Barnsley named UK’s first ‘Tech Town’
3 Feb 2026 12:54 PM
Barnsley has been named the UK’s first government-backed Tech Town, with plans to roll out AI across public services, skills, healthcare and local business as part of a place-based regeneration approach. Announced by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the initiative aims to demonstrate how AI adoption can improve local services, build skills and support regional growth.
On Tuesday 3 February, the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) announced that Barnsley would become the UK’s first Government-backed Tech Town. The government will be supporting the town’s rollout of AI across public services, education, healthcare and business. Tech Town status will see Barnsley act as a blueprint for the rest of the country, demonstrating how AI can be used to improve the lives of citizens and enhance local services as part of a wider regeneration effort, supporting the town’s Barnsley 2030 plan.
Skills will also be a key part of this plan, with Government working closely with local business leaders, educators, and NHS staff to build on the area’s existing talent and ultimately unlock the full potential of AI within this plan.
In practice this plan will include:
- Free AI and digital training - working with Barnsley College and the South Yorkshire Institute of Technology, residents will be able to take part in free courses to boost their career, retrain or simply learn something new.
- Help to increase AI adoption – expanding the Seam Digital Campus to give small and growing businesses hands‑on support to use new technology, scale up and create good local jobs.
- Innovating in healthcare - partnering with Barnsley Hospital to test AI tools that offer quicker check-ins, faster triage and smoother outpatient care - providing a better service and freeing up NHS workers to focus on what they do best.
- Tools to support teaching and learning –testing AI and edtech tools in schools and Barnsley College, to improve evidence of the impact of technology on pupil outcomes, inclusion and reducing teacher workload.
- Building the right infrastructure - planning how the town will use technology better like public buildings and Wi‑Fi, as well as adding strong cybersecurity so people can use digital services with confidence and boosting connectivity.
The private sector has a key role to play in delivering this plan, with leading tech companies already involved and pledging their support. techUK members Cisco, Microsoft and Adobe have each committed initiatives to boost Barnsley’s AI and digital talent as part of the Tech Town programme. The private sector will be crucial in helping to build these skills, unlocking the potential of AI and enabling people to access the jobs of the future.
The announcement of Barnsley as the UK’s first Tech Town offers a real opportunity not just for the town, but for the country to accelerate the delivery of better and more digitised public services, and to demonstrate how place‑based innovation and policy can deliver improved services and support the wider growth of the digital economy. In our 2025 Local Digital Index we called for government to support local areas to accelerate digital adoption across public services, ensuring that local authorities have the tools and capacity to deliver modern, effective services for residents.
Georgina Maratheftis, Associate Director for Local Public Service, techUK, yesterday said:
“This announcement signals a commitment to delivering this transformation to improve the daily lives for residents in towns and cities across the country.
“The tech sector has a key role to play in this transformation, delivering the technologies to modernise services and drive this change, as well as developing and strengthening AI and digital skills within communities so that residents can both help deliver this transformation and benefit from the jobs of the future. Tech companies play a key part in this plan, having already pledged their support and highlighting the importance of collaboration in delivering this transformation, not just in Barnsley but across the country.
“techUK members are already supporting Barnsley as the UK’s first Tech Town, and are keen to work with other towns and cities delivering AI driven transformation.”
techUK’s Local Public Services Programme will be putting a spotlight on AI in Public services later this year, highlighting the trends and potential of implementing the technology, and demystifying its use for local decision makers.
Additionally techUK will be holding our Meet the Investors: Sheffield event on 24 March to help scaling firms, start ups and SMEs seeking to raise investment to grow their companies based South Yorkshire. And later this year techUK will be holding our Yorkshire Telecoms Showcase bringing together local authorities, telecoms providers, innovators, and public sector partners working across Yorkshire to show how their work is leading the way in future telecoms innovation, fixed and mobile infrastructure deployment, and digital connectivity.
If you would like more information on techUK’s work in local public services and supporting digital adoption across towns and cities in the UK, please feel free to get in touch.