A new Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics Directorate has been set up within the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
Its director, Tom Smith, said it has been set up to explore how best to scale up the use of AI in local government services, looking at maximising efficiency and supporting improvements in service delivery and prevention.
The Local Digital team in MHCLG has become part of the directorate, which Smith said will strengthen the department’s ability to support councils in adopting AI and other elements of their digital and data transformation and cyber resilience.
He said there will be a focus on four key areas to enable better digital services, one being the further development and promotion of data standards, another on data mobility and integration to reduce the burden on councils when migrating data, submitting statutory returns and sharing information.
Supplier strand
Another is supplier engagement and market analysis, working with the industry to understand the challenges and opportunities in the local government landscape. Smith said the aim of this is to improve market conditions, increase supplier transparency and help councils in procuring digital solutions.
Fourthly, there will be an effort to scale the adoption of common digital solutions, whether they have been developed by local or central government or the private sector.
“There’s lots of brilliant work already happening in this space, but a lot of barriers to address to enable mass adoption,” Smith said. “The team will be working closely with the sector as they develop their work.”
In his blog Smith urges councils to get involved: "We are particularly keen to hear about the challenges and opportunities your council faces with data sharing and data insight generation. Let us know by completing our short survey."
