A NEWPORT 12-year-old is celebrating after making the final of a national driving competition.

Despite being four years away from taking to the road, Ben Westerman (pictured) from Langstone entered the Young Driver Challenge 2017 at Newport Stadium.

After a qualified driving instructor accessed their skills behind the wheel of a car, Ben, who goes to Corpus Christi High School, is one 40 finalists who will travel to the NEC in Birmingham on September 30 to battle it out for the title of the Britain’s Best Young Driver.

All the competitors travelling to the NEC are under the legal driving age of 17 - and this is also the second year Ben has made the final as he was the youngest competitor in the 2016 final.

He said: “I am so excited to have made the final of the Young Driver Challenge for the second year. I’ve been having lessons with Young Driver since my 11th birthday and I love being behind the wheel.

“It’s good fun, but I also feel like it’s giving me lots of extra time for practice before I take to the road for real.”

Laura White, head of marketing at Young Driver, said: “The skills these youngsters show behind the wheel is extraordinary. They really would put some of the drivers out there on the roads to shame.

“Our aim at Young Driver has always been to create a safer next generation of youngsters on the road.”

For more information about Young Driver visit youngdriver.com or call 0844 371 9010.