A private household
Several homes, staff, a smart-home system and CCTV, and a PA or house manager who has quietly become the IT department.
Private households and family offices
Your technology, properly looked after.
An independent technology lead on your side of the table, about two days a month.
You probably already pay several people to look after your technology. Each looks after its own part, and each waits for you to call.
An IT company, someone who installed the Wi-Fi and CCTV, a cyber security firm, a handful of software subscriptions. What's usually missing is someone who sees the whole picture, works for you rather than for a supplier, and spots problems before they become emergencies. That's what I do.
The closest comparison is the owner's representative on a large building project: the person the client pays to keep the contractors honest, who takes nothing from the contractors themselves.
Who it's for
People with a lot of technology and nobody senior who owns it.
A family office
A small team managing serious wealth, with outsourced IT, plenty of suppliers and no technology lead.
Most people come to me through an introduction from someone they already trust: their solicitor, accountant, wealth manager or insurance broker.
Why it matters
The risk rarely sits with one supplier. It sits in the gaps between them.
43%
of family offices had been hit by a cyber attack in the previous 12–24 months, and 31% had no plan for responding to one.
Deloitte Private, 202427%
of family offices that outsource say their providers are consistently excellent. Outsourcing isn't oversight.
Campden Wealth and AlTi, 202515%
of UK organisations checked the risks from their own suppliers in the last year.
UK Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/26The home too
Smart cameras and baby monitors left on factory passwords can be watched remotely by criminals.
National Cyber Security CentreOversight, on your behalfWhere each supplier's work meets the next
- Vara Private, in the middle of it all
- Office IT company
- Home Wi-Fi, CCTV and AV installer
- Cyber security firm
- Out-of-hours incident firm
- Software and subscriptions
- The family's own devices
It usually goes wrong in small, ordinary ways: a former member of staff who can still open the gate app, an installer who's the only one with the CCTV password, an email asking for an urgent payment that nobody thinks to check.
What I do, and what I don't
Your IT company keeps things running. I make sure the right things are being run, by the right people, safely.
What I take care of
- One clear picture. Every system, device, subscription and supplier, written down and kept in your hands.
- Security and access. Who can get into what, across the office, the homes and the family's own devices, and what happens when someone joins or leaves.
- Your suppliers. Choosing them, checking their quotes and contracts, reviewing their work and chasing them when things slip.
- Planning and budget. What to renew, replace or stop paying for, and what's coming next.
- AI, safely. Sensible rules for staff, the right tools set up properly, and a few genuine time-savers.
- A plan for when things go wrong. Who to call, in what order, for a hacked account, a lost phone or a suspicious payment request.
- Regular reporting. A short monthly update and a quarterly review, in plain English.
What I deliberately don't do
- Hands-on IT support or a helpdesk; your IT company keeps that.
- Make changes to any system a supplier is responsible for, even small ones. If I quietly fixed things myself, the evidence that a supplier is slow or careless would disappear with it. Instead I get the right firm on it and keep a record of how it went.
- Selling hardware, software or support contracts.
- Taking commissions or referral fees from any supplier, so my advice stays independent.
- 24/7 cover. Out-of-hours emergencies go to the specialist firm you hold an agreement with, which I help you put in place.
Every supplier contracts with you directly and stays responsible for its own work. My job is to make sure that work is the right work, done well.
| Work | Who |
|---|---|
| Strategy, budget and planning | Me |
| Choosing and managing suppliers | Me |
| Security, AI and joiners-and-leavers rules | Me |
| Day-to-day IT support, devices and backups | Your IT company |
| Home Wi-Fi, networks, CCTV and AV | Your home technology installer |
| Security testing | A specialist cyber security firm |
| Out-of-hours emergencies | A cyber incident firm, on an agreement you hold |
An IT contract waits for you to call. This runs to a calendar.
How it works
It starts with a single, fixed-price review, and you only carry on if it's clearly worth it.
01
A conversation, free, 30 minutes
You tell me what worries you and what's in place; I tell you honestly whether I can help.
02
Confidentiality first
We sign an NDA and a short engagement letter with a fixed scope and price before I see anything.
03
The Technology Review, about three weeks
Conversations with you and the key people, short walkthroughs of the office, the main home and the family's devices, and a look at your suppliers and contracts. I never need your passwords or to read your documents.
04
Your report, in person
A red, amber and green picture of where you stand, the fixes that matter most, and who should do each one.
05
Quick wins
The most urgent fixes done in the first couple of weeks, by your own team or the right supplier, with me keeping track.
06
Ongoing, if you want it
About two days a month as your technology lead, with a monthly update, a quarterly review and an annual look at strategy, budget and risk.
What the review covers
Eight areas, one picture.
Using the National Cyber Security Centre's Cyber Essentials scheme as the checklist.
The family's own devices
Phones, laptops and tablets, including the children's.
Accounts and identity
Email, banking and cloud accounts, and how they're protected.
Homes and networks
Wi-Fi, CCTV, smart-home systems and who controls them.
Office IT and suppliers
What's in place, what it costs and how well it's run.
People and access
Staff, contractors and former staff, and what each can still get into.
Documents and data
Where the important things live and who can see them.
AI use
Which tools people already use, and what's going into them.
When things go wrong
Backups, recovery and who rings whom.
You get a red, amber and green report, a prioritised fix list naming who does each item, a one-page AI policy, a one-page "who to call" plan, and an hour going through it all with me.
Every month
Registers kept up to date, access checked, supplier performance logged, and a short written update.
Every quarter
A review with you, supplier scorecards, and the risk picture refreshed.
Every year
Strategy, budget and policies reviewed, and a fresh look at the whole set-up.
When things change
A new home, a new member of staff, a new supplier, a child heading off to university, or significant travel.
Services and prices
Fixed prices wherever possible, agreed in writing before any work starts.
Where it starts
Technology Review
A full picture of your technology, risks and suppliers across the eight areas, a prioritised fix list, a one-page AI policy and a one-page "who to call" plan.
from £7,500
Fixed price · about three weeks
The ongoing role
Technology Lead
Your named technology lead, about two days a month: suppliers, access, policies, planning, budget, monthly updates and quarterly reviews. Covers the main home and one other.
from £6,000 a month
12-month agreement · additional homes £750 a month each
Optional
AI for the Office
Sensible AI rules, the right tools set up properly, staff training and a few practical workflows that save real time.
from £10,000
Fixed price · four to six weeks
The exact price depends on how many people, homes and suppliers are involved, and I'll confirm it after our first conversation. Hardware, software and specialist support are bought by you directly from the supplier, at their price, with nothing added by me. Prices exclude VAT.
Your photograph: a real one, not generated.
Why me
I've spent my career where money, security and regulation meet, and I've done this job before, for a company.
- I've run it for real. As co-founder of ekko, a mission-led fintech, I took the company through ISO 27001 certification and a SOC 2 audit with no non-conformities, coordinating auditors, consultants and engineers to get there.
- Banking background. Lloyds Banking Group and Metro Bank, where confidentiality and doing things properly aren't optional.
- Operator, not salesman. I run business operations for a team across the UK, South Africa and the US, so I know what good looks like in practice, not just on paper.
- Practical with AI. I build AI tools and automations myself, so my advice on what's safe and useful comes from using them every day.
- Trusted in governance. I sit on the Advisory Board of De Montfort University.
How I keep things discreet
Families let me in on trust, so the safeguards are built in from the start.
An NDA before anything else, and I never name a client without written permission.
Least access. I advise and oversee; I don't hold your master passwords or keep copies of your documents. Admin passwords live in a password manager that you own.
Independent. No commissions, no referral fees, no reselling.
Checked. I hold a current DBS certificate, which you're welcome to see.
Insured. [Professional indemnity and cyber liability cover: add once in place.]
A small client list. I take on a handful of clients at a time, so you get a named person who knows your set-up.
A clean exit. If we ever stop working together, you get a full handover pack and every bit of my access is removed within five working days.
Questions people ask
Straight answers.
We already have an IT company. Why would we need you?
They keep things running and respond when you call. I work for you, not for a supplier: I check that what they're doing is right, cover the parts they usually don't (the homes, the family's own devices, the other suppliers), and plan ahead so you're not always reacting.
Will you replace our IT company?
No. Most clients keep their existing suppliers. If one genuinely isn't working, I'll help you find a better one, but that's your decision.
Can't you just fix it while you're here?
No, and that's deliberate. If I fix something, the supplier responsible never has to, and you lose the record of how well they're doing their job. I'll get the right firm on it straight away and make sure they come back to you the same day.
Do you need our passwords?
No. I review how things are set up, with you or your team in the room. Admin passwords stay in a password manager that you own.
What happens if something goes wrong in the middle of the night?
I work business hours. Part of the review is making sure you have a specialist firm on call for emergencies, with a clear plan for who rings whom. I pick up the follow-up the next morning.
Is this only for the very wealthy?
No. It suits anyone with more technology than they have time to oversee, usually a busy household with several properties or a family office.
Should our staff be using AI?
Probably, and many already are, on personal accounts. The safest approach is to agree which tools are fine and what must never go into them, then set up a proper business tool. I can do all of that.
How do we know your advice is independent?
I don't sell anything except my own time, and I don't take commissions or referral fees from anyone.
What if we don't take a recommendation?
That's always your call. I'll note the decision and the risk in writing, so everyone is clear, and move on.
How much of your time will we get?
I keep my client list deliberately small, so you get a named person who knows your set-up, not a ticket number.
Can we stop?
Yes. After the first 12 months it's three months' notice, and you get a full handover pack.
The next step
Start with a free 30-minute conversation.
If you'd like something to look at first, ask for my one-page home technology and security checklist: ten quick checks that show where you stand.
Manny Vara
Vara Private · technology lead for private households and family offices
Based near Beaconsfield, working across London and the Thames Valley.