UK Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) 
Local AI is a new MHCLG team supporting councils to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) safely, responsibly and at scale.
What Local AI does
We work with councils, the Local Government Association (LGA), and cross-government partners to:
- identify high impact opportunities for AI across local services
- build, test and scale tools like transcription, summarisation and AI‑assisted customer support
- strengthen data quality, ethics and safety practices
- provide guidance, evaluation and shared standards to help councils adopt AI with confidence and to navigate the broader AI market
Our focus areas
Local AI focuses on service areas where AI can have the most impact for councils and residents, reducing pressure on frontline teams, including:
- adult social care
- children’s social care
- housing, homelessness and temporary accommodation
- special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)
- customer service and casework administration
How Local AI works
The programme takes a user‑centred, evidence‑driven approach.
We work directly with councils to understand real‑world problems and identify where AI can have the biggest impact to improve services.
We run discovery and prototyping projects in these high‑pressure service areas, including supporting the scaling of tools where appropriate.
Local AI also collaborates across local and central government to ensure AI adoption is safe, ethical and sustainable.
Get involved
Complete this form to sign up to the Local AI newsletter, register your interest in exploring AI opportunities, or to share your learning and case studies.
You can email us at [email protected]
Learn more
Read updates, case studies and insights from across the programme on the MHCLG Digital blog.