centre with approximately 10,000 test appointments each year."

Ms Axworthy said that learner drivers were having to spend more money on lessons in order to be familiar with the Poole area and people were also

having to wait longer to take their tests.

She also said that it was having an impact on driving instructors as they were having to spend more money on fuel and vehicle maintenance and also working longer days but seeing fewer students.

Ms Axworthy has started a petition and is now calling on former and present pupils and parents to show their support.

In 2014, the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency proposed to permanently close the Bournemouth centre and relocate tests to Poole, but the plans were shelved in October that year after instructors voiced their opposition.

Two years later, the Bournemouth centre had to close temporarily for refurbishment after it suffered water damage due to rain.

A spokesperson for the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency said: “Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency's priority is to help everyone through a lifetime of safe driving.

“We have completed a review of the damage to the building and we’ll be actioning the results in due course. We have no current plans to close Bournemouth driving test centre.”

The agency said a survey of the building had been carried out for which they were awaiting the results.

It is understood that extent of the damage has been identified and is restricted mainly to the rear of the property, however, there is "evidence of water ingress in a small area in the examiners’ office ceiling."

Anyone who wants to sign Ms Axworthy's petition should email d.axworthy@yahoo.co.uk.