2025 Highlight Day 9: Vision for Ethical and Responsible AI Adoption in Scottish Local Government

Our Shared Vision

The Digital Office for Scottish Local Government is working with Local Authorities to embrace the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve public services, drive innovation, and deliver better outcomes for communities. This vision is rooted in a “Once for Scotland” approach: developing a single, unified AI policy and framework that ensures AI is adopted ethically, responsibly, and inclusively across all councils.

Our AI Community co-led by The City of Edinburgh, Perth and Kinross and Renfrewshire Councils has co-developed a draft AI Policy built on a foundation of core principles, reflecting both local priorities and national strategy.

The Principles include:

• Ethical Use & Human Oversight: AI must be used for the public good, with human review of outputs, especially where decisions impact individuals.
• Transparency & Accountability: All AI-generated content should be clearly labelled, with a public register of approved AI solutions and clear lines of responsibility.
• Data Protection & Security: No personal or confidential data in public AI tools; mandatory data protection impact assessments and security reviews.
• Fairness, Accessibility & Inclusion: Regular testing for bias, compliance with accessibility standards, and equalities impact assessments.
• Vendor Neutrality & Interoperability: Frameworks to avoid vendor lock-in and support interoperability.
• Mandatory Training & Awareness: All staff will receive training, supported by accessible guidance.
• Sustainability: Environmental impact is considered in all AI decisions.

Co-Development and Collaboration

The draft policy has been shaped through extensive collaboration:

• Surveying and Draft Review: Councils reviewed survey results and existing drafts to identify common themes and best practices.
• Workshops and Community Sessions: Regular sessions brought together council leaders, technologists, policymakers, and community representatives to align on shared challenges and opportunities.
• Integration with National Strategy: The work aligns with Scotland’s National Digital Strategy and health and social care frameworks, ensuring consistency across sectors.
• Shared Resources and Procurement: Councils plan to explore collaborative procurement, shared templates, and co-design tools to avoid duplication and maximise value.

Progress to Date

• Agreement on Core Principles: Councils have reached consensus on the fundamental drafted principles, with minor additions incorporated following recent sessions.
• Draft Unified Policy: Existing drafts have been consolidated into a single policy document, now circulated for feedback and final approval.
• Vendor-Neutral Framework: Work is underway to ensure the policy supports interoperability and avoids vendor lock-in.
• Mandatory Training Rollout: Training requirements are being defined.
• Mapping to Best Practice: The policy is being aligned with ICO, LGA, EHRC, and NHS frameworks to ensure compliance and best practice.

Next Steps

• Finalise and circulate the agreed core policy principles for feedback, including to outlying councils.
• Complete the unified AI policy document, ensuring alignment with sector-specific frameworks.
• Establish working groups for procurement templates, risk and ethics frameworks, and training resources.
• Continue to map and align with national and international guidance.

Scottish local government is leading the way in the ethical and responsible adoption of AI, with a co-developed, unified policy that puts people, transparency, and accountability at its heart. This collaborative journey ensures that AI is used to benefit all communities, now and in the future.

Verity Hislop, Senior Project Manager, Digital Office “Our co‑developed draft AI policy sets a trusted foundation for responsible innovation in local government. It brings together ethical use, transparency, security, vendor neutrality and human oversight, aligning with national strategy and health & social care frameworks, so councils can adopt AI confidently and consistently. The result is simple: technology that serves people, protects rights, and improves services across Scotland.”

Chris Wright, AI & Automation Lead, Perth & Kinross Council ”It’s genuinely exciting to see all 32 councils move with shared values. From experience, the hard bit isn’t the tech, it’s supporting our people to reskill, letting automation do the heavy lifting, and, most importantly, building trust. True digital leadership means guiding teams through change and building digital maturity at every level. A ‘Once for Scotland’ approach turns that learning into something useful for every council, not just the few”.

Joe Deary, Service Manager – Data & Technology Assurance, Renfrewshire Council “As co-lead of the COSLA AI Community, representing Social Work and Care, I am pleased to see The Digital Office for Scottish Local Government take this important first step towards meaningful and responsible use of AI. Our Once for Scotland approach gives clear assurance about how data will be used and protected, and places people, transparency, and accountability at the centre of every decision.

This begins a necessary and constructive conversation about the role of AI in local government and how it can help us improve engagement, participation, and leadership across people, performance, partnership, and prevention. By working together, and drawing on expertise from across the public sector and partners, we can adopt AI responsibly and improve outcomes for the people we work with and for across Scotland.”

Mike Brown, Chief Information Security Officer, City of Edinburgh Council, "The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the public sector presents a major opportunity to improve services, boost efficiency, and support better decision-making. By automating routine tasks and speeding up data analysis, AI can free up staff time, make services more responsive, and create new ways to engage with citizens.

However, these benefits must be matched with strong safeguards. Introducing AI also brings risks such as bias, reduced transparency, and the potential misuse of data. To manage these risks effectively, we need firm governance, clear ethical standards, strong accountability, and ongoing monitoring. These measures are essential to ensure AI is used safely, responsibly, and in a way that maintains public trust.