Streamlining the Reporting for Public Consultations: How AI Saved Two UK Councils 85% of Staff Time

At West Oxfordshire and Cotswold District Councils, engaging citizens in the planning process is a top priority. However, as public participation surged, so did the challenge of managing and summarizing vast amounts of feedback. In response, both councils piloted a solution using Konveio's AI, funded through the PropTech Innovation program.

The project aimed to reduce the time and resources needed to process consultation feedback, and it delivered impressive results. By developing tools like comment auto-tagging, which categorizes feedback based on keywords, a summarization feature, which condenses lengthy responses into concise bullet points, and a feature to identify cross-cutting themes, planning teams were able to significantly cut their workload.

In fact, the pilot achieved a remarkable 85% reduction in staff time required for summarizing and reporting on citizen feedback. Compared to previous consultations, the AI-powered tools handled thousands of qualitative responses with greater efficiency and accuracy, freeing up valuable time for planning officers to focus on strategic decisions.

The success of this pilot has led to the integration of Konveio’s tools across departments at both councils, proving that AI can not only enhance citizen engagement but also streamline back-office operations. As these digital tools become more widespread, the future of public consultations looks brighter—and faster.

Read their full case study and findings or learn more about Konveio's AI comment analysis features