AI in the public sector and local government: the Playbook, transparency and fairness

Cue 1 Ten numbered statements on a card, with the fourth and sixth picked out

EMMA 00:00 George, my council team's been offered an AI tool to sort housing repair requests. Where do I start?

GEORGE 00:07 With the Artificial Intelligence Playbook for the UK Government. Published on 10 February 2025 by the Government Digital Service. It's for departments and public sector organisations, and it has ten principles.

EMMA 00:19 Give me the ones I'll meet first.

GEORGE 00:22 The first. You know what AI is and what its limitations are. The second. You use AI lawfully, ethically and responsibly. And the fourth. You have meaningful human control at the right stages.

Cue 2 A caseworker clicking accept repeatedly, beside one who sees the inputs and changes an outcome

EMMA 00:35 What does meaningful mean?

GEORGE 00:37 The Playbook says humans should validate any high-risk decisions influenced by AI. And there should be systems that let users report issues and prompt a human review.

EMMA 00:48 We'd have an officer approving each one.

GEORGE 00:50 Approving, or deciding? If they click accept two hundred times a day, that isn't control. They need to see what the tool was given, and have the time and the standing to disagree.

Cue 3 A map of the public sector with departments and arm's length bodies marked mandatory and councils marked recommended

EMMA 01:04 Any principle people forget?

GEORGE 01:05 The sixth. You use the right tool for the job. Sometimes that isn't AI.

EMMA 01:11 Do we have to tell residents we're using it?

GEORGE 01:14 There's a standard for that. The Algorithmic Transparency Recording Standard. A published record of the tool, what it does and why you use it.

Cue 4 A two tier record: a short plain summary on top and detailed sheets beneath

EMMA 01:24 Is it compulsory for a council?

GEORGE 01:26 It's mandatory for all government departments, and for arm's length bodies that deliver public or frontline services or interact directly with the public. For the rest of the public sector it's recommended, and records from local government are welcomed.

EMMA 01:42 Which tools does it cover?

GEORGE 01:44 Those with a significant influence on a decision-making process with public effect, or that directly interact with the general public.

Cue 5 A resident reading a short public record about a tool used on their case

EMMA 01:52 What does a record look like?

GEORGE 01:54 Two tiers. Tier one is a summary for the public, in clear and simple language. Tier two is fuller detail for specialists, like journalists and researchers.

EMMA 02:05 And if it isn't mandatory for us?

GEORGE 02:07 Draft tier one anyway. If you can't describe in two plain paragraphs what the tool does and why you chose it, you're not ready to use it.

Cue 1 Section 149 on a page with three aims, and a supplier's unbiased badge set aside

EMMA 02:18 George, the supplier says their tool is unbiased. Is that the end of my equality worry?

GEORGE 02:25 No, because the duty is yours. Section 149 of the Equality Act requires a public authority, in the exercise of its functions, to have due regard to eliminating discrimination and advancing equality of opportunity.

EMMA 02:38 Is buying software a function?

GEORGE 02:40 Choosing and using a tool is an exercise of functions. And due regard has to happen before and while you decide. Not afterwards.

Cue 2 A decision file containing a dated record of how equality was considered

EMMA 02:49 How could a repairs tool discriminate?

GEORGE 02:52 A tool trained on past decisions can repeat past unfairness. And a detail like a postcode can stand in for a protected characteristic.

EMMA 03:01 What do I keep?

GEORGE 03:03 A record of how equality was considered. If the decision's challenged, that's how the council shows it had due regard.

Cue 3 Four organisations' names on the cover of a council procurement guide

EMMA 03:11 Is there help written for councils?

GEORGE 03:13 Yes. In April 2025 the Local Government Association published a guide to procuring AI, with the London Office of Technology and Innovation, the Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Information Commissioner's Office.

EMMA 03:26 Who should I bring in?

GEORGE 03:28 It says the procurement team, an equality officer and the data protection officer. Early.

Cue 4 A resident's decision letter listing four safeguards

EMMA 03:34 Suppose the tool decides on its own who gets a priority repair.

GEORGE 03:39 Then it's a solely automated decision with a significant effect. Since 5 February 2026 that's permitted on ordinary personal data, with safeguards.

EMMA 03:47 Which are?

GEORGE 03:48 The person must be told. They must be able to make representations, obtain human intervention and contest the decision.

Cue 5 A contract with six questions answered before the signature line

EMMA 03:56 And before we go live?

GEORGE 03:58 A data protection impact assessment, alongside the equality analysis. Read together.

EMMA 04:02 What do I ask the supplier?

GEORGE 04:05 What it does, and on what data. How it was tested for bias, with the results. What happens to the data you put in. What you can see about each output. How you monitor it. And how you leave.

EMMA 04:20 And the contract?

GEORGE 04:22 Write in your right to the information you need for your own duties. The eighth principle of the Playbook is work with commercial colleagues from the start.