At Network Group, we believe MSPs don’t just support businesses - they protect them. That’s why our Members have chosen to raise the bar together.
At Network Group, we believe MSPs don’t just support businesses - they protect them.
Every day, MSPs sit at the centre of their clients’ systems, data, and operations. That position comes with responsibility, trust, and increasingly, scrutiny. As cyber threats continue to evolve, so do the expectations placed on those trusted to manage and secure IT environments.
That’s why, within Network Group, our Members have chosen to raise the bar together.
From Best Practice to Shared Standard
Cyber Essentials has long been a recognised baseline for good cyber hygiene. But as the role of the MSP continues to grow, baseline is no longer enough.
Guidance from the National Cyber Security Centre is clear: organisations choosing an MSP should look for partners who can demonstrate strong, independently verified security controls…not just in theory, but in practice.
Cyber Essentials Plus does exactly that.
It goes beyond self-assessment, requiring hands-on technical verification. For clients, it provides confidence. For MSPs, it demonstrates credibility. For the wider industry, it helps establish trust.
A Community-Led Approach to Governance
Network Group is member-owned and peer-led. So, when conversations about Cyber Essentials Plus started happening within our community, they weren’t driven by policy - they were driven by our Members asking what does “good” really look like.
To support this, we’ve established a Governance Committee, made up of experienced Members from across the Group. They meet bi-weekly to share insight, challenge assumptions, and help guide how Network Group continues to strengthen standards across its membership.
This isn’t about compliance for compliance’s sake.
It’s about MSPs learning from MSPs and moving forward together.
Michael Morgan, Chairman at Network Group, commented:
"In an industry without regulation or external safeguards, we have a responsibility to lead. By raising our cybersecurity standards, we are not only doing what’s right, but also setting the benchmark for our Group, our sector, and safeguarding what matters most…our people, our clients, and our future."
What This Means in Practice
At Network Group, our Members are are now required to retain Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus certification as part of a shared commitment to professionalism, resilience, and trust.
Importantly, they’re not doing it alone.
Our community includes cyber advisors, assessors, and certification bodies who actively support peers through the process - sharing knowledge, lessons learned, and practical guidance along the way.
This is what a peer-to-peer community looks like when it’s working well.
Why This Matters Beyond Network Group
For MSPs across the channel, Cyber Essentials Plus is quickly becoming a differentiator - not because it’s a badge, but because it reflects how seriously you take your role in protecting clients.
For end customers, it offers reassurance that their MSP understands modern cyber risk and has been independently validated against it.
And for the industry as a whole, it helps set clearer expectations about what professional IT service delivery should look like.
Raising Standards, Together
At Network Group, clarity matters. We exist to help MSPs learn together, grow together, and raise standards together.
Cyber Essentials Plus is one part of that journey — not because it’s mandated by regulation, but because it reflects the direction the industry is already heading.
When MSPs come together around shared values and shared responsibility, everyone benefits #strengthinnumbers
If you’d like to learn more about becoming a Member of the Network Group community please get in touch: Become a Member | Network Group
