GP practices may be eligible for grants to install charging stations for electric vehicles in Government incentive schemes.
And as well as helping the environment, practices offering workplace charging could find it helps recruitment and retention.
A recent YouGov survey of more than 4,000 UK adults found that around 60% of 18-34-year-old drivers said they were more likely to switch to an electric vehicle if they could charge at work.
That figure only dropped slightly among those aged 35-44 years with 55% saying they were more likely to switch. That compares with 48% of those aged 45-54 and 33% of those over 55.
Government grants available to GP practices that want to install charging stations include the Workplace Charging Scheme and the EV Infrastructure Grant Scheme.
The Workplace Charging Scheme is open to public sector organisations, including the NHS, businesses and charities. The grant covers up to 75% of the total costs of the purchase and installation.
To be eligible, a GP practice would need to have off-street parking with spaces that it can dedicate for staff use. This scheme offers grants of up to £350 per chargepoint socket for up to 40 sockets but does not include infrastructure costs.
To be eligible for the EV Infrastructure Grant Scheme, practices must be a registered business (with Companies House) or be VAT registered with HMRC and have fewer than 250 employees. They can claim grants of up to £15,000 and can claim five grants in total for five separate sites.
At each site, there must be a minimum of five clearly marked staff-only parking spaces with charging infrastructure installed, and at least one of those spaces must have an active charge point.
Practices can claim up to £350 towards the cost of buying and installing a chargepoint socket and up to £500 for each parking space that the infrastructure will provide a unique chargepoint socket to.
To further contribute to the sustainability agenda, practices could purchase an electric vehicle for home visits.
The YouGov survey was conducted on behalf of global vehicle charging manufacturer CTEK.
