If AI is at the heart of public sector reform, then skills must come first

By Jo Bishenden, Chief Learning Officer, QA Ltd

As Labour approaches its second anniversary in Westminster, public sector reform remains one of the most prominent ambitions for this government. Ministers have repeatedly made clear that AI will sit at the heart of its efforts to modernise public services and boost productivity and economic growth, with its mission being to create public services that are genuinely AI-ready.

Yet if AI is to be the fundamental structure underpinning reform, the government must recognise that transformation of public services cannot be achieved without a workforce capable of using it responsibly and effectively in practice.

As a result, skills are the critical constraint on AI-led public sector reform.

In the government’s Blueprint for Modern Digital Government, it sets out a six-point plan for reform and commits to harnessing the power of AI for the public good by growing capability and capacity. Yet scrutiny from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has repeatedly shown that progress is being held back by persistent shortages in digital, data and technological skills.

Without an AI-skilled workforce, public bodies are often pushed towards long-term reliance on external suppliers. Many simply do not have the in-house capability needed to use and govern these systems internally which ultimately raises a question about their resilience and sustainability in a world of rapid AI expansion.

This is where apprenticeships can bridge this gap. Rooted in a work-based approach to learning, apprenticeships offer one of the most practical and scalable routes to developing the skills needed to achieve genuine public sector reform. They provide opportunities to upskill existing staff and create new talent pipelines across AI, data and cybersecurity, all while embedding learning directly into day-to-day roles.

We also continue to hear debates around the risk of outsourcing the workforce to automation and AI. Yet the risk should not be with the use of AI, but instead an organisation hiring someone with the right AI skills to streamline processes and utilise the full potential of AI. It is through apprenticeships that these skills can be achieved and the workforce can build their experience of understanding how AI can enhance human judgement as opposed to replacing it altogether.

Without AI capabilities being embedded across the public sector internally, services risk losing control over the technology they commission. For example, widening skills gaps can make it harder to adapt systems over time, undermining the very reform agenda AI is meant to support.

As we enter National Apprenticeship Week, policymakers must rethink how apprenticeships are positioned within the public sector reform ambitions. They cannot be seen as a standalone skills qualification and must, instead, be recognised as strategic infrastructure for organisational transformation.

If the government is serious about creating AI-ready public services, it must ensure its people are invested it as well as the systems they operate. That means supporting AI apprenticeships which have AI skills embedded, and empowering public sector employers to use apprenticeships as a mechanism for building long-term capability from within.

AI can play a transformative role in renewing public services, but only if the workforce is ready to deliver it. Skills are the foundation of reform, and apprenticeships are the strongest tools we have to build them.