DCMS cybersec focus for the SW

Cyber Sector Team in DCMS focusing on growth, innovation and skills – Regional Leads

    • Lauren Metalle – South West
    • Daljinder Mattu – Midlands
    • Beck Mulvany – North West
    • Jennie Noble – North East & Yorkshire

Our Team and Role:

    • We are regional leads in the Cyber Sector team, with a focus on growth, innovations and skills in the Cyber Security and Digital Identity Directorate.
    • We are based in our regions and cover the South West, Midlands, North West, and North East & Yorkshire.
    • Been in roles for 10 weeks – relatively new.
    • As part of the next National Cyber Security Strategy, in relation to the ecosystem pillar – we are contributing to Levelling Up agenda, we drive growth and innovation in the UK cyber security sector, building and expanding DCMS regional reach impact/
    • We use our networks and knowledge to gather valuable insights into the reach of policy delivery, providing a bridge between local partners, stakeholders and wider government.

Our Offer:

    • Gather, analyse and communicate local intelligence data to shape and translate policy and programme design to ensure it is impactful.
    • Identify opportunities for local work within regions, to ensure better interventions and improve sustainability.
    • Troubleshoot and understand challenges, remove/ unlock blockages and connections to enhance policy and programme implementation.
    • Realtime local intelligence, your eyes and ears on the ground.
    • Translate and contextualise key departmental messages and strategic objectives including effective two-way communication with local stakeholders.
    • Horizon scanning and risk management.
    • Ministerial engagement, roundtables, sector engagement and consultations.

Key Stakeholders:

    • Regional Cyber Clusters, Cyber Resilience Centres.
    • Pan regional partnerships, Combined and Single Local Authorities and other gov bodies (Growth Hubs, LEPs, etc).
    • Charities, CIC’s Social Enterprises and Voluntary community sector organisations.
    • Private sector businesses.
    • Further and Higher Education.
    • Academic Centres of Excellence in Cyber Security Research/ Education.
    • SME Hubs and trade associations
    • National Cyber Security Centre / GCHQ.

Cluster & Regional Leads – Our Shared Objectives:

    • Promoting the expertise of regions to grow cyber businesse’s outside London and the South East.
    • Support, amplifying and driving cyber growth and innovation across the regions.
    • Sharting and disseminating information/ knowledge and awareness of the importance of cyber security.
    • Building new and strengthening existing relationships with regional and national stakeholders and emerging influencers.
    • Ensuring cyber skills development is informed by regional priorities at a national level.
    • Support the UK’s collective effort to remain a world leader and leading cyber power.

Our Distinct Role:

    • Coordinating and developing policy to address government priorities, Growth, Innovation and Skills across our regions and directly advising Ministers.
    • Navigating Whitehall and other government departments to drive cyber action a regional focus.
    • Mitigate problems in partnership with regional stakeholders to increase policy impact and success.
    • Promoting ‘inclusive growth’ by plugging regional gaps, removing barriers to national programmes and increasing opportunities for investment by bringing sectors together.

Working Together – avoiding duplication:

    • Regular contact and information sharing on priorities and projects.
    • Agree working practices and expectations and being clear about roles and responsibilities.
    • Two-way communication and mutual support.

Working Together – adding value:

    • Early sight of policy and programmes.
    • New opportunities to influence policy decisions.
    • Added capacity to run large events, bring people together to inform regional strategies.
    • Supporting regional stakeholders to navigate and understand Government.
    • Amplifying regional excellence and increasing understanding and support nationally.