We are a licensed IASME Certification Body, and we are based in Salisbury. Most certification bodies serving Wiltshire businesses are not: the application goes into a portal somewhere else and comes back marked by someone you will never speak to.
That distinction matters less than local firms are usually told, and more than national providers admit. Here is the honest version of both.
When being local genuinely matters
For standard Cyber Essentials, honestly, it does not. The assessment is a question set, reviewed by a licensed assessor. A business in Amesbury gets the same assessment as one in Aberdeen, and anyone claiming a local certification body produces a better certificate is selling geography rather than expertise.
For Cyber Essentials Plus, it can. Plus involves an assessor testing a sample of your systems. That is routinely delivered remotely, and most of our Wiltshire clients never need us on site. But when an estate is complicated, when there is legacy equipment nobody wants to describe over a screen share, or when you would simply rather have the assessor in the building, we are twenty minutes away rather than two hundred miles.
And it matters for the conversation before any of it. Scoping questions, whether the tablet in the workshop counts, what to do about the machine running software the vendor stopped supporting: these are conversations, not form fields. Being able to have them in person, same day, is what removes most of the friction that gives certification its reputation for pain.
Why Wiltshire businesses ask for it
The defence footprint around Salisbury Plain, Boscombe Down and Porton means an unusual concentration of businesses in supply chains with real security requirements. Engineering firms, logistics companies, facilities providers and consultancies find that certification is the entry ticket rather than a nice to have, and often at short notice when a contract lands.
The same pattern now reaches well beyond defence. Accountants, solicitors, medical practices and manufacturers across Wiltshire are being asked the same questions by their own customers and insurers, sharpened by the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill pushing requirements down every UK supply chain.
What it costs
Published, so you can budget before you call.
| Organisation size | Employees | Cyber Essentials | Cyber Essentials Plus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Micro | 0 to 9 | £320 + VAT | £1,195 + VAT fixed |
| Small | 10 to 49 | £440 + VAT | £1,450 + VAT fixed |
| Medium | 50 to 249 | £500 + VAT | from £1,750 + VAT |
| Large | 250 or more | £600 + VAT | from £2,500 + VAT |
The Cyber Essentials fee is set by IASME and is identical at every certification body, so nobody in Wiltshire is cheaper for the assessment itself. Cyber Essentials Plus pricing is set by each certification body, and ours is above. Whole organisation certification also includes £25,000 of cyber liability insurance for eligible UK organisations under £20 million turnover. The full cost breakdown covers optional support and where the real spend usually goes.
How it works
- A conversation. What you do, how many people, what systems. If something would fail today, you will know before you spend anything.
- You self check. The question set is public, the official requirements document is public, and our preparation guide walks through it in plain English.
- We assess. Remotely as standard, on site where that suits you better. For Plus we agree the testing window and walk you through the day beforehand.
- Certificate and verifiable badge, usable with customers, insurers and tender panels the same day you pass.
No retainers, no lock in, no upsell. If a gap needs fixing first, we tell you plainly what it is and you decide who fixes it.
Common questions from Wiltshire businesses
We are a five person firm. Is this overkill? No. The size bands start at micro for a reason, and the smallest organisations are the ones most exposed to the attacks Cyber Essentials is designed to stop.
Our IT is outsourced. Does that change anything? Only in who gathers the evidence. The answers remain your responsibility, which is worth knowing before you sign the declaration. We are used to working alongside providers rather than around them.
How long does it take? For an organised business with modern equipment, days rather than weeks. The variable is not the assessment, it is how long any remediation takes.
Do you only work in Wiltshire? No. Salisbury is where we work from, not the limit of where we work. We assess anywhere in the UK, and offer on site assessment nationwide.
Get started
If Cyber Essentials is on your horizon, get in touch or call 01722 445972. A short conversation tells you what the path looks like and whether you would pass today. More detail on the service is on our Cyber Essentials certification page.