How ARC compares to the software children's homes already use
Comparing care software is hard because almost nobody publishes the whole bill. These pages set out what each system costs all in, what it does with the record, and how it handles Regulation 44 and 45 — using the same rows every time, so nothing is picked to flatter us.
Every claim about another supplier is quoted from their own public material and linked to the page it came from. Where a vendor doesn't publish something, we say that instead of guessing, and we re-check every page at least every 6 months.
ARC compared
ARC vs CHARMS
CHARMS is the widest system in this comparison: fostering, adoption and residential care across the UK and Republic of Ireland. ARC does one setting,...
Last checked August 2026ARC vs Clearcare
Clearcare is the established name in this market, and on the headline licence fee they start lower than ARC. The headline is not the bill, though: AI...
Last checked August 2026ARC vs CRIS
CRIS and ARC are aimed at the same home and agree on a lot: per-home pricing with unlimited staff, no contract, UK hosting, native Regulation 44 and 4...
Last checked August 2026ARC vs Hearth
Hearth is the closest thing to a like-for-like alternative to ARC: built for Ofsted-regulated children's homes in England, priced openly, no contract,...
Last checked August 2026ARC vs Lief
Both ARC and Lief are built for children's homes and both publish their prices, which makes this an unusually straightforward comparison. Lief's first...
Last checked August 2026ARC vs OVcare
OVcare and ARC both publish their prices and both hold data in the UK. OVcare's headline starts lower. ARC's has fewer conditions attached to it, and...
Last checked August 2026ARC vs Sue Solutions
Sue Solutions and ARC are aimed at the same reader: a registered manager who wants recording that holds up at inspection. Both hold data in the UK. Th...
Last checked August 2026What to check in any children's home software
The same six questions, whichever residential children's home software you are looking at — ARC included.
The whole bill
Per-home or per-bed price, per-user charges, setup, migration, training and the minimum term, in writing.
One record per child
Whether a log, an incident and a care plan goal link to each other, or live in separate places.
Recording on shift
Whether staff can record a moment as it happens, without returning to the office.
Safeguarding access
Whether safeguarding information is restricted by role, and who can see a concern about a colleague.
Regulation 44 and 45
Whether the reports are compiled from the record, or written again from scratch each month.
Leaving
What export you get when you leave, in what format, and whether it covers every record you are required to keep.
Choosing children's home software.
Which children's home software is best?
There is no single best system; it depends on the size of the home, how confident the staff are with computers and what the registered manager needs to see. Shortlist two or three, ask each for an account with realistic data in it, and have your least confident member of staff record a shift on each before deciding.
How do I compare the cost of children's home software?
Ask for the whole bill in writing: the per-home or per-bed price, any per-user charges, setup and migration fees, training, the minimum contract term and what happens to your data when you leave. Many suppliers do not publish prices, so the only fair comparison is a written quote against the same list.
What should residential children's home software cover?
At minimum: daily recording, handovers, incidents and physical interventions, missing episodes, safeguarding with role-restricted access, care and placement plans, Regulation 40 notifications, and Regulation 44 and 45 reporting under the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015.
Can we change supplier without losing records?
Yes, if you plan it. Ask your current supplier for a full export before you give notice, keep it stored for the Regulation 36 retention period, and start the new system from a chosen date rather than re-keying the archive.
How we write these
Comparison pages written by the company that wins them are worth very little. So we hold ourselves to a rule: no cell about another supplier goes live without a link to the page it came from, a quote from that page, and the date we checked it. If we can't source it, the cell says "not published" and you can go and ask them.
Every page also has a section on where the other supplier is the better choice, because on several of these rows they are. If you spot something out of date or wrong, email hello@arccare.co.uk and we'll fix it.
See ARC in your home.
See ARC against whichever system you are weighing it up with.
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