Data centres are the UK’s newest class of critical national infrastructure. Designated as such in September 2024, they join the likes of transport, telecoms, energy and water as infrastructure that is of maximum national and societal importance. Their expansion—first driven by the rise of cloud computing—has been turbo-charged latterly by the wide-scale adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).
It’s little surprise, therefore, that the resilience of data centres matters. And it matters in three distinct ways. First, those using and running data centres need to ensure they can effectively counter physical and cyber threats. Second, providers and users should be able to house the sovereign data (and technology) that underscore modern businesses and public services. Third—and perhaps most contentiously—they must deliver capacity sufficient to allow the economy to grow, but not too much that it threatens the nation’s natural resources.
To take each in turn.
Physical and cyber threats
To illustrate the cyber challenge facing organisations across the economy, one provider represented around the table observed that the systems her organisation manages are subject to over 600 million attempted cyberattacks per day, globally. It is a challenge that organisations have to face within their own business footprint, too, and are now demanding in the extended domain of the data centre. Paradoxically, the volume of attacks strengthens infrastructure. How? By providing an invaluable source of insights “that can be used to bolster the resilience of businesses and the public sector across the UK”.
In search of sovereignty
Sovereignty doesn’t just apply to data, it can apply to the technology on which a data centre is built, down to the processors that handle the complex and heavy-duty computation of AI. To borrow the words of one speaker, sovereignty is the “meaningful control of the technology stack”. It may also provide the UK data centre industry with a point of differentiation. When users are choosing between what some described as the burdensome control of the European Union and the “wild west” of the United States, the UK can offer a meaningful alternative.
The capacity challenge
For supporters, data centres will strengthen economic growth, support communities and improve national resilience. As such, the pertinent question is not should we build them but how does the UK build the right digital infrastructure in the right place? One answer to that question is Slough, which has emerged as the second largest data-centre campus in the world, supporting around 14,000 jobs.
As one speaker noted, “Customers generally want to be in areas where other customers are”, and Slough is servicing swathes of London and the south-east. “It’s revitalised a tired old industrial estate and the government should have used it as an example of what AI and data centres can do”. The industry wants to identify similarly suitable areas to help catalyse growth elsewhere.
The aim may be worthy but tensions do exist. MPs report community misgivings that centre on the use of natural resources, notably energy and water. On energy, voices around the table insisted that a little perspective was needed. To that end, research by the International Energy Agency suggests that data centres will account for around one-tenth of global electricity demand growth through to 2030.
On water use, a study by TechUK indicates that data centres in England account for just 0.2 per cent of England’s non-household water use. That’s less than the total amount lost by water companies through leakage every single day. In addition, data centres often deploy closed loop cooling systems that use unpotable water and only need to be filled up once.
While misgivings undoubtedly exist, opinion polling from Public First points to a more complex picture. It found that 36 per cent support data centre building , while 19 per cent oppose. Meanwhile, support for build is highest among younger adults, peaking at 54 per cent among 25- to 34-year-olds.
In seeking solutions, one attendee advanced the use of citizen assemblies—panels of ordinary people invited to review briefing materials from all those with a stake in an issue. This, she said, might take the heat out of the debate by allowing “people to actually start digging down into the details and get past the first 20 minutes of any argument where everyone is saying, ‘This is going to be bad’”.
Data Centres and Britain’s Resilience, a roundtable jointly hosted by Prospect and Arup, took place on Wednesday 2nd September 2026
Digital infrastructure is reshaping Britain’s economy, public services and daily life. The physical infrastructure—such as data centres—that support it are therefore becoming an increasingly important consideration for policymakers, businesses and communities.
The task ahead is not simply to accommodate rising computing needs. It is to make thoughtful choices about where facilities are developed, how they are supplied and connected and how they earn the confidence of the communities they serve.
This roundtable created an opportunity for participants from the private sector, politics and the policy world to exchange views on these questions. Contributions covered energy, water, planning, cyber security and data sovereignty.
The conversation demonstrated that these issues are closely interdependent. Successful development requires coordination between utilities, telecoms, transport systems, planning authorities and the places that host new facilities. Better alignment across these areas can support investment and innovation while giving the public confidence that development is being approached responsibly.
I would like to thank Prospect for convening the session and everyone who contributed. I hope the report encourages a practical and well-informed conversation about how Britain can meet its changing digital needs.
Gareth Williams
UKIMEA Data Centre Leader, Arup
