The council has set a carbon cap of 120g/km for all the vehicles which can be ordered on the green car scheme and expect take up to be between 2-5% in years one and two.

Wiltshire Council said the scheme had been easy to implement as they had decided to run a pilot scheme first to enable them to check the service and support levels provided by Tusker and to ensure it was a benefit that would be welcomed by their employees.

A Wiltshire Council spokesperson, commented: ‘The green car scheme was introduced as a pilot to a small group of employees, whose subsidised lease car arrangements were coming to an end, to enable us to test out how the scheme would work in practice.

‘The scheme is open to all non-schools based employees and provides a tangible benefit during the current financial climate. We have had a very positive reaction with 55 new car orders so far. The most popular models have been the Peugeot 107, Chevrolet Spark and Ford Fiesta.’

Tusker handles the bulk of the scheme’s administration, helping to relieve the burden on council staff in running the scheme. Information regarding the green car scheme is hosted on the Council’s internal staff benefits website and communicated to employees via a weekly e-newsletter.  Roadshows, posters and leaflets were also issued to promote the scheme to employees who did not have access to a computer.

Wiltshire Council selected the SS4C scheme under the terms of a Pan Government Collaborative Framework Agreement originally set up by North Yorkshire County Council when it established its own salary sacrifice car scheme with Tusker last year.  Under the agreement, Tusker’s SS4C scheme is available for use by all UK contracting public sector authorities, including Government Departments, Non-Departmental Public Bodies, the NHS, Local Authorities, Police Authorities and Emergency Services.

‘The decision to use Tusker was based upon the ability to use them under the same terms of the framework agreement with North Yorkshire County Council, thereby saving council resources in carrying out a tender process,’  the spokesperson added.

Sarah Hayter, Tusker Account Development manager, said: ‘We are delighted to be working with Wiltshire Council to provide their employees with a choice of new “green” cars. This helps the authority meet carbon reduction targets whilst employees enjoy the tax efficiency of the scheme, hassle free motoring and significant improvements in fuel efficiency.

‘We are currently seeing high levels of interest in SS4C from both public and private sector organisations as they realise the tax efficiency of the scheme and the savings that can be generated.’