Sales:
0808 196 2872
Support:
0344 477 9991
Contact Us
Staff & Client Login
The key thing to remember about Waking Watch services is that they’re absolutely critical in protecting residents, maintaining legislative compliance, and establishing those all-important next steps in issue remediation. What that doesn’t change is that they are a necessary but often steep expense. And for building owners and Responsible Entities already under regulatory scrutiny, that cost lands at the worst possible time.”
As a provider of Waking Watch services that works closely with building owners through the full fire safety process, we’re well aware that this can have a strain on finances. Fortunately, though, the UK Government has been quick to implement Waking Watch funding and a string of additional redressal or refund schemes.
This guide covers how to apply for Waking Watch funding, when you should apply, the latest funding streams available (as of April 2026), where this goes should you be successful, and what the next steps are for you.
On the 1st April 2026, the Labour government introduced the Interim Measures Alarm Fund (the “IMAF”) – a £62.7 million scheme that’s designed to offer financial support to the owners of residential properties and student accommodation that are at increased risk from fire. This was issued in replacement of, and as a continuation of, the Waking Watch Replacement Fund (WWRF) that ended on the 31st March 2026.
Waking Watch funding (both the IMAF and the now-retired WWRF) does not directly cover the costs of a Waking Watch service. These funding streams are designed to provide coverage for capital costs of any fire alarm system, including relevant components (wiring, equipment, detectors, etc.), labour, commissioning, testing, and any reasonable upfront costs.
As of the publication of this article, the IMAF is the main (and only) option for achieving funding that seeks to cover some of the associated costs of implementing a Waking Watch. It’s available via the government’s official IMAF application portal, and requires a few key points of information before you can receive any funding. We’ll discuss those key areas later in this article.
If you’ve historically looked into Waking Watch funding as a way to keep residents safe while still protecting the bottom line, you will likely already be familiar with the WWRF. It was first issued in 2021, when the then-Conservative government set aside £30 million to cover the costs of installing fire alarm systems at properties where the current measures are either not in place, non-functioning, or where a costly Waking Watch package is in place as an interim measure.
This was preceded by a similar package of funding issued in 2022 and 2023, with those streams offering a share of £27 million and £41.71 million respectively up until March 2026. These followed a lengthy yet critically important inquiry into the Grenfell Disaster and its causes, which were numerous but ultimately centred on the unsafe cladding that characterised the building, and caused the rapid, uncontrolled spread of fire on the 14th June, 2017.
All Waking Watch funding streams (including both the now-defunct Waking Watch Replacement Fund (WWRF) and the current Interim Measures Alarm Fund (IMAF)) are designed to offer recompense for the costs associated with installing a new automated fire alert system (i.e., a fire alarm). It’s designed to make the move away from manned solutions less financially intensive and ultimately make it a more appealing prospect for building owners.
Waking Watch funding does not pay for the actual Waking Watch service. It is instead designed to save costs further down the line, and, in the words of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, “further incentivise the installation of common fire alarms in buildings waiting for remediation works to be completed”.
The IMAF is a longer-term funding provision, ensuring that more leaseholders are able to access a slice of the £62.7 million made available to facilitate the installation of fire alarms. The latest estimates place the average per-month saving for leaseholders at around £273, with over 800 buildings and their leaseholders already having benefitted from the scheme since its inception in 2021.
IMAF’s intention is also to build a clearer picture of all buildings that currently have unsafe cladding. Changes in the focus of remediation funding mean that all buildings above 11 metres with unsafe cladding are under scrutiny, and the goal with both current and future waves of funding is to identify and remediate all of those as part of the Remediation Acceleration Plan (RAP).
No. There are currently no options to have any Waking Watch measures fully funded through the UK Government. Some banks and private lenders may be able to assist, but this would likely be done on a case-by-case basis, and is in no way intended to be a long-term method of paying for a Waking Watch at your property.
All Waking Watch funding is designed to support after a Waking Watch service has ended, and a fire alarm system has been installed. We’d advise viewing all governmental Waking Watch funding (whether that’s IMAF, WWRF, or any future initiatives) as a method of compensation as opposed to payment for a service conducted at your premises.
It is the obligation of either the Responsible Entity (usually a building company, leaseholding company, local authority, or private corporation) or the Responsible Person (usually part of a company, but it may also be a single owner of a high-rise property) to apply for Waking Watch funding. Hotels are ineligible for funding.
Residents and leaseholders cannot apply for Waking Watch funding and should instead contact the Responsible Entity to apply for the appropriate funding. Funding is available to both the private sector (property management agents, for example) and the social sector (social housing providers, for example).
There are certain eligibility criteria that must be met before funding can be applied for, however. According to the Government’s official IMAF guidance, these are:
There are no requirements for any specific earnings or income level that determines the funding your building receives. There are, however, certain expectations for those in receipt of any funding:
Outside of that, however, the funding application is relatively straightforward. Let’s break down how you can apply for the latest wave of Waking Watch funds.
You’ll start by visiting the official Government application page for the Interim Measures Alarm Fund (IMAF). You’ll need to be the Responsible Entity or Responsible Person (usually part of the Responsible Entity, where this is a company) – see our guidance earlier in this article for how you can determine if you fit that criteria.
The application itself takes around 30 minutes, is conducted through Microsoft Forms, and must be completed in one sitting as the application does not save. The form asks many of the basic questions you’d expect, but some of the key information you should have to hand while filling out this form includes:
Alongside those key pointers, it’s also important to note that the IMAF will need additional information to support any application and ultimately grant any Waking Watch funding. This is twofold:
This will then need to be sent via email to the IMAF (their dedicated inbox is [email protected]), with the name of your building as the subject.
That’s not clear just yet. The current wave of funding – the Interim Measures Alarm Fund (IMAF) – began on April 1st, 2026, and does not have a defined end date as of the publication of this article. However, that’s not to say that it won’t be confirmed in the coming weeks and months – we’ll update this article should that be the case.
Given the historic extensions to schemes like the Waking Watch Replacement Fund (WWRF), we believe that there’s likely to be funding long into the future, but this may change drastically based on a range of different factors, such as economic shifts, global instability, and costings of the necessary works.
It might also depend on the political party in power. While the Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS) is a cross-party initiative (both the current Labour government and previous Conservative governments have invested substantially in the scheme), there’s no guarantee that the next party in power will maintain those commitments.
Ultimately, however, what won’t change is the need to protect residents in any way possible. A Waking Watch service is still the recognised interim measure while alarm installation is pending, and that is an area ProFM Group has deep operational experience in..
You cannot afford to delay when it comes to securing a Waking Watch service. It is the interim recommendation from the Fire Safety England (FSE) Regulations, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), and wider government resources for where a fire alarm system cannot be installed or fixed immediately, It is also an essential part of keeping residents protected and reassured in their homes.
That’s an area we have direct experience in. Our work with the Berwick Court development in Southwark is a prime example of our security services in London, seeing us deploy 19 trained and licensed officers at short notice to protect a major high-rise on the bank of the Thames. It follows multiple other successful Waking Watch deployments, including for the renowned housing provider Connexus Homes in Herefordshire.
It’s that expertise, and our bespoke approach to Waking Watch services (a key stipulation of both the NFCC and FSE), that ensures we’re in the ideal position to act as that short-term, immediate protection your residents need.
We know that this is an interim measure – we actively accept that, and help with the steps immediately following the installation of automated measures – but that doesn’t diminish the importance and professionalism we place into what we do as a Waking Watch provider. We must take this seriously – for you, for your residents, and for the wider fire safety industry.
If you’d like to find out more about our Waking Watch services and how ProFM Group can act as that expert interim protection as you transition towards more automated fire alerts, get in touch with our in-house experts today on 03444 779991.
Emily is responsible for business growth and account development via new sales. She leads the Business Development teams through strategic goals and objectives in line with business targets and strategy. Emily is a friendly, approachable and a respected senior manager at ProFM Group who always strives to deliver service excellence.
