Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced the launch of its first AWS UK Cyber Education Grant Program, a £5 million initiative aimed at strengthening the cybersecurity capabilities of educational institutions across the country.

Building on similar initiatives in the US and Canada, AWS is launching the tailored programme to address the unique cybersecurity needs of UK educational institutions, which are facing particular challenges in protecting student’s sensitive data.

The new programme aims to improve security capabilities across UK educational institutions, promote ransomware protection, provide immediate incident response support, and upskill IT workforce across crucial cybersecurity competencies.

Recent data from the UK Government found that 52% of primary schools, 71% of secondary schools, and 86% of further education colleges reported cyber-breaches or attacks over 2023-2024.

Those numbers are even starker for the UK’s higher education institutions, with 97% suffering a cyber-incident over the same period.

To tackle the problem, the new AWS grant programme will offer ‘AWS credits’, providing new and existing AWS customers with credits to implement cloud-based cybersecurity solutions, as well as access to the AWS Skill Builder, which Amazon said contains over 600 free courses, including more than forty focused on security training.

As part of the initiative, AWS will also provide government agencies and education technology (EdTech) with no-cost security architecture reviews.

Among those eligible to take part in the scheme are state and private schools, colleges, multi-academy trusts, higher education institutions, and even the Department for Education itself.

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“We are delighted to launch the AWS UK Cyber Education Grant Program, and help UK educational organisations to enhance their cybersecurity capabilities,” said John Davies, managing director at AWS.  

“Strong security at the core of an organization enables customers to innovate, and accelerate their digital transformation journeys.”

Adding to the Government’s data on the scale of the problem, a survey published by ESET this week found that 73% of educational institutions have experienced at least one cyber-attack or data breach in the past five years, with a fifth claiming three or more incidents.