First UK public sector full enterprise SASE deployment delivers seamless connectivity and brings security to the user
Fuelled by a mandate to create a “One City” experience for millions, the City of London aims to redefine how world-class connectivity empowers residents, visitors and businesses, utilising leading edge technologies to further enhance the City’s position as a world leader in business and financial services. The new partnership with Roc builds on this vision, helping the Corporation to fulfil its role as a pioneer of digital innovation in the UK.
Roc’s highly innovative and ambitious solution leverages Cloud and AI capabilities for network delivery and services, incorporating the first public sector full enterprise deployment of SASE in the UK. This will in turn provide standardised, highly available connectivity to millions of users across the City of London, while simultaneously enhancing and automating security at the edge.
Coverage spans the City of London Corporation, the City of London Police, the Barbican Centre, City of London schools, parks, libraries and protected heritage locations such as Epping Forest, the iconic ponds at Hampstead Heath and Mansion House. With over 200 locations included in the solution, the City of London ensures connectivity reaches every employee, official, resident and visitor within its community.
This trailblazing infrastructure brings tangible, everyday benefits to users right across the City. Reliable, high-speed access means staff can work productively and securely from any location: whether in council offices, classrooms, remote field sites or on city streets. Importantly, this enhanced connectivity addresses critical public safety challenges: such as ensuring seamless support for 4K body-worn police cameras, which helps protect officers and the communities they serve, even in remote areas.
Underpinning these advances is an unwavering commitment to data security and sovereignty. With all traffic and devices managed in the cloud, offering significant operational enhancements and cost savings, Roc’s national police-vetted, security-cleared engineers apply rigorous protections: safeguarding operations from their secure Networks and Security Operations Centre and applying data controls including data loss prevention, zero trust networking access, and full alignment to UK policing standards.
All Roc vendors and partners involved in the transformation and delivery of the service maintain resilient data centre operations in the UK, ensuring no sensitive data leaves the UK. The solution leverages HPE’s leading AI-Ops platform, Juniper MIST, global cybersecurity leader Palo Alto Networks’ best-in-class Prisma SASE solution and Vorboss’ unrivalled business connectivity, via its dedicated, fully owned and managed central London fibre network.
Consolidation of suppliers from 11 to one, Roc Technologies also promises cost efficiency. £20,000 a month in savings is projected by removing energy-consuming on-premises hardware and removing supply chain complexity. The flexibility of the cloud-based service model means that services can be scaled up and down as needed, ensuring further savings and necessary agility for the corporation as it aims to deliver end user services quicker and to even higher quality.
Chelsea Chamberlin, Chief Technology Officer, Roc Technologies, said,
“The City of London sees footfall of millions of people a day, so it’s vital that a consistent network experience is delivered across all locations and to all users, including visitors, residents and businesses regardless of the services they need to access. We’re delighted to be the sole primary supplier for this exciting project, drawing on a range of solutions from our expert partners to deliver a truly future-proof network architecture in the heart of the capital.”
Zakki Ghauri, Director of Digital Services at the City of London Corporation, said,
“Our ambition is to be at the forefront of digital innovation for the benefit of Londoners. Partnering with Roc enables us to modernise our network, enhance connectivity across all our organisations under one banner and ensure we can deliver innovative, flexible services wherever and whenever they are needed.”
Roc Technologies delivers innovative, dynamic and transformational IT solutions and services to empower public and private sector organisations across the UK. The Roc portfolio combines highly secure critical infrastructure solutions with emerging technologies, all supported by end-to-end managed services and a 24/7 Managed Services Operations Centre.
Our adaptable and agile teams pride themselves on offering excellent personal service and reliable ongoing support, employing ‘best of breed’ technologies that deliver measurable outcomes for organisations so they can meet their strategic objectives and unleash the power of technology. With some of the most rigorous security accreditations in the UK, Roc has been trusted to support the largest and most complex organisations with their most sensitive data for over a decade.
The City of London Corporation is the governing body of the Square Mile, with a dedicated mandate to foster a vibrant and successful City. It supports a diverse and sustainable London within a globally competitive United Kingdom.
Headquartered at Guildhall in the City of London, the Corporation delivers a range of municipal functions—including public services, policing oversight, and open spaces management—while also promoting the interests of the UK’s principal international financial and professional services centre.
For further information, please visit www.cityoflondon.gov.uk.