Part of the 2025 Lancashire Cyber Festival, and organised by the Lancashire Cyber Partnership, the cyber education week (February 2nd-7th) saw more than 12,000 children and young people - from primary school pupils thorough to university undergraduates – discovering more about study pathways and future job opportunities set to be created by the county’s cyber sector.
Over 20 local schools signed up to take part in a variety of different activities which included pupils visiting Blackpool and The Fylde College (B&FC), and Blackpool Sixth, to experience a day of engaging cyber exercises.
With a strong emphasis on fun, interaction and teamwork, pupils took part in cybersecurity-based quizzes, password management sessions, code-breaking challenges, cybercrime protection demonstrations and a virtual escape room competition which involved solving complex digital puzzles.
The following day, a cohort of students from both Blackpool colleges travelled to Lancaster University - one of only a handful of UK universities with the top level of National Cyber Security Centre accreditation for cyber education – to experience what a higher education cyber course could offer them.
Like the pupils who had visited their respective colleges on the previous day, the college students were themselves tasked with cracking cyber puzzles and undertaking team-based exercises to solve technical challenges linked to online threats. They also got to learn about some of the topics covered in a cyber degree, such as penetration testing, digital forensics, and cryptography.
In addition to giving young people the chance to experience what studying a cyber course could be like, both the college and university activities were programmed to showcase the different careers which Lancashire’s cyber economy has to offer, including some of the high-skilled jobs which will be generated directly and indirectly by the National Cyber Force (NCF) HQ coming to Samlesbury.
Commenting on the involvement of Blackpool colleges, Rosie Fearn, Director of The Lancashire Colleges group, said: “This brilliant countywide initiative has meant pupils from schools around the Fylde Coast and Wyre have had chance to see exactly what kind of cyber-related courses are on offer through colleges like Blackpool and The Fylde and Blackpool Sixth. In turn, students from both colleges have been given a taste of what a Higher Education cyber programme would be like.
“Throughout all the activities, the message has been very clear; that cyber opportunities are something that are both accessible and attainable to everyone and that Lancashire is set to be the best place in the UK to pursue a cyber-focused career.”
A spokesperson for the Lancashire Cyber Partnership, a strategic collaboration between Lancashire County Council, the University of Central Lancashire, Lancaster University, BAE Systems, and the NCF, said: “The Lancashire Cyber Partnership works to ensure all Lancashire residents feel the benefit of the county’s growing cyber economy. A vital part of that is giving people the chance to access education and training opportunities which can lead to a high-skilled and high-value career in the cyber sector, and related industries.
“Cyber education week is a great example of how we go about achieving that objective. It’s fantastic that so many young people from across Lancashire got to take part, including those from the Fylde Coast and Wyre, and see what their own future in cyber could look like.”
Lancashire’s cyber education week is one of a series of in-person and online events which make up the 2025 Lancashire Cyber Festival.
Other festival interventions later in year- including industry workshops, discussion panels, special seminars and networking sessions - will be focused on the wider skills, investment and business growth opportunities set to be unlocked by Lancashire’s growing cyber economy.