Unpicking Legacy Public Sector Networks – It’s time to explore Network-as-a-Service (NaaS)
Justin Day
Chief Product Officer, Cloud Gateway
Website:: www.cloudgateway.co.uk/
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Across the public sector, digital transformation continues to accelerate. At the same time, many government departments are working with legacy networks that were never designed to handle this level of scale, complexity, or flexibility. Maintaining these systems consumes time, budget, and talent that could otherwise be used to drive innovation.
As we look ahead, one model in particular is gaining attention as a potential enabler of change: Network-as-a-Service (NaaS). While still an emerging approach, NaaS presents an opportunity to rethink how the public sector designs, delivers and consumes connectivity.
Now is the right time to start exploring what it could mean in practice.
Why Legacy Networks Are Becoming a Bottleneck
Government IT leaders are well aware of the challenges posed by legacy infrastructure. According to the National Audit Office, nearly half of central government IT spend goes towards maintaining ageing systems, many of which underpin critical public services.
These systems were often built for a centralised model, using traditional MPLS networks and supported by the Public Services Network (PSN). But the market is shifting. Cloud-first services, secure remote access, and inter-agency collaboration requires a new level of flexibility, resilience and user-centricity that traditional models struggle to provide.
Introducing Network-as-a-Service (NaaS)
Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) is an emerging model that allows organisations to consume networking capabilities, such as connectivity, security, and traffic management - as a managed, subscription-based service.
It offers the potential to:
Reduce complexity by consolidating multiple legacy services into a single, cloud-managed platform
Increase agility, enabling departments to quickly adapt to new needs without major infrastructure overhauls
Align network delivery with cloud-first strategies, providing secure, policy-based access to applications wherever they’re hosted
Shift from capital investment to operational spending, bringing greater budget predictability and flexibility
As Gartner notes, the NaaS market is evolving rapidly, with more providers introducing enterprise-grade services that could suit public sector needs.
Why Now Is the Right Time to Explore
Planned retirement of the PSN has rumbled on for years, and whilst the Future Networks for Government (FN4G) program has now ended, with much success, legacy infrastructure still remains. It is crucial that the public sector maintains momentum around cloud adoption.
This creates a natural opportunity to explore NaaS - not as a silver bullet, but as part of a broader strategy to modernise networks in line with digital service delivery goals.
Importantly, NaaS isn’t an all-or-nothing switch. It can start small, such as supporting a specific department, use case, or pilot project, before scaling more widely.
These scenarios offer practical starting points to test the value of NaaS without wholesale disruption.
Aligning with Strategy and Standards
Exploring NaaS aligns with wider government objectives, including:
The Cloud First Policy, which encourages public bodies to prioritise cloud-native approaches.
The National Cyber Strategy, which emphasises modern security frameworks such as zero-trust
The Technology Code of Practice, which supports iterative, scalable and user-focused infrastructure decisions
By piloting NaaS in the right context, organisations can move in step with these strategic directions while building confidence internally.
Considerations for Getting Started
For public sector leaders and digital teams beginning to explore NaaS, here are a few things to keep in mind:
Understand your user journeys – Where do your users need access from? What applications are critical? NaaS works best when aligned to real service patterns.
Start with a clearly scoped pilot – Demonstrating value in a small, low-risk environment builds support and reduces perceived risk.
Look for partners with government experience – The NaaS model is new, but your provider shouldn’t be. Experience in delivering secure, compliant services matters.
Stay informed as the market evolves – Keep up with guidance from NCSC, TechUK, and trusted analysts. This space is moving fast.
Opening the Conversation
NaaS won’t be right for every use case, or every organisation - just yet. But it’s a concept worth understanding, especially as public service delivery becomes more digital, distributed and data-driven.
By opening up the conversation now, the public sector can better prepare for a future where connectivity is not just a technical enabler, but a strategic asset.
