Councils & Public Sector Solar Carport Buyer's Guide and Checklist

The Councils & Public Sector Solar Carport Checklist

This checklist is for councils & public sector buyers — typically finance directors, sustainability heads, estate managers or procurement leads — and sets out what to check, ask and budget for before a carport project goes to tender.

What to check

• PSDS Phase 4: closed to new applications in November 2024
• Welsh and Scottish public-sector routes: check the devolved alternatives if you are a Welsh or Scottish body
• Procurement: check Crown Commercial Service RM6168 and other frameworks, including their current scope
• Heritage: Conservation Area carport design
• Public EV charging: compare concession models with operators such as Osprey, BP Pulse and Mer
• Bilingual signage (English, Welsh, Gaelic) where required
• Worked example: see the modelled 460 kWp district council carport on the public sector page

How to use the checklist

• Run an internal feasibility estimate for your site profile
• Identify the right funding route (capital allowances / PPA / asset finance / nation-specific public-sector programmes)
• Build the business case for board/committee approval
• Know what to ask installers when running a competitive tender

Before you appoint an installer

• Check the installer's MCS certificate on the MCS register where the scheme applies, and OZEV authorisation if EV chargers are included
• Ask who holds the principal designer and principal contractor roles under CDM 2015
• Ask for a RIDDOR record and a current CHAS, SafeContractor or Constructionline certificate
• Ask who submits the planning and G99 grid applications, and what the quote includes
• Ask what the O&M agreement and the manufacturer warranties cover

Related on solarcarparks.co.uk

• Full Councils & Public Sector sector guide
• Grants & funding routes
• Compare PPA, AIA, asset finance, Salix