Have you considered offering electric vehicle charging in your school?
Electric vehicle ownership is gaining momentum. Nearly early 315K electric vehicles were sold in 2023. That equates to 16.5% market share of the UK car market. This trend will only increase in the future. The UK’s Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate is in place, which requires 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans sold in Great Britain to be zero emission by 2030.
With more electric vehicles on the roads, the need for more charging facilities is therefore increasing.
Allowing your school staff who own electric vehicles to charge their vehicles during the school day is a real benefit and also the potential to increase revenue by opening these facilities up to the public* is certainly worth considering if your facilities allow.
Grant available
The Workplace Charging Scheme grant is available for schools, colleges and academies. This will help with the cost of installing EV charging points.
Installation costs around £1,500 to £2,500 per socket. This grant covers up to 75% of the outlay for a charge point.
This grant is specifically for state-funded schools and education institutions, who have dedicated off-street parking facilities. (A site survey will need to be undertaken prior to the installation to confirm your site can support EV charging.)
The deadline
The closing date for this grant is 31 March 2025. You can apply online, and if successful, you will receive a voucher valid for six months, whereby the installation must be completed within this time.
The benefits
On the positive side of offering electric vehicle charging in school, the Workplace Charging grant aims to:
- Boost the charging facilities for your staff and visitors.
- Offer your community more locations to charge their EVs.
- Help your school to generate additional revenue by making the charge points available to the general public*.
* If you want to open your charge points to the public and charge for usage, you will need to comply with the Public Charge Point Regulations 2023 and associated guidance.
For more ideas to increase your school’s income, please see our blog about hiring out school facilities.
