The council has seen a growth in the queries regarding the charging of electric cars. To help you, here is some further information about electric car charging in Worcestershire.

To find out how many EV charging devices are there in Worcestershire visit: Electric vehicle charging infrastructure statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). This changes as new data is released and is updated quarterly. This is available at national, county and district level.

If you want to know where electric chargers are located, you can use Zap map which is a live interactive map with the locations of different chargers in the UK. EV charging infrastructure is often provided by private operators and can frequently be found in service stations, supermarkets and in private car parks.

Local authority

Each local authority in Worcestershire is also involved in delivery of EV chargers. Local authorities are not required to provide EV infrastructure but where opportunities arise, and funding is available they may wish to assist with the delivery of EV charging n infrastructure.

To find out further details regarding each district council’s approach to installing charge points in car parks, please visit their individual websites.

The County Council is working to secure Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure funding (LEVI) to support the delivery and installation on EV Charging Infrastructure as detailed below.

Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI)

The Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund supports local transport authorities (such as WCC) in England to plan and deliver charge point infrastructure for residents without off-street parking. Local authorities are not required to provide EV infrastructure. However, we are working with LEVI to secure LEVI funding for chargers in the county.

The LEVI fund is split into two elements, the LEVI Capability fund and the LEVI Capital fund. Capability funding will be used to ensure that local authorities have the staff and capability to plan and deliver charge point infrastructure in the county, for example the development and production of an Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Charging Strategy. The Capital Fund will be used to support the delivery of EV chargers throughout the county with a specific aim to provide charging infrastructure to those who do not have access to off street parking.

We have secured a total of £ 534‬, 000 funding to support the development and production of an Electric Vehicle Charing Infrastructure strategy and to apply for LEVI capital funding.

In May 2023 we submitted an Expression of Interest to the LEVI as the start of the multi phased process of securing the indicative allocation - £3,481,000, to aid in the installation of electric vehicle charging Infrastructure. WCC were successfully awarded the allocation of £3,481,000 and now begin the process as set out by Government, to secure the funding that will enable the installation of EV chargers for those Worcestershire residents without off street parking.

Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Strategy

The strategy is a high-level document which identifies the scope and current direction of travel for Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure (EVCI) in our county. Its primary focus is on delivering EVCI in the county for communities and in particular, deployment of the LEVI Capital Funding for households without dedicated off-street parking.

The draft strategy will be submitted to Cabinet in summer 2024.

Infrastructure for charging

The trailing of EV charging cables (or any cable) across the public highway is prohibited.

Charging your vehicle on the street by trailing a cable across the pavement, including with the use of a cable protector or cable ramp is not permitted under the provisions of the 1980 Highways Act.

Under the Highways Act action may be taken to remove cables that are deemed unsuitable or unsafe.

There are several significant buildability challenges to be overcome when considering using lamp posts:

• lamp posts are often fed by cables with limited capacity for the additional draw required to charge an Electric Vehicles
• lamp posts do not have large enough internal space for the additional equipment required for electric vehicle charging. Other authorities utilising lamp post columns have needed to adapt lamp posts resulting in increased maintenance costs and further restrictions on footway width
• lamp post columns in Worcestershire are typically located in at the back of the pavement, for example adjacent to front gardens or property boundaries, not the front of the pavement at the kerb side. This means that the charging cable would need to trail across the pathway to connect to the car. We will not permit any cable to be placed across the public highway (including pavement)

Planning applications are submitted to district councils not Worcestershire County Council. Therefore, we do not hold the information regarding the total number of planning applications for EV charging stations that have been approved.

New developments (housing)

Both residential and non-residential buildings are required to provide EV chargers as per requirements of the Buildings Regulations as amended (2022).

There is no mechanism to request a chargepoint in your street or local area.

Work to increase the number of existing chargepoints in taking place in all authorities in Worcestershire, however it is not a statutory duty for any local authorities to provide this. Private chargepoint operators are also investing in installing chargers at supermarkets, car parks and leisure facilities around the county.

Local authorities can deliver chargepoints to meet the needs of the local communities subject to funding and to, meeting the requirements of the funder. Prior to installation, consultation will take place locally to ensure support of the chargepoint.

Our current focus with LEVI funding is to plan for chargepoints in locations where there is a high density of households with no access to off-street parking.

Charging at home

If you have a driveway or parking space where you can have a private chargepoint installed, this will often be the best option for you. You can find a chargepoint installer from your EV dealership, sometimes your local energy supplier or a local qualified installer can do this for you.

To install a chargepoint you will need a designated parking space. If you do not have one you will need to use publicly available, or workplace chargers find these at zap map.

Planning permission to install a charger is not required unless your property is listed, within a site designated as a scheduled monument or if the chargepoint would be under 2 metres from a highway. Refer to the Town and Country Planning Order 2015.

If you live in a rental property or a flat, you must ensure you have permission to install a chargepoint. You can access funding towards the cost of installing an electric vehicle chargepoint socket at your property. See Electric vehicle chargepoint grant for renters or flat owners.