Strengthen your council's cyber resilience with £50,000 of funding and specialist support to improve your asset management and cyber resilience.
Local Digital is launching a new asset management support offer to help English councils and mayoral strategic authorities improve their asset management capabilities and strengthen their cyber resilience.
Through the Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF) for local government, we have identified maintaining an accurate view of the technology systems, devices, software and digital services operating across their council as a common challenge.
Effective asset management is foundational to wider cyber security and resilience. Without effective asset management, councils may be unable to secure, maintain or recover critical assets, increasing their exposure to cyber threats.
To help address this challenge, Local Digital is launching a new asset management support offer for councils and mayoral strategic authorities.
The asset management support offer forms part of Local Digital's wider support for councils. We are launching it alongside a second round of CAF support funding, which will allocate up to £7 million in grants for up to 50 councils that have completed their CAF assessment, helping them accelerate improvements to their cyber resilience.
About the asset management support
The support is designed to help councils strengthen and accelerate their asset management capability, reducing their cyber risk.
The programme will provide a combination of funding and specialist support to help councils:
- improve their understanding of their technology estate
- establish core asset management capabilities
- strengthen the foundations of their cyber resilience
Successful councils will receive:
- £50,000 in grant funding to support asset management activity
- specialist technical advice and guidance
- practical support to improve their visibility of technology assets and associated risks
- practical support to understand their current asset management maturity and prioritise improvements
- support aligned with the outcomes set out in the CAF for local government
Councils will receive support tailored to their starting point and current asset management capability.
The funding can support councils to increase their asset management capability by helping them to:
- carry out initial discovery work
- progress priorities and strengthen their capability in line with the CAF for local government
- build their capability to support improvements across their wider cyber programme, including related areas such as vulnerability management or supply chain security
Councils will be expected to make significant progress over the next 12 months, aligned with the Indicators of Good Practice (IGP) in the CAF for local government. Depending on their starting point, councils will be expected to work towards meeting the IGPs for asset management.
We also welcome applications from councils that consider themselves to have already met the IGPs for asset management. Strong asset management provides a foundation for wider cyber resilience. This support can help councils build on that foundation and drive further improvements in areas such as vulnerability management and supply chain security.
Join the webinar on Tuesday, 1 December, at 10am to:
- find out how to apply
- learn how the support works
- meet the team
- take part in a live question and answer session
Council eligibility
- The asset management support fund is open to all English councils and mayoral strategic authorities.
- Funding will be prioritised based on risk.
- Councils should use the funding to improve their asset management capability.
- Councils must proactively engage with the support and make significant progress within 12 months.
- Councils are expected to start a CAF assessment within 6 months.
- Councils receiving CAF support funding for asset management improvements will not also receive asset management funding for the same activity.
How to apply for asset management funding
Applications are now open. To apply for asset management funding, complete the form by Friday, 18 December.
Applications will be reviewed in January 2027. Funding will then be awarded with support starting from February 2027.
If you have any questions about the asset management support offer, email caf@localdigital.gov.uk.
Stay in touch
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