When a new company's admin signs in before the company has paid, ARC does not show the usual admin screens. It opens a full-screen setup that asks one question at a time. Nothing is recorded for young people yet, and your staff cannot sign in until you have paid. The last screen of the wizard is the payment.

If you sign out part-way, sign in again and the first screen reads Welcome back and tells you where you got to — "You got as far as: your company and homes", for example — with a Carry on button. Every admin of the company shares the same saved place, so a second admin continues from where the first stopped.

Step 1: your company and homes

Your details. "First, are these details right?" Check the Company name and Billing email, for receipts, then select Looks right.
Your logo. "Want to add your logo?" Select Choose a file, or Skip for now. You can remove it again with Remove logo. The formats and size are in Your company logo.
Each home. Give it a name, then answer "How many registered beds does [the home] have?" Choose a number, or choose the top option and enter the exact number under How many registered beds exactly? The screen shows the band that number falls in and its monthly price, because "Each home is priced by its beds" — see Pricing and what you're billed for. If the home is not registered with Ofsted yet, you are offered the Prepare plan at £29 a month instead of the band price. It is monthly only, and child features are locked until you move to the Full plan. See The Prepare plan.
Address and Ofsted URN. Both are optional. The URN field is labelled Ofsted URN, from your registration certificate. Select OK, or Skip, I'll add these later.
Any other homes? The list shows each home with its band and monthly price. Yes, add another home repeats step 3. Remove takes a home back out (not once a child has been recorded against it), and Set beds appears beside a home with no bed count.

You need at least one home, with its beds set, to carry on: "You need at least one home to carry on." and "Set the beds for every home to carry on." A running Your price total sits at the bottom of the screen.

A home added here is a draft. It goes live with your first payment.

Step 2: your team

"Who else should use ARC?" Enter an email address and choose a role — Staff, Senior, Deputy, Manager, Safeguarding or Company admin — then select Add. To leave it for later, select Skip, I'll invite people later; once you have added someone the button reads That's everyone for now.

A staff invite is held. The list shows it as "Sends when you go live", and nobody receives an email until your payment is through.
A Company admin invite is sent straight away, so a second admin can help you finish. It shows as "Sent now". Company admin is offered in the wizard only — see Invite staff and choose a role.
Remove deletes an invite that has not been sent yet, or one that has expired. An invite already sent and still valid cannot be removed.

Step 3: children

Homes on the Prepare plan cannot have children, so only a home on the Full plan can be chosen here.

"Want to add any children now?" It is optional — Later, once we're live skips it. To add a child, choose Yes, add one now and answer: which home they live in, their LA number ("The reference from the placing local authority"), their First name and Last name, an optional Name they like to be called, Date of birth and Placement start date. Social worker and other details are added on their record later. After each child, you can add another or choose That's enough for now.

Step 4: terms, then payment

Agree to the terms. "Before you pay, can you agree to our terms?" Two documents are listed, each with a Read it link: the Customer Agreement and the Data Processing Agreement. If a home is on the Prepare plan, the Prepare plan terms are listed too. Enter Your full name and your role at the company, tick the box ("I agree to both, on behalf of [company], and I'm authorised to do that.") and select Agree and continue. ARC records your name, your role and the time, and emails a copy to the billing email. You must do this before you can pay.
Choose how to pay. "Last one. How would you like to pay?" Choose Monthly or Annual — annual carries a "2 months free" badge. The homes are listed with their prices and a Due today line. If you have a code, select Got a discount code?, enter it under Discount code and select Apply.
Pay. The button reads Pay and the amount. Select it and the card form appears on the same screen — "Your card goes straight to Stripe and never reaches ARC." If a code brings the total to nothing, the button reads Add your card and the form says nothing is charged today.

While a payment is open the wizard is locked (Locked while paying), because Stripe is holding an invoice for exactly your homes. To change a home, the billing period or a code, select Start over, which cancels that payment.

If the card is declined, the screen says "Your card was declined. Try again below, or with a different card."

When the payment goes through

The screen reads "Welcome to ARC" and "Payment received. Your homes are open and your team's invites are on their way." Your homes go live, the held staff invites are emailed, and Go to ARC takes you to the admin area. Staff follow their invite link — see Accept your invite.