UCEN Manchester and Cisco to support small businesses become cyber-resilient

A collaboration between UCEN Manchester, Cisco and the Greater Manchester Digital Security Hub (DiSH) will help local small businesses protect themselves from cybercrime.

As part of its role with DiSH, the centre will become a Cisco Networking Academy specifically to support small businesses with their cybersecurity skills and help address the challenges that 50% of small of businesses face when it comes to cybersecurity which leaves them vulnerable to security breaches. 

The programme will include a range of learning opportunities starting with a free, self-paced, mobile-friendly ‘Introduction to Cybersecurity’ course. The aim of the course is to equip learners with a basic awareness of cyber vulnerabilities and an understanding of the core principles of cyber resilience. 

Once users have completed the course, they will have access to additional learning pathways facilitated by UCEN Manchester’s partnership with Cisco via our School of Computing and Cybersecurity.

Commenting on the partnership, Director of Curriculum Andrea Elson said:

Through our long-standing partnership with Cisco we have supported thousands of students to develop digital skills that have acted as the foundation of their future careers. 

“We are delighted to have extended and deepened this partnership through this new collaboration which will help ensure that more people across Greater Manchester acquire skills that will narrow then cyber-security skills gap.”

UCEN Manchester first became Cisco Academy since 1999, developing into one of the top academies in the North West of England. In 2012, we became one of the few ASC (Academy Support Centre) and ITC (Instructor Training Centre) Cisco Academies in the country.

Our City Campus Manchester facility is home to a dedicated Cisco Lab, while Computing tutors Paul Ashby and Munaf Al-Tameemi are consistently named in the top 25% of Cisco instructors globally.

The partnership has been designed to equip young people with the cybersecurity skills needed to help Greater Manchester succeed in its ambitions to become an internationally recognised digital city-region, attracting industry investment, connecting communities, and driving the local economy.