Case study: How Trident has helped to safeguard YMCA DownsLink Group

At a glance

YMCA DownsLink Group, the leading charity for children and young people in Sussex and Surrey, transformed its operations by partnering with Trident to modernise its IT environment. Moving from outdated, on-premises servers to a secure, cloud-based infrastructure, YMCA DLG benefited from dedicated on-site IT support, cybersecurity improvements, (including Cyber Essentials PLUS certification), and proactive monitoring and disaster recovery services.

This comprehensive approach not only improved security and compliance but also enabled the organisation to focus more resources on supporting children and young people across Sussex and Surrey, confident that their systems are more resilient, efficient, and future-ready.

About YMCA DownsLink Group

YMCA DownsLink Group is a charity that works to prevent homelessness and provides mental health support and advice.

In 2024-2025 they gave a home to 896 young people and reached more than 5,500 children, young people and their families through other services such as mediation, support and counselling.

The challenge: Overcoming key organisational obstacles

In 2022, YMCA DLG partnered with Trident after leadership recognised the need to modernise core platforms and strengthen cybersecurity across their vast network. With over 30 sites and approximately 400 users, safeguarding operations and mitigating risks were a top priority.

YMCA DLG needed an IT provider that understood the complexities of the non-profit sector and could deliver a high-quality, collaborative service. Their IT environment at the time relied heavily on outdated, on-premises servers, many poorly configured and approaching end-of-life, creating significant risks to both security and performance.

The solution: Identifying risks and ensuring business continuity

YMCA DLG partnered with Trident for its expertise and proven ability to adapt to evolving organisational needs – a vital quality for an organisation dedicated to community impact. Acting as an extension of YMCA DLG’s IT team, Trident collaborated closely to design and deliver a tailored solution that modernised systems while strengthening defences against emerging cyber threats.

Over the past three years, Trident has guided YMCA DLG through a transformative journey to the cloud. Today, the organisation operates in an entirely serverless environment, with key applications and data securely hosted in the cloud.

Key solutions included:

• IT support services, including a dedicated team based full-time with the YMCA DLG team.
• Support in gaining the Cyber Essentials PLUS certification, enabling continued work with key funding sources and UK government contracts, making them one of only three YMCA chapters/divisions in the country to have achieved this level of certification.
• Vulnerability & Security Assessment, identifying weaknesses within the organisation’s IT infrastructure.
• Microsoft Teams Voice, a cloud-based calling solution powered by Microsoft Teams.
• Monitoring and Protection Service, a security solution designed to continuously oversee and safeguard the organisation’s assets, systems and infrastructure, including proactive maintenance.
• Disaster Recovery Backup Service, facilitating the protection of YMCA DLG’s critical data and systems so they can be restored quickly in the event of a cyberattack, hardware failure or natural disaster.
• Microsoft NCE licensing, allowing for simplified and streamlined management of Microsoft subscriptions.

The results: Optimising organisational performance

Head of Finance, Risk and ICT Bobby Dhol said:

“By partnering with Trident, YMCA DownsLink Group has strengthened its ability to protect the young people we work with. The move to a secure, cloud-based environment helps critical systems remain resilient, reducing the risk of downtime or data breaches that could disrupt our essential services.”

With dedicated on-site support and proactive monitoring, YMCA DLG can maintain compliance and safeguard sensitive information, offering greater peace of mind for staff and residents. This transformation supports more informed decision making and operational efficiency, helping the organisation allocate more time and resources to frontline services rather than IT challenges, offering reassurance that their systems are designed to be resilient, secure, and ready for the future.

If your organisation faces similar challenges and needs expert guidance to enhance security, streamline operations, or align technology with strategic goals, we’re here to help – contact us!