National Highways Lorry Parking Facilities Improvements Scheme

Document research last revised 2026-08-14.

Grant Name

National Highways Lorry Parking Facilities Improvements Scheme

Funding Programme

National Highways Customer and Communities Designated Fund, specifically the Freight and Roadside Facilities theme. (Find a Grant)

Opportunity Type

Transport infrastructure / HGV parking / roadside facilities

Primary Sector / Area

Freight, logistics, HGV parking infrastructure, driver welfare and roadside facilities

Published Award Range

Find a Grant currently displays £1 to £20 million in its “How much you can get” field. However, the scheme narrative also identifies £20 million as the overall scheme fund and does not state a separate £20 million per-project maximum. For your website, I would not describe £20 million as the maximum award per project. (Find a Grant)

Maximum Funding Rate

National Highways can fund up to 50% of the capital cost of an eligible improvement project. The exact funding ratio is confirmed in the individual grant agreement. (Find a Grant)

Project Completion Deadline

All improvement works must be completed by 31 March 2031. (Find a Grant)

Applicant Types

Find a Grant classifies eligible applicants as Public Sector, Non-profit, Private Sector and Local Authority. (Find a Grant)

Site Eligibility

Applicant must operate an existing HGV driver facility located on, or within 5 km of, the Strategic Road Network in England. The proposed project must provide benefits to professional drivers. (Find a Grant)

Eligible Industries / Sectors

Lorry parking, motorway and roadside services, freight and logistics infrastructure, and local-authority-operated truck stops. This reflects the facility types explicitly eligible under the scheme. (Find a Grant)

Key Organisational Requirements

Applicant must operate an eligible lorry parking facility; meet the geographic requirement; provide at least 50% match funding; demonstrate benefits for professional/HGV drivers; and demonstrate that the project can be completed by 31 March 2031. (Find a Grant)

Eligible Project Areas

Proposals must improve HGV driver facilities or welfare in one or more of three main areas: 1) driver welfare facilities, 2) driver and site security, or 3) HGV parking amenities and capacity. (Find a Grant)

Eligible Welfare Improvements

Examples include driver lounges; facilities addressing gender, disability or other protected characteristics; Wi-Fi; self-service laundry; recharging points; amenity refrigerators; gyms; toilets; showers; and rest areas. The official list is illustrative rather than exhaustive. (Find a Grant)

Eligible Security Improvements

Examples include lighting systems, CCTV, other monitoring equipment and secure fencing designed to improve the security of drivers, HGVs and cargo. (Find a Grant)

Eligible Parking Improvements

Improvements can include increasing the number of HGV spaces, improving overall facility accommodation, reconfiguring parking layouts, resurfacing, white lining, electric charging infrastructure and dedicated areas for noisy vehicles or trailers. (Find a Grant)

Eligible Capital Costs

Examples explicitly given include construction and refurbishment works; security equipment and installation; engineering; architecture and design; and fixtures and fittings. (Find a Grant)

Electric Charging Infrastructure

Eligible in principle. Electric charging infrastructure is specifically listed as an example of a parking amenity/capacity improvement that applicants may include in proposals. (Find a Grant)

Ineligible Costs – Staffing

Costs of resourcing and staffing future improvements are not covered by the grant. (Find a Grant)

Ineligible Costs – Running Costs

Normal running costs and general business overheads are not eligible. (Find a Grant)

Ineligible Costs – Labour

Direct labour and agency/contractor labour costs are stated as excluded from the grant. (Find a Grant)

Retrospective Funding

Not eligible. The project must not seek funding retrospectively. (Find a Grant)

Additional Funding Restriction

Grant funding must not be sought for work that would be undertaken anyway if the grant were not awarded. (Find a Grant)

Application Method

Applicants currently begin by submitting an online Expression of Interest directly to National Highways. (National Highways)

Initial Application Components

The current Expression of Interest form requests the applicant's name, email, telephone number, organisation name, approximate value of works, type of support required (Parking/Welfare/Safety/Security), what the applicant intends to achieve with the funding, and consent for data processing. (National Highways)

Detailed Proposal Requirement

The scheme information requires applicants to demonstrate the proposed improvements, their benefits for professional drivers, eligibility of the site, required match funding and ability to complete the project by 31 March 2031. (Find a Grant)

Number of Awards

No fixed number of future awards is stated on the current Find a Grant listing.

Objectives – Driver Welfare

Improve the quality, accessibility and affordability of welfare facilities available to HGV drivers while taking essential breaks. (Find a Grant)

Objectives – Security

Improve the safety and security of professional drivers, HGVs, cargo and lorry parking sites. (Find a Grant)

Objectives – Parking Capacity

Increase HGV parking capacity and improve the configuration and amenities of existing lorry parking facilities. (Find a Grant)

Current Programme Activity

National Highways states that, since December 2023, it has worked with operators to match-fund up to £13 million in lorry park upgrades across England. (National Highways)

Latest Official Evaluation Context

A Department for Transport evaluation published in 2026 reports that 125 successful applicants were listed for the National Highways scheme, equivalent to around 38% of the 328 lorry parks recorded in England in the 2022 National Survey of Lorry Parking. The evaluation states that 82% of those successful National Highways applicants were motorway service areas. (GOV.UK)

Recent Delivery – 2025/26

The Office of Rail and Road reported that National Highways' freight-driver improvement programme upgraded 12 lorry parking facilities during April 2025 to March 2026. (Office of Rail and Road)

Example – Chippenham Pit Stop

Improvements completed in February 2025 included 63 new HGV parking spaces, 10 electric hook-ups for refrigerated vehicles, CCTV and an ANPR security barrier. (National Highways)

Example – Glews Truck Stop

Improvements completed in February 2025 included 52 additional HGV parking spaces, access-road improvements, security fencing, CCTV and expansion of toilet/shower facilities. (National Highways)

Contact / Enquiries

The current Find a Grant page directs applicants with application questions to contact National Highways, while the National Highways funding page directs funding enquiries through its Customer and Communities / Freight and Roadside Facilities Expression of Interest form. A specific public email address is not displayed in the current page text I could verify, so I would not invent one. (Find a Grant)

Important Notes

Applicants should not begin on the assumption that costs will be funded retrospectively. The project must provide benefits to professional drivers, the site must meet the SRN geographic requirement, the applicant must provide at least 50% match funding, and funded works must be completed by 31 March 2031. (Find a Grant)

Last Verified

14 August 2026

Application deadline in source document

31 March 2031 at 11:59pm. (Find a Grant)

Official source

Read the funding authority guidance