Case

Wiltshire Health and Care – building a network for the future

Wiltshire Health and Care (WHC), an NHS partnership delivering adult community services across 14 sites, turned to Conscia to modernise its ageing LAN infrastructure. Facing complex challenges, WHC needed a resilient, secure, and centrally managed network to improve efficiency and free up its pressured IT team. Conscia delivered a tailored Meraki-based solution, leveraging cloud-managed switching, wireless, and security to simplify operations, enhance visibility, and future-proof the organisation. The result is a compliant, scalable, and easy-to-manage network that supports WHC’s mission of helping people live independently and well.

Wiltshire Health and Care (WHC) is an NHS partnership providing Adult Community Services in Wiltshire. WHC wanted to update its ageing and inconsistent LAN with a more capable, user-friendly, and modern infrastructure at all their 14 active sites. Conscia worked with WHC to achieve this and supported them to continue to deliver on their aim of enabling people to live independent and fulfilling lives for as long as possible.

The Challenge

• WHC’s existing network was obsolete, and had evolved throughout previous changes in providers with slow processing times and complexity – an upgrade was required that could speed up operations and ensure that the network was protected against vulnerabilities.
• Lack of up-to-date documentation made it difficult for the WHC team to know how to best maintain or upgrade their network systems.
• Due to the outdated nature of the existing network, the proposed new network design needed to adapt and evolve from the initial project brief. Conscia needed to be able to respond in an agile and supportive way, using relevant expertise to fully understand WHC’s requirements and ensure that the project could meet WHC’s needs within a suitable timescale.
• The IT team at WHC were facing significant pressure on their time and resources. The inefficient existing architecture exacerbated this, and left no room for the team to enact the upgrades required to improve day-to-day efficiency and to futureproof their network.

Outcomes

• Comprehensive surveys by the Conscia team refined and augmented the design of a network solution tailored to WHC’s needs.
• WHC now has a resilient and compliant LAN, with simplified management and insight into network use and activity – saving time and resources.
• Cloud-based management provides centralised visibility over Meraki’s wired and wireless networking hardware. The single management platform works alongside WHC’s existing 170 Meraki access points, leveraging value from previous investments while improving visibility and control.
• WHC can be confident that their network is safe and secure. Updates to devices are automatically pushed from the cloud, minimising admin time and ensuring all devices have latest features and security updates.
• The redesign of the WAN will enable WHC to improve the return on their investment through reduction in circuit costs and a simple-to-manage network.
• Conscia worked with the team at WHC to ensure all recommendations were in line with current and future requirements for the organisation. Working together, we have built the foundations for digital transformation.

Solutions and services

• Conscia professional services
  • Site survey
  • Configuration
  • Integral proactive monitoring
  • Design
  • Project management
  • Integral hardware maintenance
• Hardware and software
  • Meraki MX security and SD WAN hardware and licensing
  • Meraki MS switching hardware and licensing
  • Meraki MR wireless hardware and licensing
  • Cisco AnyConnect secure mobility client

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