Nottingham City Council has enrolled 40 staff into a new AI Academy in an effort to upskill its workforce with the skills needed to deliver on an ambitious improvement plan for the city. The programmes are being funded primarily by an apprenticeship levy transfer from Capital One, the financial services provider whose UK office is local to Nottingham Council. Car rental agency, Enterprise has also contributed support.
The Academy includes staff from major areas of the Council, from public health to public transport, and children’s services to neighbourhood safety. Training will equip employees with practical, applied AI skills, enabling them to reduce manual work, enhance decision-making, and unlock innovation in their day-to-day roles. It aligns closely with the council’s strategic drivers, including boosting productivity, minimising external spend, and improving resident outcomes.
The programmes are being delivered by Multiverse, the upskilling platform for AI and tech adoption, which delivers personalised, on-the-job learning. Multiverse has trained more than 20,000 apprentices in AI, data and digital skills since 2016, and has been a longstanding training partner for the Council.
Previous Nottingham City Council data learners have already improved individual efficiency in working with data by 21%, with the average learner projected to save more than one working month per year in improved productivity by end of programme.
The new cohort has enrolled on the 13-month AI for Business Value programme, a Level 4 apprenticeship. This will train staff to identify business value gains that can be achieved through using AI, as well as how to execute ethical AI projects for the benefit of local people. These new skills will help ensure more sustainable and effective public services.
Sajeeda Rose, Chief Executive of Nottingham City Council said: “This expanded Data and AI Academy allows us to combine data insights with AI capabilities, putting us in a strong position to deliver on our improvement plan. We’re striving to be a council that works more effectively and efficiently for the people of Nottingham, and the skills acquired through our partnership with Multiverse will help us to achieve this goal.”
Gary Eimerman, Chief Learning Officer at Multiverse said: “Building on nearly four years of Multiverse training, Nottingham City Council’s latest cohort is taking the next step in digital skills development: AI literacy. These are key credentials that will further empower the council to deliver tangible benefits to their residents, from community services to transportation, while enriching the careers of their teams.”
Multiverse combines work and learning to unlock economic opportunity for everyone. It works with more than 1,500 organisations to close critical skill gaps in the workforce in AI, data and tech, through a new kind of apprenticeship.
