What is a Careline Alarm and how do I apply?

What is the Careline alarm service?

The Careline alarm service gives you the freedom to live independently, in the safety of knowing that you can always get help in your home whenever you need it.

Our service provides peace of mind and reassurance 24 hrs a day, 365 days a year and is available for people living in the Borough of Stevenage, particularly if you live alone or feel at risk for any reason.

You will be provided with two pieces of equipment. One is a pendant which you can carry anywhere within your home or garden. Light and easy to use, the pendant can be worn around your neck, clipped to your clothing or worn on a wrist strap. The other piece of equipment is a unit, which is plugged into your telephone.

When you press the red button either on the pendant or on the unit, your call goes through to highly trained staff at the North Herts Careline Centre. They will summon help such as an ambulance, a doctor, one of our mobile supported housing officers, family or friends.

 What can I expect once a referral has been made?

• Your application for an alarm will be dealt with by trained staff in a polite and efficient manner. 
• An appointment will be made for a mobile supported housing officer to visit you and assess whether you could benefit from having an alarm installed.  Always make sure that any visitors are who they say they are. If you are in doubt do not let them into your home.  (All Stevenage Borough Council staff carry an identification badge).
• If an alarm is required, then we will look to see if any work needs to be carried out such as extra plug sockets.
• We will need to change the barrel on your front door to a master system to enable our mobile supported housing officers to gain access.

What can I expect from this service?

• We will provide a 24 hour, 7 days a week response service to older and disabled people living in Stevenage by mobile Supported Housing Officers who wear a uniform and are checked by the Criminal Records Bureau.
• We will replace or repair within 24 hours any faults with the Careline equipment being reported.
• We will install the Careline unit within 2 weeks of receiving the request.
• We will visit you once a year to check the system and update records.
• We will consult/involve you in decisions related to the service.

How do I apply?

Telephone the Customer Service Centre on 01438 242666 or complete our online referral form below:

Careline referral form

You can also write to us at:

Daneshill House
Danestrete
Stevenage
Herts
SG1 1HN

Or e-mail us at supported.housing@stevenage.gov.uk

We will advise you on whether or not you qualify for a Careline alarm and arrange a home visit.

What will it cost?

There is a weekly charge of £3.69 for the rental of the alarm equipment, monitoring and response service.  If you would like the monitoring only part of the service, the cost will be £2.01 per week (you will need to provide two names and contact details of key holders who can get to you if you need help).  You may be able to get assistance with some or all of the cost depending on your circumstances.

The Careline alarm needs a landline telephone point and will need a 13 amp socket within 2 metres of the telephone point.

What happens if my circumstances change?

Let us know as soon as possible by ringing us on 01438 242666.

If you are moving into sheltered housing, this is covered by a similar system and your Careline alarm will need to be returned to Stevenage Borough Council for use elsewhere.

If you move out of Stevenage, your Careline alarm must be returned to Stevenage Borough Council.

Please let us know if you are moving so that we can keep our records up to date.

What if I have a comment or concern about the Service?

If you have a comment or concern about this service we would like to know so that we can improve our service to you. You can do this by contacting us at the above address or completing the online form below.

Feedback form