A major new project will fuel the potential of the North West cyber sector to keep the UK at the forefront of cutting-edge cyber security.

Led by Lancaster University, the £4.9m CyberFocus project combines the strength and expertise of seven universities across the North West and aims to deliver both societal and economic benefits for the region.

CyberFocus is one of seven new projects supported through £22 million of funding by the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Place Based Impact Acceleration Account (PBIAA) scheme to strengthen emerging and existing research and innovation clusters to kickstart economic growth and address regional needs.

Developing trusted partnerships between academia, industry, and civic bodies, CyberFocus will strengthen and deliver strategic investments in the region’s cyber ‘ecosystem’. The North West has one of the largest clusters of cyber security businesses outside London with around 300 companies in the sector. The region’s strength in cyber is also benefitting from the arrival of GCHQ in Manchester and the imminent arrival of the National Cyber Force in Lancashire.

The CyberFocus project brings together the Universities of Lancaster, Manchester, Salford, Central Lancashire, Cumbria, Manchester Metropolitan and Liverpool. It will also be supported by other partners including Team Barrow (Westmorland & Furness Council, and BAE Systems), Cumbria LEP (now Enterprising Cumbria), Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Liverpool City Regional Combined Authority and Lancashire County Council.

CyberFocus will leverage the cyber expertise within the seven partner universities and other close partners that together form the North West Cyber Corridor stretching from Lancashire to Manchester and encompassing Cumbria, Merseyside and Cheshire. The programme will act as a catalyst for cyber knowledge exchange so that research ideas and innovations are transformed into solutions, products and services that will help protect people and businesses as well as drive economic growth.

In addition to supporting the development of cutting-edge innovations, CyberFocus will support regional civic ambitions and drive prosperity and protection in the region by accelerating growth through securing further inward-investments in the region’s cyber sector.

CyberFocus will also draw on regional partners across key industrial sectors to forge research-led partnerships and address regional challenges to fuel job creation, economic growth, and improved cyber resilience.

And partner Universities will be at the forefront of developing new cohorts of people equipped with the vital high-demand cyber skills required in the region.

The new project aims to:

• create 85 new collaborative partnerships
• develop 400 new products, processes, or services
• secure £40m additional funding for the region
• train 300 individuals in cyber innovation skills

CyberFocus builds on the foundations of the North West Cyber Security Connect for Commercialisation project (CyberCom). CyberFocus, a Lancaster University-led collaborative university partnership programme, turns the latest cyber security innovations into innovative new products, services and policy.

Daniel Prince, Professor of Cyber Security at Lancaster University and Principal Investigator of CyberFocus, said: "CyberFocus is a transformative initiative that aims to position the North West as a national leader in cyber security. This project will connect and empower regional expertise, from universities and industry to civic partners, to address the complex and evolving challenges in the cyber domain.

“With the arrival of GCHQ in Manchester and the National Cyber Force in Lancashire, the North West has a unique, once-in-a-generation opportunity to drive forward national cyber resilience. CyberFocus will leverage this momentum, combining cutting-edge research with real-world applications that can secure critical sectors such as health, social care, nuclear, and digital manufacturing.

“By fostering trusted partnerships and supporting innovation across sectors, CyberFocus will not only create new jobs and increase economic value but will also strengthen the UK’s overall cyber capabilities. Our work will help position the North West as a key player in addressing today’s cyber threats, with lasting benefits for communities and businesses across the region and beyond."

Professor Andy Schofield, Vice-Chancellor at Lancaster University said: “By combining the cyber research and teaching strengths, expertise and leadership here at Lancaster University alongside those of all of our partners, CyberFocus will play a leading role in fostering trusted partnerships and supporting cyber innovation across our region’s key sectors.

“CyberFocus will drive the creation of new jobs, increase economic growth and will also enhance the region and nation’s overall cyber resilience. Through strong partnership working, the programme will help realise the full impacts of the emerging NW Cyber Corridor, further strengthening our region’s position at the forefront in cyber innovation and addressing today’s cyber threats.”

EPSRC Executive Chair, Professor Charlotte Deane, said: “The seven projects announced today will harness regional research and innovation strengths to unleash the potential of emerging and existing innovation clusters across the UK.

“Our investment will strengthen partnerships between UK universities, civic bodies and local businesses to create new jobs, improve skills and boost regional economic growth that will benefit places and communities directly.”

UK Science Minister Lord Vallance said: “We are backing universities across the UK to home in on local strengths in research – from cybersecurity in Lancaster to maritime in Liverpool, offshore wind in Edinburgh to digital healthcare in Belfast – to support thousands of local jobs, boost skills and bring new technologies to market.

“This investment will allow innovators up and down the country to continue or expand their pioneering work to improve lives and kickstart growth in our economy with new opportunities.”

The Lancaster University-led CyberFocus programme builds on the University’s strong track-record and large-scale strategic investments in cyber education and research as well as its leadership in developing cyber initiatives in the region including establishing the Digital Security Hub (DiSH) in Manchester with a consortium of partners to help foster cyber innovation and growth in the region with the ambition of supporting 500 new start-ups and creating more than 1,000 local jobs.

This Place Based Impact Acceleration Account (PBIAA) award supplements and enhances Lancaster’s existing Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) funded initiatives to translate research outcomes into real-world applications benefitting society and economic growth.

For more information on CyberFocus: Lancaster.ac.uk/cyber-focus