Housing providers, councils and health bodies are buying more telecare equipment than ever, often through frameworks that list a dozen device types. This guide explains what each type of equipment is for, what its limits are, how the digital phone switchover affects it and what to ask suppliers before you buy.
Key points
- Telecare equipment has three parts: a trigger, a hub and someone who responds.
- Match each device to a specific risk for a specific person, and confirm who answers the alert.
- Falls detectors report a possible fall. They do not prevent one.
- Specify digital signalling, backup power and tested compatibility with your monitoring centre.
- Installation, training, testing and replacement are part of the purchase.
What is telecare equipment?
Telecare equipment is the set of devices that detect a problem in someone’s home and pass an alert to a person who can respond. Most set-ups have three parts: a trigger, such as a pendant or a sensor; a hub or alarm unit that receives the trigger and makes the call; and a monitoring centre, warden or family member who answers. Buyers increasingly use the wider terms technology enabled care (TEC) or Technology Enabled Care and Support (TECS) for the same equipment plus the services around it. Our technology enabled care page explains the terms.
What types of telecare equipment are there?
The categories below follow the lists that public buyers publish. Progress Housing Group’s framework notice names the first seven. NHS Supply Chain’s notice adds the last three.
| Equipment | The risk it addresses | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Personal alarms (pendants and wrist-worn buttons) | The person needs help and can press a button | Range from the hub, battery life, water resistance, whether it will actually be worn |
| Falls detectors | The person falls and cannot press a button | How a fall is detected, false alert rate, comfort, what happens if it is not worn |
| Environmental sensors (smoke, flood, carbon monoxide) | A hazard in the home that the person may not notice or act on | How the alert is routed, links to existing detectors, battery and test routine |
| GPS tracking devices | The person may leave home and become lost | Consent and best interests process, charging routine, mobile coverage, who is alerted |
| Telecare hubs (dispersed alarm units) | The link between devices in the home and the responder | Digital signalling, mobile and broadband paths, backup power, speech quality |
| Medication reminder devices | Missed or mistimed medication | Who fills it, what happens when a dose is missed, pharmacy involvement |
| Activity monitoring systems | Gradual change in routine that suggests declining health | Who reviews the data, how often, privacy and consent |
| Environmental controls and communication aids | Loss of independence in daily living and communication | Assessment by a suitably qualified professional, mounting, ongoing support |
| Patient alarms and sensors | A person in a bed or chair needs assistance | Compatibility with the call system in use, cleaning, replacement cycle |
| Lone worker safety devices | Staff working alone in the community | Coverage, escalation path, how alerts are recorded |
How do falls detectors work, and what are their limits?
A wearable falls detector senses a sudden change in movement and height consistent with a fall and raises an alert through the hub without the person pressing anything. Other approaches detect a fall from sensors in the room. Both tell you that a fall may have happened; neither prevents it.
That shapes how to buy them. Ask how the device distinguishes a fall from sitting down heavily, what the person has to do to cancel a false alert, and what happens overnight when a wearable is on the bedside table. Then ask what the response will be: an alert with nobody able to attend is of little use. For prevention, see our guide to commissioning a falls prevention service, and for care settings the falls prevention technology buyer’s guide.
What is a dispersed alarm unit?
A dispersed alarm unit is the hub in an individual home. Industry guidance uses “dispersed” for alarms serving separate dwellings and “grouped” for systems where many residents share one communication path, such as a sheltered scheme. The distinction matters because different technical standards apply to each, and because grouped schemes are usually bought by the landlord as a building system. Grouped schemes are covered in our guide to digital warden call systems.
How is telecare different from a nurse call system?
Telecare supports people living independently, in their own homes or in housing schemes, and the alert usually goes to a monitoring centre or a named responder some distance away. A nurse call system is installed in a care home or hospital, where staff are on site around the clock and the call goes to them directly. The devices can look similar, but the response model, the standards and the buyer are different. If you run registered care homes, see our nurse call systems page.
Will the equipment work on digital phone lines?
Do not assume so. The government’s Telecare National Action Plan says the switchover to digital lines will be complete for all providers by January 2027 and warns of a risk that some analogue telecare devices will not perform reliably on digital networks. Industry guidance explains why: older alarms send their data as audible tones, and tone signalling carries a risk of failure on digital networks.
The plan also says that suppliers certified under the sector’s quality standards framework should no longer have been manufacturing analogue equipment since 2022. Analogue units may still be in stock rooms and in people’s homes. When buying, specify digital signalling, ask which signalling paths the hub uses and how long it runs in a power cut, and ask how existing analogue units will be identified and replaced.
What standards and assurances should you ask suppliers for?
Notices are a good guide to what public buyers now expect. The NHS Supply Chain notice refers to quality management certification (ISO 9001 or ISO 13485), CE certification with a Declaration of Conformity, Cyber Essentials Plus where data or IT systems are involved, a Carbon Reduction Plan and a modern slavery statement. Beyond certificates, ask for evidence in four areas:
- Interoperability. Which monitoring centre platforms has the device been tested with, and using which alarm protocol?
- Resilience. What happens when broadband, mobile signal or mains power fails, and how is that reported?
- Data. What personal data does the device collect, where is it held, who can see it and how long is it kept?
- Lifecycle. Battery replacement, warranty, repair turnaround, cleaning and reissue, and end of life.
How should equipment be installed, tested and maintained?
Progress Housing Group’s notice asks for supply, delivery, installation, maintenance and support, and says suppliers may be asked for training, repairs, technical support and replacement. Treat those as part of the purchase, not extras. The national action plan expects telecare service providers to test the functioning of devices regularly. Agree who tests each device, how often, where the result is recorded and what happens when a test fails. Make sure installers explain the equipment to the person using it and to family or staff, in plain language.
Should you buy single items or a complete service?
The Progress notice describes a framework that lets the buyer purchase individual items, bulk equipment or complete solutions. Each suits a different situation. Single items work when you have a capable in-house team and a monitoring arrangement already. Bulk purchase suits a planned replacement, such as an analogue to digital programme. A complete solution transfers more responsibility to the supplier, so the contract has to say clearly who answers alerts, who attends and who reports. Whichever route you choose, write the specification around outcomes and response, then let suppliers propose equipment.
How can Altus help?
Our role with telecare equipment is advisory. We help you turn your needs into a specification, check that it covers connectivity, response and lifecycle, and evaluate supplier answers on a like-for-like basis.
Questions to ask a telecare equipment supplier
- Which signalling paths does the hub use, and what happens if one fails?
- How long does the hub run in a power cut, and how is low battery reported?
- Which monitoring centre platforms has it been tested with, and using which protocol?
- What quality, product conformity and cyber security certificates do you hold?
- Who installs it, and how are the user, family and staff shown how it works?
- How is each device tested, how often, and where is the result recorded?
- What data is collected, where is it stored and who can access it?
- What are the repair, replacement and end of life arrangements?
Frequently asked questions
What equipment is included in technology enabled care?
Typical technology enabled care equipment includes personal alarms, falls detectors, smoke, flood and carbon monoxide sensors, GPS location devices, telecare hubs, medication reminder devices and activity monitoring systems. Some frameworks also include communication aids, environmental controls, patient alarms and lone worker safety devices, with installation, training and maintenance services.
How do falls detectors work?
A wearable falls detector senses a sudden change in movement and height consistent with a fall and sends an alert through the telecare hub without the wearer pressing a button. It detects a possible fall after it happens. It does not prevent falls, and it only works if it is worn and someone can respond.
What is a dispersed alarm unit?
A dispersed alarm unit is the telecare hub installed in an individual home. It receives signals from pendants and sensors and calls a monitoring centre or named responder. The term distinguishes alarms in separate dwellings from grouped systems, such as warden call in sheltered housing, where many residents share one system.
Does telecare equipment need a landline?
Modern telecare hubs do not need an analogue landline. Digital units signal over broadband, the mobile network or both. Older analogue units were designed for traditional phone lines and may not perform reliably once the line is digital, so check each unit and ask the supplier to confirm compatibility in writing.
What should a telecare equipment specification include?
A good specification starts with the people supported and the risks to address, then covers who responds to alerts, digital signalling and backup power, compatibility with the monitoring centre, installation and user training, testing and maintenance, data protection, and replacement at end of life. Equipment lists come last.
If you are writing a telecare equipment specification or comparing supplier responses, we can review it with you and point out the gaps before you commit. Ask for a specification review.