Councils seeking to transform their public services through digital innovation can apply to a new 拢7.5 million fund from today, Local Government Minister Rishi Sunak MP has announced.
Speaking at the LocalGovCamp event in Birmingham, Minister Sunak invited applications from local authorities to change the way they invest in technology, share expertise and ensure members of the public receive the best quality digital services from their local council.
Grants of up to 拢100,000 will be available for projects which demonstrate they benefit local public services and have the potential to be rolled out more widely across the country.
Local Government Minister, Rishi Sunak MP, said: 鈥淒igital innovation is re-shaping our lives, and many local authorities are at the forefront of embracing technology in ingenious ways to improve services for the public.
鈥淲hether it鈥檚 an app to report fly-tipping, or a slick web solution to pay your council tax, we want to know the best ideas so we can help to make them happen.
鈥淚 would also like to encourage councils to sign up to our Local Digital Declaration, so we can all support each other and build on each other鈥檚 work to revolutionise public services.鈥�
The fund will also be used to provide digital skills training for at least 1,000 staff working on digital solutions at councils.
The fund鈥檚 opening comes after the government made a 鈥渄igital pledge鈥� backed by the 拢7.5 million of聽government funding with the launch of a Local Digital Declaration in July. The declaration aims to connect the work of local government digital teams to deliver better local public services.
Alongside this, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government established a new team to work with councils to help them deliver on their declaration commitments.
Local authorities can apply and find out more information at localdigital.gov.uk/fund