Media and communications

The Council's communications team uses generative artificial intelligence (AI) as a supporting tool to help the Council communicate clearly, quickly and consistently. AI never replaces the judgement of our communications officers—every public message is checked and approved by a human before it is published.

What the communications team uses AI for:

• Content ideas and ideation - We may use AI to help develop communications campaigns, social media content, press releases, website content, and newsletter content. These are always checked and refined by our team before use.

• Helping with publication tasks - AI tools may assist with checking spelling and grammar, readability, tone-of-voice alignment, plain‑English rewrites, and formatting for different channels (e.g. adapting a news item into a social media caption). This speeds up routine tasks so we can focus more time on engagement and accuracy.

• Limited content drafting - In some cases we may ask AI to propose a first draft of short, factual updates or holding lines based only on information in the public domain (for example: previously published web pages, approved press statements, or publicly available guidance or reports). Our officers always verify and edit the text before publication.

What the communications team does not use AI for:

• No personal data - We do not input, process or analyse any personal data (as defined under UK data protection law) in generative AI tools. We only use material that is already public or intended for publication.

• No confidential or sensitive material - We do not use AI for live incidents, restricted briefings, casework, legal matters, internal investigations or commercially sensitive content.

• No automated decision-making about individuals - AI is not used to make or inform decisions about people, services they receive, or complaints.

• No AI‑generated visual assets (by default) - We do not use generative AI to create pictures, illustrations or video for our public channels unless otherwise stated. Where exceptions are made, we will make this clear in the post or accompanying credits.

Where our information comes from:

We only use AI with information that is already in the public domain—for example, content from our website, published council decisions, previously issued press releases, national guidance, or other publicly available sources. Draft or internal documents are not used. This helps ensure transparency and reduces the risk of errors.

Privacy, data protection and security:

• We never upload personal information to AI tools.
• We work on the basis of data minimisation and purpose limitation—only using public or publishable information for clear communications purposes.
• We understand that AI outputs can contain errors (“hallucinations”). All outputs are fact‑checked by an officer before use.
• We keep appropriate records of final content and maintain normal publication approvals and audit trails.

Why the communications team use AI:

• Increase responsiveness—turning around clear updates faster during busy periods or fast‑moving situations.
• Improve clarity and consistency—supporting plain‑English, accessible communications across our channels.
• Make better use of officer time—reducing repetitive tasks so our team can focus on engagement, stakeholder liaison and proactive campaigns.

Industry evidence shows that, when governed well, generative AI can streamline routine work and improve productivity; we apply these benefits in a controlled, communications‑appropriate way.

Our ethical approach

• Human in the loop: our officers remain accountable; AI suggestions are never published without human review.
• Transparency: if we publish content that is substantially generated by AI, we will say so in the accompanying text.
• Fairness and inclusion: we apply our accessibility standards and avoid content that could introduce bias or misrepresentation.
• Continuous improvement: we learn from feedback and update our practices as guidance evolves.

Questions or feedback

If you have questions about the content on this page or how we use AI in our media and communications, please contact us.

Page updated: 02/01/2026.