The Gemini-powered tool checks application documents, reviews local constraints and planning policies, and drafts assessments with citations. The company reports that officers approved more than 70% of generated reports without edits.

Together with the pilot councils Barnet, Camden and Dorset, the beta will involve 15 authorities. The UK government plans to offer the tool to all English councils in 2027 if testing succeeds; that rollout has not yet happened.

Why it matters

The results offer early evidence on whether cited AI drafts can reduce time in a supervised public-sector workflow. The wider beta will test whether the reported gains hold across different local policies.

GUIDES

Something to try

As a hypothetical exercise, map a repetitive review workflow into steps and record draft sources so specialists can verify them.