Electric Vehicle Charge Point Grant

• Parish councils
• Village hall or community centre/community building Trusts
• Charitable and not-for-profit organisations directly involved in running village halls, community centres, and community buildings with parking.

Capital costs for purchase and installation of Electric Vehicle Charge Points for public use, including associated costs such as: electrical works, ground works, bay markings, barriers, and signs.

The EVCPs must be located in off-street car parks.

• On-going revenue costs (for example: maintenance, software and electricity costs)
• EVCPs at locations which already have an EVCP(s) installed.
• EVCPs that are restricted in use to an individual, business or organisation. (Chargers must be for public use).

• The maximum award is £5,000
• Applicants can apply at any time during the financial year, until the funding is fully allocated for that period

• A completed application form and any attached documentation that is needed to support responses to the questions in the form
• The form requires a copy of confirmation of support from your local district councillor, by letter or email
• Confirmation of match funding, including the source and amount of match funding
• A bank statement for the bank account you wish the funds to be paid into, dated within the last month

• Applications will need to meet the criteria set out in our guidance notes, which will be demonstrated by completing the application form
• Of particular importance is the need to demonstrate consideration of 'likely demand' for EVCPs at the chosen location. Also, to provide evidence that the chargers in the chosen location have a good prospect of being used
• Grant applications are discussed and decided at the Grants Advisory Committee. The Grants Advisory Committee usually meets monthly
• Officers will score applications out of 100, according to the below criteria and weightings:

• Funding must only be used for the agreed purpose and spent within 12 months of the award being made (unless otherwise agreed in writing)
• Successful applicants are to notify us on completion of the funded project
• Usage data from the EVCP must be provided to us quarterly for 3-years, from the date of successful commissioning
• The successful applicant must commit to maintaining the EVCP in good working condition for 3-years from the date of commissioning
• EVCPs installed as a result of funding shall be registered on an online EV charging directory, such as ZapMap, or similar
• Any publicity must acknowledge the award provided
• Any unused grant must be returned to us

• If successful, the applicant will receive the grant payment into the bank account that was stated on the application form
• This follows our receiving acknowledgement of the grant offer and acceptance of the terms and conditions

When first considering a site for an EVCP, think about what might make it attractive to EV drivers. For example:

• Are there nearby attractions or facilities for drivers to access, ideally more than one, and within walking distance?
• Would the EVCP be publicly visible, making it more likely to be noticed and used?
• Are there nearby homes without private driveways who could benefit from a public charger?
• Does the location feel safe for an EV to be left while charging?

Here are some other factors to consider:

• Signs and/or bay markings can be used to denote parking spaces for EV use only, to discourage parking by petrol and diesel cars
• Minimising the distance between EVCPs and the electricity supply can reduce installation costs
• Ensure there is pedestrian accessibility to the charger and parking space
• Barriers or wheel stops in front of an EVCP can reduce damage from collisions
• EVCPs capable of taking contactless payments are easier to use for drivers

If you think your site might be suitable, then EVCP installers can provide site surveys free of charge.

The Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles has a list of their approved EV Charger installers on their website.

Own and Operate:

With this operating model, you purchase the charger and procure an installer. Once the charger is installed it will need a back-office system to run the charger and take payments from users.

Some charger operators will provide the charger, the back-office and have an approved installer. Others will offer some of these services, but not all.

In this model, as you own the charger, you are responsible for ongoing costs associated with it, including:

• Back-office software which runs the charger, takes payments, and reports faults
• Transaction processing fee, often between 5 to 10% per transaction
• Maintenance packages, sometimes offered by charger manufacturers and operators
• SIM card subscription to connect to the 4G network, if there is no Broadband/WiFi at the location,

This model provides:

• more flexibility and control in choice of charger and back-office system 
• more freedom in setting your tariff for users of the EVCP to cover your ongoing costs
• a greater choice of where to install the charger

However, this approach needs more management of the charger and tariff to ensure costs are covered and that any issues or faults with the charger are resolved.

Third party funded:

Alternatively, there are charge point operators that can offer a fully or partly funded operating model for community chargers. These operators take on the cost, the risk, and the management of the chargers.

Some are run commercially, with the provider paying the owner of the bays a monthly rental, but taking any profit from charger use. Others are run on a community benefit basis, funded through community shares.

However, it is important to note that some locations may be ineligible if they do not suit the provider’s business model, and you will have less control of the type of charger, its location, the tariff, and any income.