West Midlands Cyber Hub Pre-Launch Consultation Report: What the Community Actually Wants

The West Midlands Cyber Hub officially launched its pre-launch consultation report and it’s one of the most comprehensive pieces of direct community engagement ever conducted for a regional cyber hub anywhere in the world.

Titled Community Feedback Summary & Delivery Framework Report, the 31-page document captures the honest, unfiltered priorities of businesses, educators, community organisations, public bodies and cyber practitioners across the region. Authored by Rebecca Robinson and Wayne Horkan, and funded by Innovate UK with leadership from Cyber Tzar, the report translates months of workshop feedback into a clear, evidence-based blueprint for the Hub’s first years of operation.

So, what does the cyber community in the West Midlands actually want?

The answer is refreshingly consistent and practical.

Top Priorities Straight from the Community

Stakeholders didn’t ask for another glossy initiative. They asked for coordination, connection and real impact.

The report groups feedback into four clear delivery tiers:

• Tier 1 – Collaboration & Coordination (the clear #1 priority) The Hub must act as the regional convenor – linking existing programmes, aligning investment, reducing duplication and creating a joined-up approach to cyber resilience. Participants repeatedly said: “Don’t reinvent the wheel – connect what’s already working.”

• Tier 2 – Education & Talent Pipeline (a very close second) Early engagement with schools, colleges and universities is essential. Stakeholders want visible pathways from classroom to career: apprenticeships, T-Level placements, work experience and graduate opportunities. The message was loud and clear – build the future workforce now.

• Tier 3 – SME & Business Growth Practical support for local businesses, including an accelerator programme, signposting to opportunities, mentoring, and sharing real-world case studies so SMEs can scale and strengthen their cyber capability.

• Tier 4 – Community Voice & Visibility The Hub should become the authoritative regional voice on cyber resilience through engaging events, thought leadership and inclusive storytelling that reflects the diversity of the West Midlands.

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A cross-cutting theme – Access & Engagement – runs through everything: the Hub must be open, accessible and genuinely representative, not just for the usual suspects.

The Delivery Pyramid That Will Shape the Hub

The report presents this feedback visually as a pyramid (see page 3 of the report). Collaboration forms the strong foundation, education and talent the strategic driver, SME growth the delivery engine, and community visibility the outward-facing layer that builds trust and momentum.

This isn’t just nice wording, it’s backed by detailed voting data, stakeholder segmentation and cross-referenced analysis.

What Success Looks Like

The community defined success in concrete terms:

• More partnerships, fewer duplicated efforts

• Measurable student placements and diverse talent entering the sector

• SMEs scaling with better cyber resilience

• The West Midlands recognised nationally as a cyber excellence hub

The report even proposes indicative Year-1 KPIs to track progress against DSIT’s national Cyber Local outcomes – from 50+ active partner organisations to 100+ students engaged and 25+ SMEs supported.

Why This Report Matters

This isn’t a top-down strategy document. It’s bottom-up, community-owned insight that directly shapes how the West Midlands Cyber Hub will operate. It validates the Hub’s role as a connector first, deliverer second – a strategic coordination node that amplifies existing strengths rather than competing with them.

The full report also includes:

• Detailed vote breakdowns

• Stakeholder segmentation by sector

• Full alignment mapping to DSIT Cyber Local 25/26 outcomes

• Clear next steps for operationalising collaboration, education partnerships and SME support

Download the WMCyberHub Pre-Launch Consultation Report now and see exactly what the community said.

Whether you’re a business owner looking for support, an educator building talent pipelines, a community group championing inclusion, or simply someone who cares about cyber resilience in our region – this report shows the Hub is listening.

The West Midlands Cyber Hub is now moving from consultation to delivery and it’s doing so with the clearest possible mandate from the people it exists to serve.

Ready to get involved?

Contact: Contact@WMCyberHub.com

Website: www.wmcyberhub.com

Address: Millennium Point, Curzon St, Birmingham, B4 7AP

Let’s build the cyber ecosystem the West Midlands deserves, together.