SWGS has been awarded the national ‘Outstanding CyberFirst Gold School’ award at the TechFirst Education Ecosystem Conference in recognition of its excellence in cyber security education.
In March, SWGS attended the national conference to receive the award from Chris Ensor, Deputy Director for National Resilience Capabilities at the National Cyber Security Centre, during the gala dinner following a successful nomination. This accolade comes just 16 months after the school was first granted CyberFirst Gold School status, highlighting the sustained strength of its provision and its continued commitment to high-quality cyber education.
The award reflects not only the school’s curriculum but also the strength of its partnerships and wider engagement. Industry collaboration has been central to this success, particularly through ongoing support from DSTL. Their contributions have included student workshops such as drone demonstrations and robotics sessions, annual interschool challenge events, virtual work placements, STEM clubs, and the provision of specialist equipment and resources.
Students have also benefited from input from the South West Cyber Crime Unit, which has delivered interactive sessions, alongside new partnerships developed through the CyberFirst community. This includes a recent collaboration with Microsoft. Opportunities have extended to sixth form students through bursaries, attendance at national lectures, and wider engagement with schools across the CyberFirst network.
Further links with the University of the West of England (UWE) have enabled students to participate in outreach activities, including reaching the final of the ACE Cyber Security competition for two consecutive years. This year, five sixth form students will also attend a five-day Cyber Advanced summer school at the UWE campus.
These combined experiences have enriched the curriculum and strengthened students’ understanding of computer science and cyber security across all key stages. The school expressed its pride in the achievement and its gratitude to the organisations and individuals whose support has contributed to this success.