Systems & Partnerships

As with the case of quality being one of our core values, and how we wanted to demonstrate that we had processes in place to ensure that clients always got our best work by achieving ISO 9001 certification, trust is also another of our core values. An important part of this trust is ensuring that our clients can be confident that we are looking after their data and systems in a responsible and secure manner.

Zoocha already adhere to the government-backed Cyber Essentials Plus scheme, so the next logical next step in demonstrating our security credentials and capability so to achieve ISO 27001 certification.

ISO 27001 is the international standard that describes best practice for an information security management system (ISMS) and is awarded following an independent, expert assessment by a UKAS accredited certification body (in our case, SOCOTEC) of whether your data is adequately protected.

We received our ISO 27001 certification in November 2017, following two audit phases over the summer of 2017. We have since then successfully passed ISO 27001 re-certification in November 2020 and November 2023.

For us, holding the ISO 27001 certification status signifies that we are actively following information security best practice, and that our clients can trust Zoocha to safely manage the security of their data. This is paramount in a climate where cyber security is a major concern to both consumers and organisations online, and where exploits and vulnerabilities are continually being unearthed.

Our ISO 27001 certification covers our design, development and maintenance services for Drupal applications, including cloud hosting, software and support. The scope wording is:

“The design, development, maintenance and support related to Drupal web applications, including cloud hosting, software and support.”

Please see our latest ISO 27001:2022 certificate which is valid until November 2026.

In July 2024 Zoocha were awarded with the ISO 27701:2019 certification for Privacy Information Management. 

This standard builds on the ISO 27001 standard, and focuses specifically on managing personal data. The scope coverage of this certification is the same as for our ISO 27001 certification.

By integrating ISO 27701 into our existing Information Security Management System (ISMS), we are not only enhancing our compliance framework, but also reinforcing our commitment to privacy by design.

This ISO certification underscores Zoocha's commitment to safeguarding privacy and strengthening data protection processes and procedures.

Please see our ISO 27701:2019 certificate, which is valid until November 2026.

"The Data Protection Act 1998 requires every organisation that processes personal information to register with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), unless they are exempt."

Zoocha have been registered with the Information Commissioners Office as a Data Controller since January 2016.

Cyber Essentials PLUS is a UK Government scheme that aims to help you protect your organisation against a range of cyber attacks. This self-assessment accreditation was a useful exercise to go through ahead of our ISO27001:2013 journey.

Zoocha have been Cyber Essentials Certified since January 2016, and achieved the improved Cyber Essentials PLUS standard in October 2018, which we have been continuously revalidating.

Please see our most recent attainment of our Cyber Essentials Plus certification.

ISO 22301:2019 is a globally recognized standard that specifies requirements for setting up and managing an effective Business Continuity Management System (BCMS). This ensures that organisations such as Zoocha can respond effectively to disruptions, safeguarding their operations, people, and clients. 

The scope of our ISO 22301:2019 certification covers all of the Zoocha business processes in the delivery of services:

"The design, development, maintenance and support related to Drupal web applications, and other software engineering related services, including cloud hosting, software and support."

Achieving this certification demonstrates our dedication to operational excellence. It reflects our ability to not only anticipate and mitigate potential disruptions but also to ensure continuity and recovery of critical functions under any circumstances. This reassurance is vital for us, our clients, and stakeholders.

As part of the certification process, we underwent a rigorous evaluation of our business continuity strategies and response plans. This assessment ensured that our BCMS aligns with international best practices and is capable of supporting continuous improvement.

This achievement adds to our existing ISO certifications, which include ISO 9001, ISO 27001, and ISO 14001.

Please see our ISO 22301:2019 certificate which is valid until January 2027.

Zoocha are listing on Digital Outcomes and Specialists, a dynamic services procurement framework that enables public sector organisations to buy, design, build and deliver digital outcomes using an agile approach, by procuring the appropriate specialist resource or service to deliver agile software development.

Lot 1 (Digital Outcomes) includes:

• user experience and design
• performance analysis and data
• security
• service delivery
• software development
• support and operations
• testing and auditing
• user research

This Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) is a platform for the provision of Digital Services to public sector organisations in Scotland, providing access to a range of digital skills, including cyber expertise, as well as supporting the delivery of agile projects.

The Digital Services on DPS are split into 3 lots: 

• Lot 1 – Digital Projects
• Lot 2 – Digital Resources
• Lot 3 – Cyber Security Services

Understanding how and why a page works, on every device, is at the very core of producing a successful design. At Zoocha we have in depth knowledge and experience in making designs that will work for you and your customers.

The Nielson Norman Group who are internationally recognised as thought leaders in the field of UX, with their widely published and often quoted principals of Jakob Nielsen, Don Norman and Bruce Tognazzini setting their standards and leading them.

The NN/g's training and UX Certification that we achieved gave us in-depth, targeted learning about the most important UX areas, effective UX techniques and about how to deliver consistent high quality UX output.

In the same way that it can sometimes be difficult to give clients confidence in capability in relation to quality or security, without an ISO or equivalent certification, that same thinking often applies to programming / technical ability. Historically we've always pointed to number of years experience, successful projects delivered, academic qualifications from top universities, community contributions and such to demonstrate that we know what we are doing. However, this didn't give an accurate indication of how well we knew the "thing" that we were being asked to work on (Drupal).

Since we formed back in 2009, the growth in the number of agencies offering Drupal as a service, or even proclaiming to be out-and-out Drupal specialists has exponentially increased. With that, it has made it all the more difficult for clients that are new to Drupal to be able to disseminate where the true Drupal experience and talent can be found.

The certifications offered by Acquia offer some solution to this problem as they allow developers to take a 90 minute test under controlled examination conditions in order to ascertain the level that they are currently at.

In the last third of 2017, Zoocha started a programme which aimed to get all of our developers Acquia certified. Thus far we have achieved 25 of Acquia's “Drupal Triple” certifications, as well as various other Drupal certifications across a great number of team members. Review the Acquia register to track our progress.

Zoocha is a Financial Services Qualification System (FSQS) certified supplier, which demonstrates compliance with regulations, policies and governance controls, which financial institutions such as Banks, Building Societies, Insurance Companies and Investment Companies seek from their suppliers.

This means that Zoocha's Drupal services can be procured with confidence by such institutions, and other security-conscious organisations, knowing they are dealing with a fully registered FSQS-certified company.

Achieving the FSQS certification involved completing 2 stages of assessment, where various security focussed questions had to be completed, along with evidencing our various internal policy and procedure documents. Being ISO 27001 certified already, along with possessing a Cyber Essentials Plus certification meant that a large part of the scope of the FSQS certification was covered already by our ISMS.

Zoocha have been FSQS certified since September 2022, and look forward to maintaining the certification for many years to come.