The national strategy to upgrade skills across the UK will fail unless cyber education is addressed as a priority, a De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) expert has said.

Dr Ismini Vasileiou, associate professor at DMU, said major areas of the country’s industry were currently lying vulnerable to large-scale cyber-attacks – like those seen recently at stores like M&S and Co-op – because of the uncoordinated approach to cyber skills training across the UK.

And because of the increasing reliance on digital technology in almost every area, the risk of further serious disruption and financial loss through such attacks will only increase - unless the Government overhauls the way in which cyber skills are taught.

Dr Vasileiou, who is also director of the East Midlands Cyber Security Cluster, said the recent letter from education secretary Bridget Phillipson to Skills England, setting out the government’s priorities for skills development in the year ahead, did not put enough emphasis on improving the level of cyber training across the country’s workforce.

She said: “The new Skills England body has been tasked with aligning training and workforce supply to economic needs - and cyber sits at the heart of this agenda.

“Every sector identified by Skills England - from advanced manufacturing to health, from energy to transport - is increasingly dependent on digital infrastructure and resilient cyber capabilities.

“Without a coordinated, skills-based approach to cyber workforce development, none of these sectors can achieve sustainable growth or operational security.”

Working with key figures from Skills England, the UK Cyber Security Council and National Cyber Security Centre, Dr Vasileiou has authored a white paper detailing several key steps the Government should take to improve the widespread delivery of capable cyber skills training.

It identifies a lack of cyber security education throughout the education pathway, from schools to higher education, along with insufficient support for employers to take advantage of apprenticeships and train staff in cyber skills.

It also highlights training gaps which fail to equip cyber workers with the ability to deal with AI and the overwhelming number of SMEs with almost no in-house cybersecurity skills.

The white paper offers a concrete roadmap to support this, particularly through:

A national taxonomy that aligns education with job roles across all sectors.

Regional delivery models that allow for sector-specific implementation.

Workforce reform that addresses known entry-level bottlenecks and upskilling gaps.

Dr Vasileiou said: “Cyber is not a standalone priority — it's a cross-sector enabler. If Skills England is serious about delivery, investment in cyber training must be treated as foundational.

For more information, contact Chris Thundow, press and PR manager at De Montfort University: chris.thundow@dmu.ac.uk

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