About
The Public Policy Programme at The Alan Turing Institute was set up in May 2018 with the aim of developing research, tools, and techniques that help governments innovate with data-intensive technologies and improve the quality of people’s lives.
We work alongside policy makers to explore how data science and artificial intelligence can inform public policy and improve the provision of public services. We believe that governments can reap the benefits of these technologies only if they make considerations of ethics and safety a first priority.
In 2019, The Alan Turing Institute’s Public Policy Programme, in collaboration with the UK’s Office for Artificial Intelligence and the Government Digital Service, published the UK Government’s official Public Sector Guidance on AI Ethics and Safety. This document provides public sector organisations with the Process-Based-Governance (PBG) Framework, a framework for applying principles of AI ethics and safety to the design, development, and deployment of algorithmic systems, outlining how AI project teams can put ethical values and practical principles into practice across the AI project lifecycle.
From 2021 to 2023, the guidance was updated and expanded. This update includes the development of the AI Ethics and Governance in Practice Programme, a bespoke programme designed to equip the public sector with tools, training, and support for adopting the PBG Framework and carrying out projects in line with state-of-the-art practices in responsible and trustworthy AI innovation.
The Programme
The AI Ethics and Governance in Practice Programme curriculum is comprised of a series of eight modules. The modules cover how to implement a key component of the PBG Framework. These include:
Each module also focuses on a specific sector, so that case studies can be used to promote ethical reflection and animate the Key Concepts.
Taken together, the workbooks are intended to provide public sector bodies with the skills required for putting AI ethics and governance principles into practice through the full implementation of the guidance. To this end, they contain activities with instructions for either facilitating or participating in capacity-building workshops.
Please note, these workbooks are living documents that will evolve and improve with input from users, affected stakeholders, and interested parties. We need your participation. Please share feedback with us at [email protected].
This work was supported exclusively by the Turing’s Public Policy Programme. All research undertaken by the Turing’s Public Policy Programme is supported entirely by public funds.
Intended Audience
The workbooks are primarily aimed at civil servants engaging in the AI Ethics and Governance in Practice Programme; either as facilitators delivering the curriculum within their organisations by running peer-learning workshops, or as participants completing the programme by attending workshops. Anyone interested in learning about AI ethics, however, can make use of this open-access programme.
The Team
Professor David Leslie
Director of Ethics and Responsible Innovation Research, The Alan Turing Institute
David is Professor of Ethics, Technology and Society at Queen Mary University of London and Director of Ethics and Responsible Innovation at the Turing. In 2019 David authored the UK Government’s official guidance on the responsible design and implementation of AI systems in the public sector. He also authored Understanding artificial intelligence ethics and safety (2019) and is a co-author of Explaining decisions made with AI (2020), a co-badged guidance on AI explainability published by the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Turing. As part of his international work, David serves on UNESCO’s High-Level Expert Group steering the implementation of its Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence. David leads the AI Ethics and Governance in Practice programme, driving the strategy, vision, and core partnerships.
Dr Ann Borda
Ethics Fellow, The Alan Turing Institute
Ann focuses on public and policy stakeholders engaged at the intersections of digital society, responsible AI and governance, and the socio-technical, sustainable, and human rights implications of AI for individuals and communities. She is an interdisciplinary academic with research portfolios in data science, knowledge production and applied ethics, with expertise in citizen science, digital health informatics, and digital participation in responsible innovation. Ann is a co-lead on the programme cultivating pathways to impact and ensuring integration of the deliverables in the UK public sector.
Antonella Perini
Research Associate, The Alan Turing Institute
Antonella's research focuses on the ethical and social implications of the design and use of AI and data-driven intensive technologies. She also conducts analysis on AI policy and governance and contributes to the co-creation and operationalisation of AI ethics and governance approaches. As part of her role at the AI Ethics and Governance in Practice programme, she has led the Turing’s engagements with external partners to pilot the programme with public sector organisations and contributes with the team’s ongoing work to promote outreach and uptake of the guidance.
Smera Jayadeva
Researcher, The Alan Turing Institute
Smera Jayadeva is a Researcher in Ethics and Responsible Research Innovation within the Public Policy Programme, and a Visiting Researcher at the Digital Environment Research Institute (DERI) at Queen Mary University of London. She has an interest in the intersection and impacts of data and technology on power, culture, and policy. Through her interdisciplinary experience, Smera has engaged with a range of stakeholders across local and central government, industry, media, and the third sector.
Past Contributors
SJ Bennett
Postdoctoral Researcher, Durham University
Morgan Briggs
Research Associate for Data Science and Ethics
Cami Rincon
Senior Researcher, The Ada Lovelace Institute
Conor Rigby
Graphic Designer
John Gilbert
Web Developer
Alex Krook
Communications Lead, The Alan Turing Institute
The full list of contributors can be found on the Acknowledgements page of each module.