There is a real postcode lottery when it comes to having an electric car and having somewhere to charge it once you leave home.

New research from the BBC has shown that finding nearby charging points for electric cards is a matter of chance.

But the findings show that Redbridge is a strong performer in terms number of licensed vehicles in 2018 and distance between charging locations.

The borough additionally scored highly in terms of growth in the presence of the vehicles between 2011 and 2018.

However, it was a weaker performer in terms of the rate of charging locations per 1,000 vehicles and number of charging locations generally.

It found that Redbridge had 21 charging locations across the borough and that there were 426 licensed electric vehicles registered in 2018, compared to just 2 in 2011, representing a 21,200 per cent increase.

The borough can be counted in the top 25 per cent for the number of licensed electric vehicles according to the BBC report.

In terms of rate of charging locations per 1,000 vehicles, it was reported at 49.3 locations in Redbridge.

The mean average distance between charging locations is a strong performer within the borough, registering in the top 21 per cent with a distance of 0.65km.

A Redbridge council spokesperson said: "Improving air quality in Redbridge is vitally important to us and making it easier for drivers to swap diesel and petrol cars for more eco-friendly versions is one step in achieving this.

"Redbridge successfully secured funding from London’s Go Ultra Low City Scheme (GULCS) for the installation of on-street lamp-column electric vehicle charge points in 2018/2019. We hope to be able to bid for further GULCS funding which will enable more charge points to be installed in the borough this financial year.

"We were one of the first London councils to install a public rapid charge point and in anticipation of the ULEZ expanding to Redbridge in October 2021, we are looking to expand the initiative across the borough, as well as charge points for commercial vehicles.

"In a further bid to improve the air quality, we’ve pledged to introduce clear air zones around schools and are funding schemes at two schools to reduce air pollution by installing air purifiers in classrooms.

"We have also recently published our five-year Air Quality Action Plan for consultation and we are keen to hear feedback and ideas on how we can improve air quality and make our borough cleaner and greener."

The BBC sourced the data from the Open Charge Map – a worldwide database of electric vehicle charging stations – comparing it with Department for Transport and DVLA records.

At the national level, the local authority with the worst rate of charging locations is Caerphilly at 9.6 while the best is Na h-Eileanan Siar, in the Outer Hebrides, at 958.3.

Only 28 councils have so far taken advantage of a government pot of funding totalling £2.5million for the on-street residential charge point scheme, which aims to help drivers charge vehicles.