Enhancing cyber resilience through cyber security assessment
Looking to strengthen its cyber security posture, Highlands College in Jersey turned to our cyber security assessment.
Highlands College in Jersey wanted a clearer understanding of their cyber security posture, especially with growing reliance on cloud services like Microsoft 365. With no recent assessments and a rapidly evolving threat landscape, the college turned to our cyber security assessment for expert insight and strategic direction.
The challenge
The college’s last cyber security review was carried out several years ago by a major accountancy firm, as part of a wider government initiative. But with cloud environments and threats changing fast, Terry Walters, head of digital services, saw the need for a more focused and up-to-date evaluation tailored to the college’s current setup.
Why cyber security assessment?
Terry discovered our cyber security assessment through our online sessions and discussions around Cyber Essentials. What stood out was the opportunity to gain an expert, independent perspective on the college’s cyber landscape. Importantly, the cyber security assessment would help engage senior leadership, offer tangible insights, and the chance to benchmark current practices and areas for improvement that could shape future strategy.
The assessment experience
The assessment spanned several days and involved coordination across IT, compliance, and senior leadership teams. Terry found the sessions highly productive, thanks to the cyber security assessment specialist’s technical ability and understanding of the context and challenges of the college, allowing for deeper exploration of issues that might otherwise be overlooked.
The outcome
The cyber security assessment has reshaped how cyber security is viewed across Highlands College. Rather than being seen solely as an IT issue, it is now understood as a shared responsibility across the entire organisation. The assessment provided a clear framework to secure senior buy-in and support future planning, policy updates, and investment decisions.
Key findings from the assessment are now forming the basis of an 18-24 month cyber improvement roadmap, covering everything from staff training to potential new tools and infrastructure upgrades.
“Historically SLT have always left it to us to get things sorted, and that’s worked fine, but the whole landscape’s changing. It’s not just about IT anymore - it’s about the whole organisation making informed decisions.
When I first received the cyber security assessment report, I was so overwhelmed with the depth and breadth of the report. It took me three or four times to read and fully comprehend it. It’s certainly changed our view going forward and how we’ll approach cyber security.”
— Terry Walters, head of digital services, Highlands College
Get in touch
Interested in understanding your cyber security posture? Learn more about our cyber security assessment and speak to your relationship manager.