A new UK Government-funded electric vehicle infrastructure (EVI) training course launches today (21 March 2024). The course is designed to upskill local authority officers as they coordinate the deployment of public charging infrastructure.

Applications are now open for cohorts to sign up to the course and start learning in March or April 2024. Additional courses are planned for September 2024 and January 2025.

The UK Government’s Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) is funding one place per tier-one local authority or London Borough. Additional places are available for a fee.

The course has been developed by the LEVI support body (Cenex, Energy Saving Trust and PA Consulting), as part of the local electric vehicle infrastructure (LEVI) fund. It aims to help local authority officers to rapidly upskill to develop and deliver tailored local EV infrastructure. Topics covered include EVI technology, users and stakeholders, EVI strategy, EVI procurement, deployment and operations.

The course has been successfully trialled by 16 local authority officers over the past four months.

A local authority officer at Suffolk County Council said:

“The EVI training course has been invaluable in improving my knowledge and confidence in EVI deployment. The course structure takes the learner through the whole process, from understanding the reasons why it’s needed, to planning, development and installation. The content has been engaging and interactive, and I’m already using what I have learnt on the course in my role at Suffolk County Council.”

Councils have recruited around 100 dedicated EV officers so far. This has been made possible by the LEVI capability funding. The funding supports chargepoint procurement and helps local authorities to build a skilled workforce to deliver their EV charging projects.

Equipping course participants with the required knowledge will support an effective rollout of EVI for residents in their local areas. It will also encourage consistency and continued sharing of best practice.

This course is for eligible local authorities only and is not open to the public.

Chloe Hampton, training course project manager at Cenex said:

“We are thrilled to reach this milestone and open the course to all UK local authorities. Equipping this workforce is integral to transitioning to zero-emission transport and timely as LEVI capital funding starts to be spent to enable them to rollout local electric vehicle infrastructure effectively.”

Find more information about the course and application details on our website.