diff --git a/app/assets/config/manifest.js b/app/assets/config/manifest.js
index bf7d828eb8..384537b9ab 100644
--- a/app/assets/config/manifest.js
+++ b/app/assets/config/manifest.js
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 //= link components/map/map-test.geojson
 //= link components/map/maplibre-gl-csp-worker.js
 //= link views/travel-advice.js
+//= link lib/asset-manager-session.js
 
 //= link static-error-pages.js
 
diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/lib/asset-manager-session.js b/app/assets/javascripts/lib/asset-manager-session.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..dbddec92d6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/lib/asset-manager-session.js
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+/* Warms up the Asset Manager draft-assets session cookie via a single
+ * placeholder image request, then reloads any draft images already on
+ * the page once that request has settled (success or failure).
+ */
+/* istanbul ignore next */
+window.GOVUK = window.GOVUK || {};
+
+(function (root) {
+  function draftAssetImages () {
+    return [...document.images].filter((image) =>
+      image.src.includes('assets.') // currently, asset urls in draft preview point to their live link: 'assets.xyz' instead of 'draft-assets.xyz'. Created a backlog item for this: https://gov-uk.atlassian.net/browse/WHIT-4008.
+    )
+  }
+
+  function reloadDraftImages (draftAssets) {
+    draftAssets.forEach((image) => {
+      // re-setting src tries to fetch the image again, with the hope that a prior success is just served from cache
+      image.setAttribute('src', image.getAttribute('src'))
+    })
+  }
+
+  root.GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession = function (placeholderAssetUrl) {
+    const draftAssets = draftAssetImages()
+    // fewer than 2 images means there's no concurrent-request race to fix, so nothing to warm up
+    if (draftAssets.length < 2) return
+
+    const reload = () => reloadDraftImages(draftAssets)
+    const placeholder = new Image()
+    placeholder.onload = reload
+    placeholder.onerror = reload
+    placeholder.src = placeholderAssetUrl
+  }
+}(window))
diff --git a/app/views/layouts/application.html.erb b/app/views/layouts/application.html.erb
index a916665a49..b7a978744b 100644
--- a/app/views/layouts/application.html.erb
+++ b/app/views/layouts/application.html.erb
@@ -24,4 +24,5 @@
       <%= yield %>
     </main>
   </div>
+  <%= render "shared/asset_manager_session" %>
 <% end %>
diff --git a/app/views/layouts/full_width.html.erb b/app/views/layouts/full_width.html.erb
index e04d2aa1a4..58b0be7822 100644
--- a/app/views/layouts/full_width.html.erb
+++ b/app/views/layouts/full_width.html.erb
@@ -14,4 +14,5 @@
     <span id="Top"></span>
     <%= yield %>
   </main>
+  <%= render "shared/asset_manager_session" %>
 <% end %>
diff --git a/app/views/layouts/header_content_sidebar.html.erb b/app/views/layouts/header_content_sidebar.html.erb
index 64220aa479..37c6498a86 100644
--- a/app/views/layouts/header_content_sidebar.html.erb
+++ b/app/views/layouts/header_content_sidebar.html.erb
@@ -60,5 +60,6 @@
         </div>
       <% end %>
     </main>
+    <%= render "shared/asset_manager_session" %>
   </div>
 <% end %>
diff --git a/app/views/layouts/header_sidebar_content.html.erb b/app/views/layouts/header_sidebar_content.html.erb
index d686f56961..20646969ea 100644
--- a/app/views/layouts/header_sidebar_content.html.erb
+++ b/app/views/layouts/header_sidebar_content.html.erb
@@ -34,5 +34,6 @@
         </div>
       </div>
     </main>
+    <%= render "shared/asset_manager_session" %>
   </div>
 <% end %>
diff --git a/app/views/layouts/manual.html.erb b/app/views/layouts/manual.html.erb
index 922f0f5a96..09f9ffb045 100644
--- a/app/views/layouts/manual.html.erb
+++ b/app/views/layouts/manual.html.erb
@@ -17,5 +17,6 @@
       <span id="Top"></span>
       <%= yield %>
     </main>
+    <%= render "shared/asset_manager_session" %>
   </div>
 <% end %>
diff --git a/app/views/shared/_asset_manager_session.html.erb b/app/views/shared/_asset_manager_session.html.erb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..6dfef79d48
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/views/shared/_asset_manager_session.html.erb
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+<% if draft_host? %>
+  <%
+    host = if GovukEnvironment.current == "staging"
+             "staging.publishing.service.gov.uk"
+           elsif GovukEnvironment.current == "integration"
+             "integration.publishing.service.gov.uk"
+           else
+             "publishing.service.gov.uk"
+           end
+    placeholder_asset_url = "https://draft-assets.#{host}/media/5e59279b86650c53b2cefbfe/placeholder.jpg"
+  %>
+  <%= javascript_include_tag "lib/asset-manager-session.js", integrity: false %>
+  <%= javascript_tag nonce: true do %>
+    window.addEventListener("load", function () {
+      GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession('<%= placeholder_asset_url %>')
+    })
+  <% end %>
+<% end %>
diff --git a/spec/javascripts/lib/asset-manager-session.spec.js b/spec/javascripts/lib/asset-manager-session.spec.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..4d15720fae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/spec/javascripts/lib/asset-manager-session.spec.js
@@ -0,0 +1,90 @@
+describe('GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession', function () {
+  let originalImage
+
+  const addImage = (src) => {
+    const img = document.createElement('img')
+    img.src = src
+    document.body.appendChild(img)
+    return img
+  }
+
+  const trackReloads = (image) => {
+    const reloadedUrls = []
+    const originalSetAttribute = image.setAttribute.bind(image)
+    image.setAttribute = (name, value) => {
+      if (name === 'src') reloadedUrls.push(value)
+      originalSetAttribute(name, value)
+    }
+    return reloadedUrls
+  }
+
+  const stubImage = ({ succeeds }) => {
+    class FakeImage {
+      get src () {
+        return this._src
+      }
+
+      set src (value) {
+        this._src = value
+        succeeds
+          ? this.onload && this.onload()
+          : this.onerror && this.onerror()
+      }
+    }
+    window.Image = FakeImage
+  }
+
+  beforeEach(function () {
+    originalImage = window.Image
+  })
+
+  afterEach(function () {
+    window.Image = originalImage
+    document.querySelectorAll('img').forEach((img) => img.remove())
+  })
+
+  it('does nothing when fewer than two draft images are on the page', function () {
+    addImage('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg')
+    stubImage({ succeeds: true })
+
+    GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/placeholder/placeholder.jpg')
+
+    expect(document.images[0].src).toEqual(
+      'https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg'
+    )
+  })
+
+  it('retries all draft images once the placeholder request succeeds', function () {
+    const first = addImage('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg')
+    const second = addImage('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/2/two.jpg?foo=bar')
+    const firstReloads = trackReloads(first)
+    const secondReloads = trackReloads(second)
+    stubImage({ succeeds: true })
+
+    GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/placeholder/placeholder.jpg')
+
+    expect(firstReloads).toEqual(['https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg'])
+    expect(secondReloads).toEqual(['https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/2/two.jpg?foo=bar'])
+  })
+
+  it('also retries all draft images when the placeholder request errors', function () {
+    const first = addImage('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg')
+    addImage('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/2/two.jpg')
+    const firstReloads = trackReloads(first)
+    stubImage({ succeeds: false })
+
+    GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/placeholder/placeholder.jpg')
+
+    expect(firstReloads).toEqual(['https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg'])
+  })
+
+  it('ignores non-asset-manager images when counting/retrying', function () {
+    const other = addImage('https://static.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg')
+    addImage('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/2/two.jpg')
+    stubImage({ succeeds: true })
+
+    GOVUK.warmUpAssetManagerSession('https://draft-assets.test.gov.uk/media/placeholder/placeholder.jpg')
+
+    expect(other.src).toEqual('https://static.test.gov.uk/media/1/one.jpg')
+  })
+})