Regional Cyber Clusters

Gloucestershire, UK

Home to the Government Communications Headquarter (GCHQ) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), Gloucestershire has the largest cluster of businesses outside of London, with more than 130 firms involved in cyber related activities, supported by an active industry body; Cynam.Cynam is an independent, Cheltenham-centric platform which enables networking, innovation and collaboration for the cyber technology industry, with an aim to establish Cheltenham as the cyber hub of the UK. CyNam’s burgeoning community consists of the region’s developing tech and cyber security businesses, professional services, and some of the country’s leading industry experts. Cynam provides the capability, community and culture to help set small companies on the path towards becoming ‘unicorns’. They are seen as orchestrators – bringing together pioneering start-ups with investment, industry and government for wealth creation in the Gloucestershire region.

With over 60 years of cyber innovation, Gloucestershire offers a unique location for cyber investment in the UK where businesses can tap into a specialised ecosystem; be part of an established thriving cluster; capitalise on a wide choice of incubation and soft-landing platforms and directly access a core of highly skilled cyber security students and professionals.

Gloucestershire’s pivotal location, connecting the North and South of the UK, and just two hours from London, sits at the heart of the UK’s cyber security research & development activity. The region’s proximity to Academic Centres of Excellence in Cyber Research (ACE-CSR), recognised by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council, enables businesses to capitalise on the research and skills available to support growth and success.  In addition, Gloucestershire has 15 of the 49 national ‘Cyber First’ schools; an initiative to facilitate talent into the cyber sector.

Manchester, UK

Manchester, home to the nation’s fastest-growing cyber ecosystem. Manchester’s cyber ecosystem sits at the heart of a thriving £5 billion digital economy and has been recognised as a Top 20 European Digital City due to the depth and breadth of its digital and technology industry. Manchester is now also home to the UK’s government security agency GCHQ – placing the city at the heart of the nation’s IT security effort. Other Cyber assets include Manchester Digital Innovation and Security Hub (DISH), the recently launched £10m cybersecurity innovation centre.

Greater Manchester presents a unique opportunity for cyber - a place with the ambition and strong civic mandate, to take an approach to digital that ensures no one gets left behind. Helping everyone to live healthier and happier lives by being able to navigate through, access and benefit from an increasingly digital world. Greater Manchester is the fastest-growing tech city within Europe, now only second to London when it comes to investment. Digital is in Greater Manchester’s DNA. we are leveraging our expertise in areas like cyber security, digital health and digital manufacturing to attract further investment.

Home of HOST Cyber, which in partnership with Salford City Council, creates a unique cyber sandbox, allowing incubated start-ups to accelerate and validate their IP across a real-world commercial environment. HOST offer programmes such as the Cyber Innovation Lab a programme created by innovators who have lived experience of accelerating their products through support programmes.

Northern Ireland, UK

 Northern Ireland has become a global cyber security hub, with specialist university research centres, innovative start-ups delivering global cyber security solutions and an impressive cluster of international cybersecurity investors - which is why it is the #1 international investment location for US cyber security firms (fDi Markets FT 2020).  According to the UK Cyber Security Sectoral Analysis Northern Ireland is a hotspot for cybersecurity firms, which includes leading international companies such as Proofpoint, Rapid7, Imperva, Synopsys, Anomali, Contrast Security and Cygilant.  In addition to cybersecurity product development companies, Northern Ireland has also become an international investment location for US cybersecurity services projects, such as Allstate, Aflac, CME and Citi, who have invested in cybersecurity operations in Belfast.  Other global players such as PwC, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, BDO, Microsoft, BT and IBM all have significant security operations in the region and have developed a range of cybersecurity solutions directly serviced from Northern Ireland.

Northern Ireland is home to the Centre for Secure Information Technologies (CSIT), a global flagship centre for cybersecurity research and education based at Queen’s University Belfast.  As a renowned global hub, CSIT’s meteoric rise as the UK’s Innovation and Knowledge Centre (IKC) for cybersecurity has seen it develop into both a partner of choice for big-name multinationals and a dynamic motor of local growth. CSIT is recognised by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (Part of GCHQ) as an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research (ACE-CSR).  An impressive roster of business members such as Rolls Royce, EBay Thales, and BAE Systems help shape its research strategy, while close collaboration with FD Technologies, Seagate, Nvidia and other IT giants, and with leading global cybersecurity institutes, has extended its worldwide reach.  CSIT is a delivery partner for the London Office for Rapid Cybersecurity Advancement (LORCA), is a founding partner of Global EPIC and leads the UK RISE. 

The cluster is represented by a collaborative network of innovators at NI Cyber.