76% (21,000) of all CQC registered care provider locations have an up-to-date Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) in place – up from just 15% before Better Security, Better Care started in 2021. And almost 9 out of 10 providers are registered on the toolkit.
Our latest impact summary, published in November 2025, demonstrates the difference we are making – well beyond basic compliance with the DSPT.
This short film highlights the benefits of our model which is building the skills and the capacity of existing support mechanisms. It also outlines our impact and our future focus.
Despite launching during the Covid pandemic which had a tremendous strain on the care sector, our programme has managed to reach and engage record numbers of care providers.
More than five times more care providers are now using the DSPT to help them to keep information safe. In fact, the increase in the use of the DSPT by care providers is faster than any other sector – including GPs, dentists and large NHS Trusts. And we are by far the largest sector.
The programme is central to government policy. For example, in the adult social care reform white paper – People at the Heart of Care – the government commits to building on Better Security, Better Care to broaden support on data and cyber security.
Our programme is unique. We work at national, regional and local levels, to engage and support care providers across all sectors. And like all Digital Care Hub work, it is delivered by social care providers, for social care providers.
Local and regional collaboration is central to our model. Our 28 local support organisations work closely with local authorities, integrated care boards and integrated care partnerships to ensure that data protection is considered in planning, supporting and commissioning health and care services. Most of our local support organisations are care provider trade associations. We are developing the data and cyber security skills and capacity of existing support networks: maximising the support networks that care providers are already using.
Across our programme, we’ve delivered more than 10,600 webinars and online workshops, and over 15,000 one-to-one support sessions – equivalent to more than 60,000 hours of personalised advice. We have provided 14,100 hours of helpline support, and we’ve spent over 50,000 hours engaging directly with providers and stakeholders.
Direct investment into the frontline
We’ve ensured that funding reaches the organisations that support providers directly. Since 2021, we’ve invested £15 million into local support organisations, as part of £21.5 million of grant funding across the programme. Looking ahead, £21.3 million has already been confirmed through to March 2029, enabling 32 local support organisations to continue this work.
The impact of this investment is clear. Independent evaluation shows that every £1 spent on the programme saves the sector £2.50 in avoided cyber incident costs. Together with our local partners, we’ve become the established delivery infrastructure for cyber resilience in adult social care.
Extending our impact through innovation and additional funding
Over time, we’ve used insights from the programme and combined them with other sources of funding to develop new tools, services and training that respond to real issues raised by providers.
These include:
- Our two free eLearning courses, accessed by more than 80,600 people across 169,000 sessions.
- The Cyber Game, which supports frontline staff to learn through realistic social care cyber scenarios.
- Our cyber Healthchecks, including vulnerability assessments, simulations and workshops.
- The Data Policy Builder, helping providers understand their responsibilities and generate tailored policies.
- Original research, such as online safety for people with learning disabilities and insights on Bring Your Own Device practices.
