Monitoring Services in Greater Manchester

Intruder alarms, CCTV and fire systems, monitored around the clock — and when something happens, it is our officer who attends. One contract covers the monitoring and the response, so there is never a question about who is dealing with it.

Clear Watch holds SIA Approved Contractor status for Keyholding and Security Guarding.
Monitored 24/7Every hour of every day, including holidays
Three Systems, One ContractIntruder, CCTV and fire together
Our Officers RespondNot a referral to somebody else
One Number to CallClear Watch is accountable end to end
A hand entering a code on a wall-mounted intruder alarm keypad
A monitored alarm is only half the jobThe other half is somebody turning up.

The gap most businesses do not notice

Your alarm is monitored. But who actually attends?

Most monitoring contracts end at the phone call. The signal is received, somebody rings a list of numbers, and then it is your manager getting dressed at two in the morning — or nobody at all until the building opens.

We closed that gap by putting both halves on one contract. The systems are monitored around the clock, and when an activation needs attention, a Clear Watch officer is already on the way.

  • ✓No employee is called out to an unknown situation at night
  • ✓No arguing between your alarm company and your guarding company
  • ✓One set of site instructions, agreed once and followed every time
  • ✓One invoice, one point of contact, one company accountable
If you already have a monitoring contract elsewhere, we can still act as your nominated keyholder and response. See keyholding and alarm response.

What we monitor

Three systems, monitored on one contract.

We monitor the equipment you already have, or the equipment your installer fits. Clear Watch does not install or maintain alarm, CCTV or fire systems — we monitor them and we respond to them.

Intruder alarms

Your intruder alarm signals are received and handled around the clock. Activations are actioned against the escalation plan agreed for your site, so a confirmed break-in and a faulty contact are not treated the same way.

  • ✓Confirmed and unconfirmed activations handled differently
  • ✓Open and close signals monitored where you want them
  • ✓Personal attack and duress signals escalated immediately

CCTV monitoring

Cameras you already own on your own premises can be brought into monitoring, so a detection is looked at by a person rather than recorded for somebody to find in the morning. Where the system supports it, a live audio warning can be issued on site.

  • ✓Detections reviewed, not just recorded
  • ✓Audio challenge where your system supports it
  • ✓Footage retained and supplied for incidents and claims

Hiring a camera rather than monitoring your own? CCTV towers and mobile CCTV for hire.

Fire alarm monitoring

Fire signals are received and escalated on their own route, separately from intruder activations, because the people who need to know are different and the timing matters more.

  • ✓Fire and fault signals separated and handled accordingly
  • ✓Escalation to the fire and rescue service where agreed
  • ✓Your responsible person notified under your own plan

Monitoring only. Your fire system must be installed and maintained by a competent fire contractor.

From signal to site

What actually happens when it goes off.

Six steps, and Clear Watch is accountable for the whole chain. Here is exactly where each part sits, so you know what you are buying.

  1. Your site 01

    Activation

    A detector, camera or fire device on your premises triggers and sends a signal.

  2. Alarm receiving centre 02

    Signal received

    The signal arrives at the alarm receiving centre that handles Clear Watch monitoring, 24 hours a day.

  3. Alarm receiving centre 03

    Activation assessed

    The activation is checked against your site profile so that genuine events and known faults are separated before anyone is sent.

  4. Clear Watch 04

    Our control team takes it

    The activation comes to the Clear Watch control team with your site instructions, keys and escalation contacts already on file.

  5. Clear Watch 05

    Our officer attends

    A local SIA-licensed officer attends in a marked vehicle, assesses the site from outside before entering, and deals with what they find.

  6. Clear Watch 06

    Secured and reported

    The premises are re-secured and reset where authorised, and an electronic report is issued with the outcome and any evidence.

Your premises and equipment The alarm receiving centre that handles our monitoring Clear Watch — our control team and our officers
Where there are signs of a break-in or an unsafe situation, the officer does not take unnecessary risks. The site is observed from a safe position and the agreed emergency escalation process is followed.

Why it matters who owns the chain

When it goes wrong, there is nobody to point at.

Split the chain across two suppliers and every incident has a seam in it. The alarm company says the signal went out. The guarding company says it never came in. You are the one holding both invoices and neither answer.

On a Clear Watch contract there is no seam. The monitoring and the response are ours, the site instructions are one document, and if something is missed it is our name on it.

Two suppliers

  • Two contracts, two renewal dates, two invoices
  • Site instructions held in two places, drifting apart
  • Response times nobody quite owns
  • Incidents that end in a disagreement

One provider

  • One contract, one renewal, one invoice
  • One set of instructions, agreed at survey
  • Response targets written into your quotation
  • One company accountable for the outcome
A Clear Watch Security board on the railings of a protected site, beneath a solar CCTV and floodlight column
One name on the boardMonitoring and response, both ours.

What comes with it

Set up properly, then left to run quietly.

A site survey first

We visit, look at what you have, and agree the escalation plan before anything is connected. Nothing is assumed from a phone call.

Keys held securely

Where we hold keys for you, they are kept in access-controlled storage against a unique reference, issued and returned under a controlled procedure.

Reports you can use

Every attendance produces an electronic report with times, findings and evidence — the record your insurer or head office will ask for.

False alarms managed

Recurring faults are logged and reported back to you, so a nuisance detector gets fixed rather than quietly ignored.

Bundled with your other services

Monitoring sits alongside mobile patrols, lock and unlock visits and vacant property inspections on the same contract.

Changes handled properly

New staff, new contacts, a unit taken out of use — tell us once and the instructions are updated across monitoring and response together.

Where it fits

Premises that go quiet and stay quiet.

Monitoring earns its money in the hours nobody is there. These are the sites we are asked about most.

Industrial units and warehousing

Offices and business parks

Retail and trade counters

Residential blocks

Care homes and healthcare

Schools and colleges

Vacant and part-let property

Yards, depots and compounds

A dome CCTV camera mounted on the brickwork of a commercial building

Monitoring questions answered

What buyers usually ask before moving.

If your setup is more involved — several sites, an existing contract with time to run, or equipment of uncertain age — tell us and we will give you a straight answer on what can and cannot be taken on.

Ask a different question →

Usually not. Most systems in reasonable order can be connected as they are. We check what you have at the survey and tell you honestly if something is too old or too unreliable to monitor properly, rather than connecting it and sending you the bill for the false alarms.

No. We monitor and we respond. Installation and maintenance stay with your alarm, CCTV or fire contractor, and we are happy to work alongside them. If you do not have one, we can point you toward installers in the area.

A Clear Watch officer, in a marked Clear Watch vehicle. The response is not subcontracted. That is the main difference between this and a monitoring-only contract, where the call simply gets passed to whoever you have nominated.

Yes, where the cameras and the connection support it. CCTV monitoring works best on systems with reliable detection and a decent internet connection — we will confirm at the survey whether yours is suitable and what, if anything, would need changing.

Often, yes. We can quote to start when your current term ends, and in the meantime act as your nominated keyholder and response under a separate arrangement. Tell us the renewal date and we will work to it.

Police response is not automatic for any monitored alarm. It depends on the installation holding a Unique Reference Number and on the activation being confirmed, and the police can withdraw response from sites with repeated false alarms. We will tell you at survey where your system stands and what would be involved in qualifying.

Monitoring is quoted per site, based on what is being monitored and how you want activations handled. Response attendance is quoted with it rather than separately, so the figure you see covers the whole chain. There is no charge for the survey.

Yes, and it is usually where this works best. Each site keeps its own instructions and escalation plan, but you get one contract, one invoice and one point of contact across the estate.

Monitoring and response on one contract

Find out what your sites would cost.

Tell us what you have and how it is monitored now. We will confirm what can be taken on, arrange a survey and put a clear quotation in writing.

No-obligation survey
Monitoring and response priced together
Works with your existing equipment where suitable
Renewal dates worked around
Or call 0161 628 9169

    Need your alarms monitored?Call 0161 628 9169