Electric vehicle charging points are up and running in three South Kesteven District Council car parks.

There are four in Grantham's Welham Street car park; four in North Street, Stamford; and two at Deepings Community Centre. Two more charging points will follow in Burghley Street car park, Bourne.

SKDC secured a £45,000 Government grant from the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) and contributed the remaining £18,000 of the installation costs.

As part of the grant conditions the charging point spaces will be available for residents to use overnight.

SKDC's Cabinet Member for Commercial and Operations, Cllr Dr Peter Moseley, said: "We're keen to encourage greater use of electric vehicles and these charging points will help give residents and businesses the confidence to invest in them.

"As electric vehicles become more popular this demonstrates the council's commitment to investing in technology for the benefit of residents, businesses and visitors.

"The council has electric vehicles as part of its fleet and, like the rest of the country, we are making progress on upgrading the infrastructure necessary to support the use of zero emission vehicles and help reduce transport-related pollution."

SKDC, with cross-party support, is committed to reducing its carbon footprint by at least 30% before 2030 and being net-zero carbon as soon as viable before 2050.

"Public understanding and awareness of the causes and effects of climate change have increased significantly over the last few years," said Cllr Dr Moseley. "The electric vehicle charging points are another example of our determination to do all we can to provide community leadership and create a real movement for change.

"We are committed to improving our environment and this is a step further on a long journey to make our district clean and green on the way towards a carbon-free future."

SKDC is continuing to seek additional grant funding to increase the number of charging points in the district.