Hammersmith and Fulham Council is set to expand its use of artificial intelligence (AI) to assist in managing tenant rent payments and arrears. The move is part of a broader strategy to improve efficiency and service delivery across the council.

The Policy and Oversight Board met on Monday 24 November 2025 to discuss the council's AI governance and adoption. According to the Update on AI Governance and Adoption, the council has shifted from isolated AI pilots to a strategic, business-case-driven approach since November 2024. The council aims to deliver efficiencies in high-demand service areas while remaining financially efficient. The council also wants to ensure that its approach to adoption keeps it at the forefront of the public sector by driving innovation while maintaining standards of safety, transparency and ethical oversight.

One of the AI capabilities being deployed is VoiceScape, which uses AI-driven analytics tools to assist in managing tenant rent payments and arrears. The council believes that innovations in technology, including AI and automation, present an opportunity to improve services. To ensure responsible decision-making, all AI tools are embedded with human oversight and reviewed by the Ethics board.

The council has embedded a comprehensive governance framework consisting of AI policies for staff, an enhanced AI Risk Assessment, a Generative AI Working Group, and a newly established Ethics Board. The Ethics Board has expertise in Law, IT, Information Governance, Public Health, Social Care and HR, ensuring that all large-scale AI deployments are evaluated ethically and risk assessed before implementation. This framework is designed to prevent bias in AI algorithms, particularly regarding vulnerable tenants.

The Update on AI Governance and Adoption notes that across UK local government, AI adoption continues to accelerate, with more than 70% of councils trialling or deploying AI tools, particularly in adult social care and customer services. However, the report also notes that effective transformation through AI depends on user-centred service design, high-quality data, scalable use cases, robust business cases, and the right skills and digital infrastructure. Ethical considerations, such as transparency, bias, and accountability, remain integral to sustainable adoption.

The council is also exploring other AI capabilities, including:

  • The Resident Experience and Access Programme (REAP Accelerate): Implementation of an AI-enhanced contact centre to improve resident service and operational efficiency.
  • Fraud, Error and Recovery Data hub (FRED): Detects and prevents fraud, automates manual processes, and improves data accuracy and service delivery. The FRED hub identified £1.01m in efficiency benefits through automation and fraud prevention in 2024/25.
  • Housing Complaints AI Automation: An in-house prototype that categorises and analyses complaints using machine learning, with sentiment analysis and summarisation features.
  • CCTV Network Upgrade: A £3.2 million investment over three years to upgrade the CCTV network with AI capabilities, including facial recognition, object, and behavioural analytics. Microsoft Copilot Chat, used within the CCTV network, offers broad functionality but is designed with robust data safeguards. It does not access internal systems or files unless users explicitly upload content, and all activity remains within the council's secure Microsoft tenancy.
  • Amazon Web Services (AWS) Translation and EasyRead: This will reduce the time and cost of translating council documents, saving thousands on translation costs and creating Easy Read documents.
  • SmartBox AI (Freedom of Information and Subject Access Requests): This tool will automate translation and simplify content creation, cutting costs and making council communications more inclusive and accessible.
  • Tussell Procurement Analytics: Uses AI to analyse publicly available procurement data, enabling the council to identify suppliers, track spending patterns, and benchmark supplier performance.
  • ANPR vehicle recognition and moving traffic enforcement: Deploys automated vehicle detection and verification systems to streamline enforcement of parking and traffic management with parking permit validation systems.

The council has identified risks associated with AI adoption and implemented targeted mitigations, including data readiness, siloed adoption, vendor-driven AI features, workforce upskilling, return on investment, reputational damage, and service strategy alignment. The council recognises 'Return on investment (ROI) and effective cost control' as a risk and states that all AI solutions require strong business cases, clear cost analysis, and benefits realisation monitoring, even for existing suppliers. AI is embedded within H&F's wider business improvement agenda, driving smarter, leaner operations, and each AI initiative is underpinned by a clear business case and return on investment (ROI) ensuring measurable value with financial principles.

To ensure council staff can use and manage AI tools effectively, training is available on prompt engineering, and workshops are being delivered to ensure effective use of Copilot Chat across the Council. A council wide training programme is being planned, as well as apprenticeships in AI and data literacy to ensure that council staff can use manage council data and use AI tools confidently, safely, and in compliance with council safeguards.