Abstract: Smart city has become a global trend in the development of advanced cities in the 1st century. The concept is a new concept, which is still in its infancy stage as the idea was first initiated by IMB in the USA in 2008. Therefore, this paper is brief paper is aiming to provide further understanding and clarity on smart cities with inclusion of several initiatives and examples already applied in practice within the UK and across other countries. The research is mainly including secondary sources from the literature to review smart cities. Key recommendations are provided for policy developers, local authorities, academics and students interested in the field. Recommendations include further development of public policy and investment allocation to further utilize the concept of smart cities in key areas such as development of a business-friendly environment, regulations, cleaning and implementation of health and safety measures. The concept of smart cities can be applied and further developed to pursue cost saving measures by reducing waste and increase of technology application as well as tackling unemployment. Furthermore, local authorities should aim to enhance public – private partnerships with interested parties such as educational institutions to deliver key smart initiatives and programmes, as well as in the aim of enhancing knowledge exchange within the field.