Well, this is rather lovely news.
Black Swan Cyber Security Solutions has been nominated for East Midlands IT Services Business of the Year 2026.
For a small Chesterfield-based business, this means a great deal.
Awards are not the reason you start a business. They are certainly not the reason you spend your days checking security dashboards, testing backups and explaining why Microsoft 365 retention is not the same as a proper backup.
But it is nice when somebody notices.
What the nomination means to us
A lot of good IT and cyber security work happens quietly behind the scenes.
Systems are updated before vulnerabilities become incidents. Security alerts are investigated before they turn into disruption. Backups are tested before somebody desperately needs to recover a fileâor an entire organisation.
When the work is done properly, Monday morning is usually pleasantly uneventful.
That is the point.
This nomination recognises the practical work we do with schools, small businesses, care providers, charities and other organisations across Chesterfield, Derbyshire, South Yorkshire and the wider East Midlands.
It also recognises the approach we have taken since launching Black Swan.
Cyber security without the fear or unnecessary complexity
Cyber security is often sold through fear.
We have always believed there is a better way.
Most organisations are not ignoring cyber security. They are trying to manage it alongside tight budgets, compliance requirements, staff changes and the daily work of keeping everything running.
They do not need somebody to make them feel foolish.
They need honest advice about where they currently stand, what the most important gaps are and what they should tackle first.
That is what we try to provide.
Our aim is not to promise perfect security. Perfect security does not exist.
Our aim is to help organisations become more defensible, resilient and recoverable, using controls that are proportionate to their risks, responsibilities and budgets.
Sometimes that means managed threat detection and response.
Sometimes it means improving Microsoft 365 security, strengthening email protection or testing whether a backup can actually be restored.
Sometimes it simply means helping an organisation work out where to begin.
You do not have to buy everything.
But you do have to start somewhere.
Nearly 20 years of supporting local organisations
Black Swan may be a relatively new name, but the experience behind it is not.
I have spent nearly 20 years working alongside schools and local organisations, helping them use technology safely and sensibly.
That experience shaped the business we have today.
We understand that schools need to protect safeguarding information while meeting Department for Education and RPA requirements.
We understand that smaller businesses are being asked increasingly detailed questions by insurers, customers and supply-chain partners.
We also understand that smaller organisations cannot simply throw an enterprise-sized budget at every problem.
The answer is not to do nothing.
It is to identify what matters most, put sensible layers in place and build from there.
We would appreciate your vote
Being nominated for East Midlands IT Services Business of the Year 2026 already feels like an achievement.
Winning would be rather nice too.
If Black Swan has helped your organisation, worked alongside you or provided advice you found useful, we would be enormously grateful for your vote.
Vote for Black Swan Cyber Security Solutions here:
https://mylocalawards.co.uk/business/black-swan-cyber-security-solutions/
Thank you to everybody who has trusted us, recommended us, introduced us to others or supported the business so far.
Every recommendation, message and vote means more than you might realise.
Recognition is lovely. A few votes would be lovely too. đ
