RELATED: How much does public EV charging installation cost in the UK?
LEVI Fund for Local Authorities
The Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund is the primary government funding source for genuinely public EV charging. It totals £381 million, split into £343 million of capital funding for chargepoint installation and £37.8 million for capability building.
LEVI is available only to local authorities in England. It specifically targets areas where residents lack off street parking and where commercial operators would not otherwise invest. Private businesses cannot apply directly. If your project involves a council partnership, LEVI funding may form part of the picture. We work with several local authorities on LEVI funded projects.
The Workplace Charging Scheme Covers Staff Bays
The Workplace Charging Scheme covers private chargepoints for staff and fleet vehicle use. It does not cover public access chargers. If your site mixes staff parking with public parking, the WCS applies only to the staff sockets.
The scheme pays £500 per socket installed, uplifted from £350 on 1 April 2026. You can claim up to 40 sockets across all your sites, covering 75% of the purchase and installation cost. It is open to new applications until 31 March 2027.
For a retail car park with 6 staff bays and 20 public bays, only the 6 staff sockets qualify for WCS funding. That is £3,000 of grant support toward the staff portion of the project.
RELATED: How does the LEVI Fund work for local authorities?
Schemes That Closed on 31 March 2026
Several OZEV grants that previously covered related contexts have now closed:
- EV Infrastructure Grant for Staff and Fleets (was up to £15,000 per site) closed 31 March 2026.
- Commercial Landlord Chargepoint Grant (was up to 100 sockets per year at £350) closed 31 March 2026.
- Depot Charging Scheme (was up to £1 million per organisation) closed 28 November 2025.
None of these grants ever applied to public-access chargepoints. If you had planned a mixed site that would have claimed the Infrastructure Grant for the staff portion, that route is no longer available.
Pending claims from applications submitted before 31 March 2026 can still be completed by installers until 26 May 2026, with a final resubmission deadline of 6 July 2026.
Funding a Pure Public Charging Project
For commercial sites delivering genuinely public EV charging, the practical funding routes are:
Revenue share models — we fund the hardware, installation, groundworks, and grid connections. You provide the site and share the revenue. No upfront payment required.
Commercial capital — you fund the installation and retain all revenue. Suited to high-volume sites where the payback period is short.
LEVI partnership — if your site sits in a council area with LEVI funding, a public-private partnership can access that capital pool.
We structure every project around the best mix for the site. Contact us for a site assessment.
