Camden Council wants to use AI to help shape decisions on adult social care

Camden Council is planning to roll out an artificial intelligence-driven public engagement scheme in the borough to help more residents participate in decisions around adult social care (ASC).

Earlier this month, the think tank Demos announced it would collaborate with the local authority in a €1mn (£850k) trial, “using the best of new tech and AI to bring people together to tackle contentious issues and shape local government policy”.

The Town Hall told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) it expects the pilot to begin in the autumn.

Writing in the Municipal Journal (MJ), Demos’s Miriam Levin said the project would help co-develop an approach to social care with two “trailblazing” councils in Camden and South Staffordshire.

Responding to the LDRS, the Town Hall said it would start by having a “big conversation” with residents about what the service is there to do and its importance.

The local authority highlighted that public polling showed low levels of awareness and understanding about ASC.

Levin, director of participatory programmes at Demos, said the project was aimed at creating “a positive alternative to the democratic status quo that so many people feel is failing them”.

In doing so, it will offer an alternative to the “snake-oil charms of populists”.

The scheme will begin by defining the problems the local authority wants to solve with the community, before “scaling the conversation by capturing as many people’s ideas as possible”.

Camden said it wants to raise awareness around its social care offer, while also building on a framework it previously developed with residents to define what is essential for a “good life”.

AI platforms will then be used to “help identify points of consensus” and enable a 100-strong panel — reflecting the local population — to explore “the most promising ideas,” Levin stated.

This year, the council’s ASC services were rated “outstanding” by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The independent health regulator praised staff for “going the extra mile” and noted that investigators had seen “exceptional levels of service” during their review.

CQC Chief Inspector James Bullion said the Town Hall demonstrated a “clear commitment to equity”.

In December, the MJ reported the UK government had distanced itself from a separate “controversial” report by Demos that proposed stripping local government of “fiscal responsibility” for a range of services.

This week Pause AI will be holding a protest outside Google’s Kings Cross HQ which is a stone’s throw from Camden’s offices at Pancras Square. More than 100 people are expected to gather to warn about the dangers of the speed with which AI is developing, reports the Camden New Journal.

Last year a report warned of a “negative reaction” to Camden Council working in partnership with Google to deliver a learning project on AI.

Additional reporting by Linus Rees.

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