Cyber Essentials · Certification services
Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certification, made achievable
Certify with confidence, guided at every step by our qualified assessors.
Support for organisations that need a recognised standard to win contracts, satisfy insurers and reassure their customers. Choose a simple certification route, guided assessment support, or the complete journey through to Cyber Essentials Plus.
Two standards, one clear path
Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus are separate certifications. Most organisations achieve the first, then move to the second when a contract, an insurer or a customer asks for a higher level of assurance, or they want an external assessment of their security posture. We make both achievable.
Cyber Essentials
The UK government backed standard that shows your organisation takes cyber security seriously. A self assessment against five control areas, independently verified, covering the fundamentals that stop the majority of common attacks.
Cyber Essentials Plus
A separate, higher certification that goes further, adding an independent technical assessment of your devices and systems. It is the strongest signal you can give a client, an insurer or a regulator, and it must be achieved within a limited window after passing Cyber Essentials.
Why certify
Win more business
Certification is increasingly required to bid for contracts and satisfy supply chain requirements.
Reassure insurers
Demonstrate the fundamental controls that cyber insurers and customers now expect to see.
Certify in time
We prepare you to achieve Cyber Essentials Plus within the limited window after passing Cyber Essentials.
Qualified assessors
As accredited assessors we interpret the scheme so it is achievable for an organisation of your size.
Why Your IT Department
Qualified assessor expertise, independent assurance at every stage, and a clear path from Cyber Essentials through to Cyber Essentials Plus. You keep control of remediation while we remove the uncertainty.
The outcomes we deliver
Certification is more than a badge. Our service is designed to deliver tangible business outcomes at every stage of the journey.
Recognised certification
Achieve Cyber Essentials or Cyber Essentials Plus to meet contractual, insurance and regulatory needs.
Reduced risk of failure
Expert evidence review reduces the risk of a failed assessment and wasted certification fees.
Certified in time
Structured preparation ensures you certify within the window after passing Cyber Essentials.
Best use of your team
You keep control of remediation while we provide the assessor expertise and interpretation.
Independent assurance
An accredited assessor validates your readiness and gives confidence to your stakeholders.
Who these services are for
Our Cyber Essentials services suit organisations that need recognised certification and value expert guidance, whether or not they have an internal IT team.
Contract driven
Organisations that need certification to win work or satisfy supply chain and insurer requirements.
In house capability
Businesses with internal IT that want expert interpretation and assurance rather than full delivery.
Targeting CE Plus
Larger or multi site organisations that need to achieve Cyber Essentials Plus within the required window.
Compliance led
Buyers seeking the highest level of assurance for the board, customers and regulators.
Multi site operations
Businesses with several locations that need a consistent standard of security across every site.
The takeaway
Passing Cyber Essentials is straightforward. Achieving Cyber Essentials Plus within the required window is where organisations need support, and where our assessors make the difference.
Choosing the right level of support
Three levels of support, defined by how much of the process you would like us to take on. Every level is delivered by the same qualified assessor team.
Certification Only
For capable in house teams
From £250
A straightforward certification route for teams who complete the assessment and remediation themselves.
- Access to the certification platform and route
- Written kick off instructions and scope guidance
- Overview of the five control areas
- Administrative support and outcome confirmation
- Cyber Essentials certificate on a pass
Assisted
Guided assessment support
From £995
Guided support completing the assessment accurately, while you keep technical remediation in house.
- Kick off session on certification requirements
- Targeted evidence and information requests
- Drafting and validating your responses
- Gap review and written remediation guidance
- Final review and submission support
CE and CE Plus Assisted
The complete journey
From £2,995
The complete journey to independently assessed Cyber Essentials Plus, with assessor coordination throughout.
- Discovery workshop and readiness report
- Prioritised gap analysis and action plan
- Remediation guidance and evidence review
- Device sampling review and readiness sign off
- Certification management support
- Assessor coordination through to CE Plus
Starting prices for organisations of up to 100 employees, exclusive of VAT. Pricing is fixed and scaled by the size of your organisation. Certification and assessor fees are charged at cost as a pass through. Multi site, operational technology and multiple tenant environments are quoted separately.
Included on every level
- The same qualified assessor team
- Interpretation of the scheme for your size
- Independent assurance and confidence
- Clear, jargon free guidance
Where this service draws the line. These services provide advisory, assurance and certification support. You remain responsible for implementing technical remediation and for the accuracy of the information provided. Certification depends on your environment meeting the scheme requirements at the point of assessment.
Our recommendation
If Cyber Essentials Plus is your goal, take the combined programme. Passing Cyber Essentials is straightforward, but achieving Cyber Essentials Plus within the required window is where organisations need support.
Where these services draw the line
Certification support is deliberately well defined, which is how we keep it fixed price and deliver it properly. Anything beyond that scope is available separately or scoped on request, so you are never surprised by what is and is not included.
Available separately
Delivered by us, outside this service
- Technical remediation and implementation
- Ongoing vulnerability management
- Continuous managed security services
- Microsoft 365 reconfiguration
- Major security or migration projects
Scoped on request
Quoted to reflect scope and complexity
- Penetration testing beyond CE Plus requirements
- Infrastructure upgrades and firewall replacement
- Hardware and software procurement
- Multi site and operational technology uplift
- Additional company or tenant environments
Delivered by qualified assessors
Every level is delivered by the same accredited Cyber Essentials assessor team, so you get consistent expertise and independent assurance whichever service you choose.
Looking for ongoing assurance rather than certification? Monthly vulnerability scanning, dark web monitoring, guided remediation and quarterly reviews are delivered through our cyber assurance programme.
Cyber assurance and vulnerability managementCertification guided by a qualified assessor
Every level of support is delivered by the same accredited assessor team, so you get consistent expertise and independent assurance whichever route you choose.
Fern Ritchie
Team Leader, Senior Security & Compliance Engineer
Fern leads our security and compliance team and holds the Cyber Essentials Assessors Certificate, so the guidance you get comes from someone who assesses against the scheme rather than only reads about it.
She joined Your IT as an apprentice in 2019, completed her Level 3 Infrastructure Technician Apprenticeship in 2022, then specialised in cyber security, earning CompTIA Security+ and going on to complete an Applied Cyber Security degree with a first. Fern has been featured on Notts Today on Notts TV and has presented at Channel Futures in London.
- Cyber Essentials Assessor
- CompTIA Security+
- BSc Applied Cyber Security, First Class
Ready to get certified?
Book a short scoping call and we will recommend the right level of support for your business, then prepare a tailored quotation.
- A qualified assessor reviews your position
- A clear recommendation on the right service level
- A fixed price quotation for your organisation
- A structured path to certification
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Frequently Asked Questions
Let’s answer some of your frequently asked questions about Cyber Essentials and vulnerability management.
How long does Cyber Essentials take?
Most organisations complete Cyber Essentials in a few weeks, depending on how quickly evidence comes together and whether any gaps need closing first. Cyber Essentials Plus is the part that needs planning, because it must be achieved within a limited window after you pass Cyber Essentials. If Plus is your goal, it is worth starting the conversation before you certify rather than after.
What is the difference between Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus?
They are two separate certifications. Cyber Essentials is the UK government backed standard, assessed against five control areas and verified independently. Cyber Essentials Plus goes further, adding a hands-on technical assessment of your devices and systems by an assessor. Plus carries more weight with insurers, larger customers and regulators, and some contracts specify it by name.
Which level of support do we need?
It depends on how much of the process you want to take on. Certification Only suits capable in-house teams who will complete the assessment and any remediation themselves. Assisted suits organisations that want help completing the assessment accurately while keeping technical work in house. CE and CE Plus Assisted is the full journey, and it is what we recommend if Cyber Essentials Plus is your goal. A short scoping call will tell you which fits.
Do you fix the problems you find?
Not as part of these services, and that is deliberate. We provide the assessor expertise, the gap analysis and the remediation guidance, and you keep control of the technical work. That keeps the price fixed and predictable. If you would rather we carried out the remediation, we can quote for it separately.
What if we fail the assessment?
The purpose of the Assisted levels is to make that unlikely. Expert evidence review before submission catches the issues that cause failures, which protects both your certification fee and your timeline. Certification always depends on your environment meeting the scheme requirements at the point of assessment, which is why we identify and close gaps first rather than submitting and hoping.
Are the certification fees included in your price?
No. Our fee covers the assessor expertise and support. The Cyber Essentials certification fee is charged at cost as a pass through on every level, and the Cyber Essentials Plus assessor fee is a pass through on the CE and CE Plus Assisted level. Nothing is marked up, and your quotation will set out both parts clearly.