Government backs Choice-style cladding fire alarm solutions
The UK government has announced a further £27million is now available – from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities – as part of the Waking Watch Relief Fund. This is for the provision of fire alarm systems to “help end the scandal of excessive waking watch costs” (government press release quote) being incurred by residents of high rise buildings waiting for replacement of unsafe, fire-risk cladding as a consequence of the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire.
Choice has experience working on fire alarms and systems monitoring provision for this purpose for almost two years now, as explained in our blog of November 2021.
To be eligible for a grant from the Fund a building must:
- be in the private sector;
- be over 18 metres in height;
- have an unsafe cladding system;
- have Waking Watch in place where these costs have been passed on to leaseholders;
- (social sector buildings that can provide evidence of waking watch costs that have been passed on to leaseholders may also be eligible).
The fund is open for applications from the Responsible Person – the person, entity or group responsible for ensuring the safety of residents in their building from fire – identifying suitable mitigating measures where needed. Applicants are encouraged to speak to their local Fire and Rescue Service about the implications of installing a common fire alarm in their building.
The full criteria for the Waking Watch fund, including application guidance, can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/waking-watch-relief-fund.