UK Government launches 9 AI training courses for civil servants

The courses, led by the Cabinet Office and Government Skills, have been implemented with the aim of boosting civil servants’ skills and knowledge to better equip them for the onset of AI.

The AI training focuses on key areas such as AI ethics, Generative AI tools, large language models, machine learning and natural language processing.

The training will help prepare staff to use new AI tools within Government departments, such as Redbox Copilot, an AI-powered chatbot service designed for Civil Servants to ask questions and summarise the contents of letters, briefings and speech transcripts to support them in their day-to-day roles. 

Michael Thornton, Senior Director of Public Sector at Investigo, commented: “Artificial intelligence can be a huge driver of efficiency across the public sector, saving civil servants upwards of tens of hours a week each. It’s therefore encouraging to see the Government launching new AI courses for Civil Servants, covering key areas such as ethics and generative AI tools that can greatly boost productivity.”

“With a significant portion of public sector work being carried out on a project basis, requiring specialised skill sets, the Government must find new ways of bridging skills gaps to bring in the right skills and staff for each project. Alongside AI skills training, the public sector should take a smarter approach to interim versus consultancy staff, bringing in specialised talent to support the rollout of artificial intelligence. These staff can ensure the smooth delivery of important projects while transferring knowledge to Civil Servants to help manage and maintain new technology systems once they’re implemented.”

The courses will combine video, interactive and written format learning formats, and replace seven older courses in the Government’s Generative AI suite.

Tristan Wilkinson, Chief for Public Sector at AND Digital, said: “Boosting public sector efficiency should be a top priority to improve the delivery of key public services, so equipping Civil Servants with AI skills to improve productivity is a welcome sight.”

“The courses cover important aspects of artificial intelligence, but the programme should ensure that data is also a major focus. Data is at the heart of any AI model so it’s important that training covers topics including data quality, data governance and data ethics to give staff the skills and knowledge they need to use AI systems, especially in the wake of the EU AI Act. By embracing a data AND ethics approach, staff will be able to operate systems in a safe and trustworthy manner and truly maximise the benefits that AI has to offer.”

The full list of courses are:

• AI: Fundamentals
• AI: Understanding AI ethics
• AI: The business value of AI
• AI: Gen AI Tools and Applications
• AI: Working with Large Language Models
• AI: Machine Learning and Deep Learning
• AI: Natural Language Processing and Speech Recognition
• AI: Computer Vision
• AI: Technical Curriculum