The Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) is rolling out more than 30 projects across England and Northern Ireland to boost the UK’s cyber resilience.

Announced today, the new projects will receive a share of £1.9 million in UK Government and private funding, for schemes in Northern Ireland, the Midlands, Yorkshire and Humber, the South West, North East and North West of England. They include new ways to better protect businesses and families from potential cyberattacks, to providing training to increase the nation’s cyber skills.
The UK’s cyber sector contributes £11.9 billion to the British economy. The increasing number of threats demands more trained cyber professionals, with almost half of UK businesses currently reporting a cyber skills shortage. DSIT said the projects will help plug the gaps and meet that demand.
The projects will be delivered by organisations such as universities, local community groups and businesses and target a range of groups including secondary school students, apprentices and working professionals.
Among the projects being supported are programmes in the South West and Yorkshire to upskill workers in small businesses, and a scheme in the North West of England which will unlock new avenues for communities to explore careers in cyber.
A project in Northern Ireland will explore how to encourage more neurodiverse workers into the field, boosting the diversity of the UK’s cyber talent pipeline. Additionally, a programme in the West Midlands will focus on supporting women and girls to protect them from cyber violence and abuse.
Minister for AI and Digital Government Feryal Clark said: “Attempts to disrupt the technologies and services we rely on daily continue to grow, so we’re leaving no stone un-turned to make sure our communities have the skills to rise to the challenge.
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“It’s also vital we develop a diverse and talented cybersecurity workforce, which is why the next phase of the Cyber Explorers Cup competition will be vital in identifying the UK’s cyber leaders of tomorrow.”
Boosting cybersecurity knowledge in schools
The Cyber Explorers Cup competition, launching its second round today, aims to help meet the demand for cybersecurity workers in the future. Cyber Explorers is a free, interactive cybersecurity learning platform which has been rolled out to secondary schools across the UK. Focused on 11-14-year-olds, the programme looks to build essential digital skills to arm students with the tools they need to launch careers in cybersecurity.
The Cyber Explorers Cup will see competitors from across the country taking part in a series of ‘capture the flag’ style cybersecurity challenges, solving cyber puzzles and boosting their cybersecurity knowledge.
Investment welcomed, alongside reservations
Andy Kays is CEO of Socura, a Cardiff-based cybersecurity business that manages the CymruSOC, a Welsh government project to secure every public sector organisation in Wales. He is also the author of a recent report on the UK’s cyberskills shortage in regions such as Northern Ireland, Wales and the North East of England – which have almost no security pros whatsoever. Kays welcomes the news but has reservations about the size of investment relative to the project’s ambitions.
“Cybersecurity is a burgeoning industry with amazing opportunities for young people entering the field. It’s only right that the UK invests more money to develop its regional cyber skills in places like Wales, the North East of England and Northern Ireland.
“Like a lot of IT and tech careers, cybersecurity has always had a neurodiverse workforce. However, there are lots of opportunities in cyber beyond ‘hacking’ that require a wide range of different skill sets.
“My biggest reservation about the news is the size of investment relative to the scale of its ambition. 30 new projects slated for 2025 and beyond across multiple regions means that this money will be thinly spread across the UK. The concern is that this money won’t go far enough to have the level of impact needed. It is, however, a good start.”