About the IDIA
The Irish Driving Instructors Association (IDIA) was founded in 1990 as the ADIR (Approved Driving Instructor Register) by a number of professional Driving Instructors, who had tired of the lack of official registration and the damage being done by non professional so called "driving instructors" who without any qualifications or training were passing themselves off as Driving Instructors to the public.
One of the first items on the agenda was to establish an ongoing liaison with the Department of the Environment. The response by the Government and DoE was, if not as good as hoped, certainly very positive. The DoE suggested guidelines for the Association to follow, indicating that if these plans were carried out successfully the Government and DoE would be in a better position to support the call for registration.
The establishment of an examination process, so that membership would be restricted to people who had proved themselves worthy of calling themselves professional Driving Instructors by successfully passing a testing examination was essential. The Committee set up the Institute of Driving Tutors and introduced a rigorous exam. The examination was deliberately set at a high standard, as in the absence of official involvement it could not be seen as driving instructors just granting awards to themselves.
The next 5 1/2 years were a time of continuous activity between the ADIR (IDIA) and the MSAI who at the request of the Government set up the Driving Instructor Register of Ireland (DIR) as an independent examination body, necessary for advancement towards the goal of registration. This moved a step further when the Government announced in 1996 that it supported the planned introduction of mandatory registration and would give financial support to the newly established Driving Instructor Register of Ireland (DIR).
Following the establishment of the DIR, the Association decided it should change its name as the existing name of ADIR was too close to DIR and would possibly mislead the public. The Association decided on the name of the Irish Driving Instructors Association (IDIA) and that it would continue as an Association representing Trained and Qualified Driving Instructors. It discontinued it's own examination and decided to accept the 3-part DIR exam as a suitable criteria for Membership. This not only established that Members were trained and examined to the highest standards but that membership would be confined to Registered DIR's The IDIA continued it's efforts to see mandatory registration introduced.
The IDIA became more involved in Road Safety and Driver Education, while still retaining its primary role as an Association representing Driving Instructors.
Since 1996 and the establishment of the DIR, the IDIA has continued to represent Trained and Qualified Driving Instructors. It 's commitment and contribution towards mandatory Registration continued and it held five places on the Board of the DIR until the end of June 2007, when the DIR's operations ceased in light of imminent Official Registration by the Road Safety Authority (RSA) in July 2007. The IDIA had 2 representatives on the DoE working party on the future of Driver Education. It has attended conferences and seminars on Driver Education, Driver Testing and Road Safety in both Ireland and Europe. It has contributed to the Consultation Documents on The Rules of the Road and on the Regulation of Driving Instruction in Ireland.
Official Registration commenced in July 2007 and will be completed by 31sy July 2009 but wll be ongoing for those entering the industry. This will not only benefit driving instructors but the general public as well. The IDIA fully supports the RSA in this and has had numerous eetings and an ongoing liaison with the RSA. The IDIA sees these very useful activities with the RSA continuing, as the completion of Registration is not the end but only the beginning of a new era in Driving Tuition and Education in Ireland
The IDIA's European activities have been further advanced by the apointment of Cathy Bacon (IDIA Chairperson 2006/2008 and 2008/2010) as 2nd Vice President of EFA in April 2007.
In April 2007 the IDIA attended the First European Road Safety Day in Brussels and in June 2007 the IDIA signed up to the European Road Safety Charter with a commitment to promote accompanied driving as best practice for learner drivers.
Cathy in her role of EFA 2nd Vice President regularly attends CIECA workshops and has attended their Annual General Assemblies and Conferences in Oslo in May 2007, in Zagreb in May 2008. and again in Berlin in May 2009
She is an advisor to the EU Project “Module Close To” and was moderator at the Fit to Drive Congress in Prague in June 2008.
At home she represented the Association at the National Road Safety Strategy Review and the International Road Safety Conference in Croke Park
In the important days as the date for Registration drew near, the Association had regular and worthwhile communication with the RSA., which is envisaged as being ongoing.
In 2009 we commenced a series of Regional meeting to bring our Association to Driving Instructors at a local level. So far we have held meetings in Galway, Carlow and North County Dublin, which have proved very successful.
We also participated in the Carlow Driving Instructors Event of Tests and Advice To Raise Funds for The National Rehabilitation Hospital.
Regional meeting will continue throughout the year and we hope to have made ourselves available locally to driving instructors in many areas of the Country by 2010
Also in 2009 our profile in Ireland and abroad continued to be enhanced by the attendance of our Chairperson in her role as 2nd Vice President of EFA at the CIECA internal project on Driving Examiner Standards in Oslo in March and again by her attendance at the CIECA 41st General Assembly and Congress in Berlin in May.
The IDIA issues a periodic newsletter and holds 2 seminars on Driver Education for Driving Instructors every year. It has established an on-going liaison with the Road Safety Authority, the Department of Transport, the Gardaí, and other interested groups. All part of its ongoing contribution to the improvement in Driver Education and Road Safety in Ireland.