10 Ways Councils Are Using AI to Transform Public Services
Councils are increasingly adopting AI-based solutions to improve services. LocalGov Assistant editor Izzy Lepone has collected 10 innovative case studies.
'Serious issues' over Fair Funding formula
01/08/2025 A key part of the proposed Fair Funding formula must be removed due to ‘serious issues', London Councils has demanded. |
Suffolk CC to launch self-driving vehicle study
29/07/2025 Suffolk County Council has received over £70,000 to fund a study of driverless shuttle services. |
Sunderland invests over £700,000 to support people with learning disabilities
25/07/2025 Sunderland City Council is to allocate £724,000 to help people with learning difficulties or autism carry out adaptions to their homes when they are discharged from hospital. |
Councils facing ‘skyrocketing’ service costs, says report
23/07/2025 Councils are expected to spend an estimated £139bn on the delivery of public services this year, says a report. |
PM says 'lots of housing' exists across councils
22/07/2025 Prime Minister Keir Starmer has claimed there is ‘lots of housing’ that can be used to provide temporary accommodation across local authorities. |
Councils benefit from £15m boost for nature schemes
18/07/2025 Councils are to receive £15m funding to enrich green areas in towns and cities. |
Councils urged to boost scarce holiday childcare spaces
17/07/2025 Only 9% of councils have sufficient holiday childcare places for at least 75% of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in their area, a survey has revealed. |
LGOF: Will it work?
16/07/2025 Dr Jonathan Carr-West, LGIU, discusses the Local Government Outcomes Framework (LGOF), the latest instalment in the history of local government accountability. |
Government deploys ‘innovation squads’ in £100m pilot
16/07/2025 Ten communities across England are set to be visited by ‘innovation squads’ as part of a £100m pilot to improve local services. |
Councils face pressure to cut back on prevention spending
15/07/2025 Overstretched budgets mean that care leaders have been forced to reduce spending on prevention by more than 10% this year, a new ADASS survey has revealed. |
Councils secure funding for EV charging scheme
14/07/2025 Local authorities are to benefit from a £25m scheme to enable cheaper electric vehicle (EV) charging for those without off-street parking. |
Mayor of London announces £600k high street boost
14/07/2025 The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced a £600,000 investment to revitalise local high streets in the capital. |
Rollout of £500m fund to support young people
14/07/2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is due to announce the launch of the Better Futures Fund, a £500m initiative to help reduce youth poverty. |
Councils must support care-experienced young people, says report
11/07/2025 More funding is required to improve early intervention services for children’s social care, says Education Committee. |
Notting Hill Carnival receives vital funding boost
10/07/2025 Councils have delivered almost £1m of extra funding to enable Notting Hill Carnival to take place as planned this year. |
Councils set to benefit from ‘bespoke’ housebuilding support
08/07/2025 A vanguard of 10 councils has been selected to co-design the new Council Housebuilding Support Service (CHoSS). |
Family Hubs to open in every council area
07/07/2025 The Government has announced a plan to open 1,000 Sure Start-inspired Family Hubs by 2028 to help deliver support to parents in every council area in England. |
LGA: Councils have £276bn of untapped potential
04/07/2025 Government support overcoming place-specific barriers to growth could help local authorities unleash £276bn of untapped economic potential, research suggests. |
Rayner: Over £1.5bn of funding pots to be merged
03/07/2025 Over £1.5bn worth of capital funding pots are to be merged to help free councils from ‘needless bureaucracy’, according to deputy PM Angela Rayner. |
NAO: Council capacity issues undermining bus services
27/06/2025 Financial pressures on councils have meant that local bus services have continued to decline despite Government intervention, new report by the NAO has found. |
Call for proactive social care to support pensioners
27/06/2025 Researchers have recommended proactive social care to support pensioners’ ‘right[s] to live and age well’. |
Councillor warns of ‘tidal wave’ of SEND demand
24/06/2025 West Sussex County Council has warned it is facing a ‘tidal wave of demand’ for services for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). |
School buildings to get £3bn maintenance boost
20/06/2025 Investment in the maintenance of school buildings is set to rise to almost £3bn per year as part of the Government’s 10-year infrastructure strategy. |
Government announces ‘fairer funding’ reforms
20/06/2025 Local government funding will be overhauled to support left behind places, while competitive bidding for funding will be scrapped, Government announced. |
Notting Hill Carnival’s future in question
19/06/2025 The current levels of local government support are not enough to address safety concerns with the Notting Hill Carnival, leaked letter from organiser warns. |
Council confirms funding for school repairs and SEND services
16/06/2025 Kirklees Council has approved a £5.4m investment into local schools, funding repair projects and facilities for pupils with complex needs. |
Funding unlocked for 100,000 new local EV chargepoints
13/06/2025 Government has confirmed a funding boost to support the installation of 100,000 new local electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints. |
Dudley town centres could receive major makeovers
12/06/2025 Dudley council chiefs will next week discuss multi-million-pound improvement proposals for town centre regeneration projects. |
Spending Review: Council leaders warn of tax rises and cuts
12/06/2025 Local authorities will be forced to increase council tax and make further cuts despite ‘positive’ funding commitments in Spending Review, council chiefs say. |
Spending Review: Deprived communities get local growth funding
11/06/2025 Deprived communities set to benefit from local growth funding, reveals Chancellor Reeves. |
Council chiefs demand funding to boost children’s play facilities
10/06/2025 The Local Government Association (LGA) has called for ‘long-term, consistent funding’ to help councils implement the national play strategy. |
The £37,000 SEND Problem
10/06/2025 Natalie Kenneison, COO at Imosphere, argues that the real SEND funding crisis isn’t just about budgets - it’s about the systems behind the decisions. |
Council chiefs call for boost to occupational therapist workforce
09/06/2025 Council leaders have called on the Government to invest in occupational therapists (OTs) to improve health, care, and prevention strategy outcomes. |
SEND system in urgent need of reform, says LGA
09/06/2025 A new report by the Local Government Association (LGA) has called for urgent reform of SEND services. |
Vital bus services plummet in rural areas
09/06/2025 Rural bus services have decreased by 18% since 2019 due to insufficient transport funding in county and rural areas, new research reveals. |
‘Urgent’ call for sustainable homecare funding
06/06/2025 New research reveals local authorities are ‘consistently failing to fund homecare’, with 27% of contracts falling below minimum wage. |
EXCLUSIVE: Ministry admits disabled grant delay
05/06/2025 Councils will not receive their 2025-26 Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) funding until late June, admits Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. |
London Councils: SEND funding ‘sums don’t add up’
05/06/2025 Sixteen of London’s 33 local authorities are at risk of bankruptcy due to SEND funding pressures, London Councils warns. |
Government announces allocation of £7.6m reorganisation fund
04/06/2025 The Government has revealed how much of the £7.6m grant to support the cost of local government reorganisation each region will receive. |
Fears for council funding as ‘unprotected’ departments face cuts
02/06/2025 Council leaders have told the Chancellor they ‘desperately need’ more funding in the Spending Review as financial experts warn ‘unprotected’ government departments could face cuts. |
Hillingdon considers asylum seeker funding legal action
30/05/2025 Hillingdon Council is considering legal action against the Government after the Home Office refused to provide extra funding to house asylum seekers. |
Councils faced with ‘astronomical’ children’s homes costs
29/05/2025 The number of children’s home placements costing over £500,000 annually has dramatically increased over the last five years, council chiefs warn. |
Highway Maintenance Budgets: The Long View
23/05/2025 Mark Stevens, ADEPT, talks about local authority highway maintenance budgets, looking at how they have been impacted over the years by funding cuts. |
Councils call for support to roll out AI in pothole war
23/05/2025 The use of AI and a preventative approach to road maintenance can help local authorities detect potholes earlier and reduce the repairs backlog, LGA says. |
Scottish councils face £647m budget shortfall
23/05/2025 Local authorities in Scotland must transform the way they deliver services to close a budget shortfall of £647m, spending watchdog says. |
Care coalition calls for significant social care funding in Spending Review
22/05/2025 A coalition of stakeholders has called for significant investment in social care in the Spending Review on 11 June. |
Short-term funding threatens household support scheme
21/05/2025 The effectiveness of the Household Support Fund has been undermined by ‘chaotic and declining’ funding, according to a think tank. |
Union launches Fair Funding campaign to save council jobs
19/05/2025 Unite has launched a campaign calling for an overhaul of how local authorities are funded to prevent further bankruptcies and job and public service cuts. |
London boroughs face £264m council housing cuts
15/05/2025 London boroughs will need to reduce spending on social housing by £264m over three years to avoid the collapse of their council housing finances, report warns. |
West Midlands councils benefit from £12m pothole boost
13/05/2025 Six local authorities in the West Midlands are due to receive £12m of funding to help resurface roads and repair up to 132,000 potholes. |
Nottingham still 'dependent upon EFS'
12/05/2025 Nottingham City Council remains dependent on exceptional financial support (EFS) but has laid the groundwork for becoming sustainable, commissioners say. |
Trading standards teams struggle due to inadequate funding
07/05/2025 Nineteen local authorities failed to carry out standard inspections of businesses last year due to a lack of funding and resources, according to new research. |
MPs warn of the cost of inaction on social care reform
06/05/2025 MPs have urged the Government to measure the cost of inaction on social care and warned that failing to do so would mean reforms are ‘doomed to failure’. |
Councils struggling to cover animal welfare costs
30/04/2025 Local authority efforts to enforce animal welfare legislation are undermined by cost restraints, according to a report by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI). |
Urgent need for teacher training amidst schools crisis
29/04/2025 The Government should provide £260m to fund a new 'national entitlement' to teacher training to help raise school standards, think tank says. |
Charity criticises 40% adoption funding cut
16/04/2025 Adoption experts have criticized the Government’s decision to cut funding for therapy for adopted children in England. |
Local transport in Wales gets £110m boost
11/04/2025 The Welsh Government has announced an investment of £110m to boost local transport. |
Early intervention spending down 40%
08/04/2025 Spending on early intervention children's services has plummeted by more than 40% since the onset of austerity, research has found. |
Council urged to take 'more strategic approach' to transformation
08/04/2025 A watchdog has urged Argyll and Bute Council to take a more ‘strategic approach' to transforming services to help close a £29m funding gap. |
Care leaders call for NIC bridging fund
04/04/2025 Care leaders have called for the creation of a ‘bridging’ fund to mitigate the impact of the rise in National Insurance Contributions (NICs). |
London’s boroughs call for ‘seat at the table’ in devo settlement
03/04/2025 London’s councils have called for joint decision-making arrangements between the mayor and the capital’s boroughs as part of a new devolution settlement. |
EXCLUSIVE: Sector bodies decline to join legal challenge
03/04/2025 County Councils Network and Rural Services Network will not financially support legal action over axing of the £100m rural services grant, The MJ understands. |
Temporary accommodation crisis ‘utterly shameful’, MPs say
03/04/2025 Council chiefs have urged the Government to increase the temporary accommodation subsidy as MPs warn homeless children are living in ‘appalling conditions’. |
One-year £28m 'capacity and capability' grant allocated
01/04/2025 The Department for Transport has announced allocations from a one-year grant of around £28m to enable local transport authorities to build 'capacity'. |
Flood defences get £2.65bn boost
31/03/2025 The Government has announced an investment of £2.65bn over two years to improve flood protection in local areas. |
Croydon woman breaks back after care funding cut
28/03/2025 A woman in Croydon sustained a serious back injury using an NHS bed turning aid after the local authority cut funding for her night-time care. |
Schools for pupils with SEND short by 8k places
28/03/2025 Department for Education figures have revealed that the shortage of places in special schools for secondary pupils in England worsened by 25% in 2023/24. |
Trading standards services get £10m boost
26/03/2025 The Government has announced an investment of £10m to help improve trading standards services across England. |
Somerset could be in need of exceptional financial support
25/03/2025 Somerset Council has been found to have 45 ‘key risks' that mean it may need exceptional financial support from the Government. |
Affordable housing gets £2bn funding boost
25/03/2025 The Government has announced £2bn in funding aimed at delivering up to 18,000 new social and affordable homes. |
Government green lights Plymouth financial support
25/03/2025 The Government has green lighted Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) worth £72m for Plymouth City Council following a review of its finances. |
Great British Energy announces £10m for metro mayors
24/03/2025 Metro mayors are set to benefit from a £10m funding boost from Great British Energy aimed at supporting the delivery of new clean energy projects. |
Council chiefs warn Chancellor of ‘devastating’ financial pressures
24/03/2025 Nearly three quarters of local authorities in England have warned it will be very or fairly difficult to set a balanced budget this financial year. |
PM tells councils to ‘get on with the job’ of fixing potholes
24/03/2025 Councils will be required to publish progress reports on what they are doing to tackle potholes if they are to access £1.6bn of highway maintenance funding. |
British Library’s £1.1bn expansion finds a backer
20/03/2025 The British Library’s £1.1bn expansion plans have received a significant boost after securing the backing of Japanese developer Mitsui Fudosan. |
School absences up two-thirds since before pandemic
18/03/2025 Absences and suspensions from school are two-thirds higher than before the pandemic, according to the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR). |
Potholes: Treating the illness not just the symptom
17/03/2025 With the publication of the ALARM survey, chair of the Asphalt Industry Alliance, David Giles, talks to LocalGov about investing in local roads. |
ALARM: Pothole repairs backlog hits £17bn
17/03/2025 Council chiefs have repeated their call for long-term funding for road maintenance as the ALARM survey reveals the pothole repairs backlog has reached £17bn. |
Think tanks calls for doubling of mayoral capacity fund
14/03/2025 A think tank has urged the Government to commit to doubling the mayoral capacity fund to help strengthen capacity and accountability in combined authorities. |
Childcare providers warn of cuts to funded places
13/03/2025 Nurseries, preschools and childminders face a ‘perfect storm of challenges’ amid the expansion of the Government's funded childcare scheme, survey reveals. |
Prevention services 'at risk'
12/03/2025 Prevention services are ‘at risk' because of rising social care spending, a local government leader has warned. |
Council approves £2.5m Rose sculptures
06/03/2025 Barnsley Council has approved £2.5m of funding for three Yorkshire Rose sculptures in the town centre. |
DfT throws Norfolk – and Shropshire – a lifeline
05/03/2025 The Department for Transport (DfT) has said it will not ask Norfolk County Council to return £33m funding towards its shelved £274m link road. |
Council chiefs call for £452m for free bus passes
05/03/2025 Local authority leaders have called on the Government to plug the nearly half a billion pound shortfall caused by the funding of free bus passes. |
Zurich calls for more cash to improve local road safety
04/03/2025 A major council insurer has called for increased funding for local authority road maintenance and more flexibility when spending it. |
Council chiefs back call for funding creatives
04/03/2025 Local government leaders have backed a call to provide more financial support to smaller creative industries which can ‘drive local growth.’ |
Shortfall worsens after allocation changes
04/03/2025 Councils are facing an additional £76m shortfall in their temporary accommodation budgets following changes to the allocation of £440m homelessness grant. |
£1.5bn announced for ‘left behind’ neighbourhoods
04/03/2025 Towns across the UK to benefit from a £1.5bn cash boost aimed at reviving high streets, improving local public services, and driving regeneration. |
Wealth fund backs social housing retrofit loans
03/03/2025 The National Wealth Fund (NWF) has announced plans to guarantee £250m of loans to housing associations to support the retrofitting of social housing. |
Councils welcome ‘gamechanger’ regeneration funding
03/03/2025 Oldham Council and Rochdale Borough Council have been granted £20m each to support a range of regeneration schemes. |
Council leader: Legally challenging grant axing worthwhile
03/03/2025 North Yorkshire Council's legal action against the Government over a £14m funding cut could cost more than £250,000. |
Report finds fall in provision of long-term care
28/02/2025 Councils provided long-term care to fewer people last year than they did a decade ago, according to a new report. |
London’s high streets get £21m regeneration boost
28/02/2025 London’s high streets are to benefit from £21m additional funding this year aimed at regenerating the capital’s high streets. |
Council bailouts could ‘create longer-term risk’, warns NAO
27/02/2025 The spending watchdog has called for a ‘whole-system’ approach to fixing local government finance and warned that bailouts could ‘create longer-term risk.’ |
Call to scrap ringfence in homelessness funding
27/02/2025 The Local Government Association (LGA) has urged the Government to scrap a new ringfence within the homelessness prevention grant. |
New funding for local government to tackle digital exclusion
26/02/2025 The Government has announced that new funding will be available to help local and combined authorities to tackle digital exclusion. |
Extra £30m to combat homelessness
26/02/2025 An additional £30m in emergency funding has been allocated to councils in England to help prevent evictions and support rough sleepers. |
Hospices set to benefit from £100m boost
26/02/2025 Hospices across England are set to receive £25m of funding for facility upgrades and refurbishments, the Government has confirmed. |
Funding floor for Welsh councils
24/02/2025 Councils in Wales are to see an average funding increase of 4.3%, following the announcement of the Welsh Government's Budget. |
Council pledges extra £1m to castle restoration
24/02/2025 Newark and Sherwood District Council has pledged £1m to support the restoration of a historic castle after costs escalate. |
