A Decade of Impact: Shared ARC and the Power of Collaboration

Connecting communities through a shared approach to alarm receiving centres

As we celebrate 10 years of the Digital Office for Scottish Local Government, we're reflecting on initiatives that demonstrate what can be achieved when local authorities and partner organisations come together with a shared ambition. One of the strongest examples of this collaborative approach is the Shared ARC programme.

Within the wider telecare service, Alarm Receiving Centres (ARCs) provide essential support when an alarm is triggered. As services move from analogue to digital technology, service providers must modernise critical infrastructure while protecting resilience and continuity for some of Scotland’s most vulnerable citizens.

Recognising that many organisations were facing the same challenges, the Digital Office worked with local authorities, telecare service providers and partners to develop a collaborative solution.

A national approach to a shared challenge

The Shared ARC programme was established to help service providers modernise telecare services through a shared, resilient and cost-effective model for alarm receiving centres.

Rather than each organisation tackling complex technical and operational challenges independently, the programme provided a framework that allowed participating organisations to benefit from shared infrastructure, collective expertise and increased resilience.

The programme has enabled local authorities to work together to address the risks associated with the UK's transition away from analogue and capitalise on the benefits of new digital services, while supporting the long-term sustainability of telecare provision across Scotland.

Delivering benefits through collaboration

The success of Shared ARC has always been rooted in partnership.

Through close collaboration between service providers, telecare professionals, suppliers and national partners, the programme has helped create opportunities to:

• Strengthen resilience across telecare services.
• Support the transition from analogue to digital technologies.
• Share knowledge, expertise and best practice.
• Reduce duplication of effort.
• Create a more sustainable model for future service delivery.
• Prepare effectively for changes to communications networks

The programme demonstrates how services can achieve more collectively than individually, creating solutions that benefit organisations across Scotland while maintaining a focus on citizen outcomes.

Supporting Scotland's digital telecare transition

As the telecommunications landscape continues to evolve, the Shared ARC programme remains an important part of Scotland's wider digital telecare journey.

By bringing organisations together around common goals, the programme has helped local authorities build confidence, share learning and navigate complex change in a coordinated way.

As this work continues, the Shared ARC has shown the value of a collaborative approach to digital transformation, proving that when organisations work together, they can create resilient, innovative services that are better prepared for the future.

Looking back, moving forward

Over the past decade, the Digital Office has supported service providers to collaborate on some of the biggest digital challenges facing local government.

Shared ARC stands as a powerful example of what can be achieved when organisations work together towards a common purpose.

As we look ahead to the next decade, the lessons from Shared ARC remain as relevant as ever: collaboration drives innovation, shared challenges can inspire shared solutions, and by working together we can deliver better outcomes for communities across Scotland.