CAPSLOCK

CAPSLOCK is a UK-based cyber security education provider that delivers remote, expert-led training designed for adults who want to retrain, upskill or change career into cyber security. Its flagship offering is the Certified Cyber Security Practitioner (Ce-CSP) programme, a four-month, full-time, team-based course in which learners participate as trainee cyber security consultants working inside a fictional company. The curriculum is organised into five problem areas covering cyber security in a business context, security by design, applied security, offensive and defensive security, and business continuity management, and is accompanied by a structured careers curriculum with CV workshops, interview preparation and mentoring.

Alongside the intensive programme, CAPSLOCK offers a self-paced guided learning pathway (Applied Cyber Security Principles) that runs up to 12 months with tutor touchpoints and hands-on labs, and a set of live, instructor-led short courses in cyber security and AI topics, typically lasting one day and available to individuals as well as to organisations as private or bundled sessions. Delivery is 100% remote via a virtual classroom on Zoom and a proprietary digital campus hosting learning resources and labs, with learners working in teams of four to six. Learner support includes tutors, careers guidance and a wellbeing team with Mental Health First Aiders.

The company positions itself as a mission-driven social impact organisation with no academic entry requirements; applicants must be 18 or over, able to communicate in English at conversational level, maintain at least 90% attendance and have basic IT skills and a computer with camera and microphone. Admissions run through an application form, self-assessment and pre-course work, an introductory call and a Zoom interview.

Founding story

CAPSLOCK was founded in 2019 by Lorna Armitage and Dr Andrea Cullen, who had previously designed and delivered recognised cyber security programmes, including GCHQ-certified courses, in academia and industry. They set out to remove academic, financial and cultural barriers that excluded people from entering the sector, and to build education around practical, team-based work reflecting industry roles.

Business model

CAPSLOCK sells training programmes directly to individual learners and to organisations. The Ce-CSP intensive programme is priced at £7,600 including VAT, payable up front by card or BACS via Stripe, over 6-36 months interest-free through EdAid, or via a Future Earnings Agreement with StepEx under which tuition is deferred until the learner earns over £25,000. Short courses are also sold to businesses for team upskilling, including private instructor-led sessions and exclusive cohorts.

Tuition fees for cohort-based and self-paced courses, plus business training engagements; consumer payment routes include up-front payment, interest-free instalment plans and income-contingent Future Earnings Agreements.

Traction

More than 1,300 learners supported since the first cohort in 2021; the company states that on average around 75% of learners secure a role in a cyber-related field within six months of graduating.

Latest developments

In June 2026, mthree, a global technology talent solutions provider, was reported to have acquired CAPSLOCK for an undisclosed amount, with the stated aim of adding cyber security training and a talent pipeline to mthree's technology talent offering and expanding graduate placement opportunities through mthree's client network.