Housing workers confident on AI, but citizens remain unconvinced

Housing organisations are leading the public sector in digital transformation and AI adoption, but a significant gap remains between organisational confidence and public perception, according to new research from Granicus.

The study found that 76 percent of housing professionals said AI-driven services are either fully embedded within their organisation or are being trialled and integrated into service delivery. Meanwhile, 72 percent said they were satisfied with their organisation’s current digital services and 62 percent were confident they could deliver the digital services residents expect by 2028.

However, the findings suggest that confidence is not shared by the public.

Nearly a third (29 percent) of UK citizens said they had experienced difficulty accessing digital public services over the past year, while 26 percent believed accessibility challenges for people with low digital skills or disabilities were still not being addressed. Although 80 percent of housing workers believed their digital services were fully accessible to those groups, 42 percent of citizens disagreed that housing organisations would be able to meet residents’ digital expectations by 2028.

The research also highlighted continuing public scepticism around AI. While more than three-quarters of housing professionals reported AI was already being adopted within their organisations, 69 percent of citizens said they were unaware of any public services currently using AI and almost half (49 percent) said they did not trust or were uncomfortable with public services using the technology.

Ian Roberts, UK managing director at Granicus, said the findings showed that digital transformation had moved beyond technology deployment alone.

“Clearly, the findings reveal a disconnect between how widely artificial intelligence and accessibility are being addressed inside public sector housing.

“Digital transformation isn’t measured solely by organisational confidence. The real test is whether residents feel the benefits, understand how new technology is being used and trust the services they rely on. Housing’s next challenge is not adopting AI, it’s demonstrating value, transparency and accessibility at scale.”

Housing “setting the pace for transformation”

The report suggests housing is ahead of other parts of the public sector on digital maturity.

Across other sectors, only 46 percent of NHS workers said their digital services were fully accessible to people with low digital skills or disabilities, compared with 56 percent in local government and 58 percent in central government. Confidence in delivering the digital services citizens expect by 2028 was also lower outside housing, with 53 percent of central government workers expressing confidence, compared with 43 percent in local government and 40 percent in the NHS.

Roberts said housing had reached a different stage in its digital transformation journey.

“Housing is clearly setting the pace for digital transformation. We see stronger leadership alignment, higher AI adoption and greater confidence than any other areas of the public sector we surveyed. The sector has moved beyond asking whether AI should be used. The focus now is ensuring data quality, skills and governance are in place while maintaining public trust.”

Separate research published last year found many housing associations were still at an earlier stage of AI maturity, with organisations struggling with governance, data readiness and staff skills despite growing interest in the technology. That study warned the sector needed stronger leadership, clearer AI strategies and improved data quality to move from experimentation to wider adoption.

The findings are based on responses from 500 public sector workers and 1,000 UK citizens and form part of Granicus’ latest research into digital confidence across housing, local government, central government and the NHS.