Foundations of AI Ethics and Governance

Course Overview

Foundations of AI Ethics and Governance is a comprehensive UK professional certification program that equips professionals with the knowledge and practical skills required to govern, manage, and use AI responsibly.

The course explores the distinction between AI ethics and AI governance, introduces the six core principles of responsible AI-fairness, transparency, accountability, privacy, safety and reliability, and human oversight and examines real-world AI failures and their causes.

Participants gain an understanding of regulatory requirements, including UK GDPR, automated decision-making obligations, Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs), and AI governance structures.

The program also provides practical guidance for managing generative AI, AI agents, organizational AI inventories, risk assessments, monitoring, incident response, and governance maturity.

Through case studies, exercises, quizzes, and a final certification exam, learners develop the capability to identify, assess, and mitigate AI-related risks while supporting compliance and responsible AI adoption.

What You Will Learn

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Understand the difference between AI ethics and AI governance.

• Define and identify AI systems within an organization.

• Apply the six core principles of responsible AI:

  • Fairness

  • Transparency

  • Accountability

  • Privacy

  • Safety & Reliability

  • Human Oversight

• Recognize common AI failure patterns, such as:

  • Data bias

  • Objective failures

  • Deployment failures

  • Model drift

• Use generative AI responsibly and securely in the workplace.

• Identify risks associated with AI agents and prompt injection attacks.

• Understand AI-related legal and regulatory requirements, including:

  • UK GDPR

  • Equality Act considerations

  • Automated Decision-Making (Article 22)

  • Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs)

• Conduct AI risk assessments and risk tiering.

• Create and maintain an AI inventory and governance register.

• Establish AI governance structures, accountability frameworks, and escalation processes.

• Monitor AI systems and respond effectively to incidents and compliance issues.

• Apply governance best practices using recognized frameworks such as ISO/IEC 42001 and the NIST AI Risk Management Framework.

Target Audience

This course is suitable for:

• Business leaders and executives

• Compliance and risk professionals

• Data protection officers

• IT managers and security teams

• Project managers

• HR, operations, and legal teams

• Anyone involved in selecting, deploying, or using AI systems within an organization

Learning Outcomes

After completing the course, participants will be able to assess AI systems, identify governance gaps, ensure regulatory compliance, implement responsible AI practices, and contribute to the development of a sustainable AI governance program within their organization.