KareShift vs Access Care Planning
The Access Group is a large enterprise software provider with a dedicated health and social care division. KareShift is built for smaller agencies who want the same depth of features without enterprise contracts, sales cycles, or implementation projects.
Try KareShift Free — 90 DaysNo credit card · No lock-in · No enterprise sales process
The Access Group (which acquired CM2000) is a major UK enterprise software company whose Health & Social Care division offers care planning, eMAR, rostering, and compliance tools for home care and residential providers. They serve large organisations with dedicated account management and implementation teams. KareShift serves small-to-medium agencies (5–50 carers) who want enterprise-grade features with self-serve signup, transparent pricing, and no long-term contracts. (Source: theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026)
Pricing comparison
Last verified: 28-Aug-2026
Verify directly with each vendor before making a purchasing decision.
Access Care Planning
Enterprise pricing — contact sales
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Published pricing | Not publicly listed (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) |
| Free trial | Not publicly available |
| Contract | Enterprise agreement |
| Implementation | Dedicated onboarding + training |
| Module pricing | Separate modules — care planning, eMAR, rostering may be priced individually |
Access Group pricing requires a sales engagement. Individual modules (care planning, eMAR, rostering) may be priced separately. Contact theaccessgroup.com for current rates.
KareShift
Transparent flat-tier pricing by team size
| Plan | Monthly + VAT |
|---|---|
| Starter (up to 5 carers) | £69/mo |
| Growth (up to 20 carers) | £149/mo |
| Scale (50 included, +£7/carer) | £349/mo |
| Residential (30 beds included) | £349/mo billed monthly, or £279/mo billed annually (+£9/bed monthly, +£7/bed annual) |
No per-module add-ons: price depends on team size. Some features (custom forms, invoicing; Xero Payroll and payroll export) need the Growth or Scale plan. Self-serve signup. Annual billing saves 20%.
Feature comparison
Feature data from theaccessgroup.com as at Aug 2026. ✗ indicates not present in public documentation. Verify directly with each vendor.
| Feature | Access Care Planning | KareShift |
|---|---|---|
| Target market | Large organisations (enterprise) | SMBs (5–50 carers) |
| Published pricing | No — contact sales | Yes — from £69/mo + VAT |
| Free trial | Not publicly available | 90 days (no credit card) |
| Self-serve signup | No — sales process required | Yes — under 2 minutes |
| Care planning | ✓ Digital care plans (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ All plans |
| eMAR | ✓ Medication management (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ Full eMAR — orders, rounds, PRN, controlled drugs, MAR chart, allergy alerts |
| Rostering | ✓ Workforce scheduling (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ Drag-and-drop, UK presets, conflict detection |
| GPS / visit verification | ✓ Call monitoring (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ GPS + geofencing, plus NFC/QR tag check-in |
| CQC compliance | ✓ CQC-aligned (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ KLOE evidence tracking + inspection history |
| Custom forms | Not publicly documented as of Aug 2026 | ✓ Growth, Scale and Aged Care plans (conditional logic, PDF export, signature pad) |
| Xero Payroll integration | Not publicly documented as of Aug 2026 | ✓ Direct timesheet sync, employee mapping (Scale and Aged Care plans) |
| Invoicing | ✓ Finance module (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ Invoicing with credit notes, receipts, PDF |
| In-app messaging | Not publicly documented as of Aug 2026 | ✓ All plans (push notifications, group + 1:1) |
| Travel & mileage | Not publicly documented as of Aug 2026 | ✓ Mileage logging at a configurable rate (45p per mile by default) |
| Two-factor authentication | Not publicly documented as of Aug 2026 | ✓ TOTP + trusted devices + admin reset |
| Countries supported | UK + Ireland (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | AU, NZ, UK, CA |
| Residential care | ✓ Care home module (theaccessgroup.com, Aug 2026) | ✓ Full residential (facility, wings, rooms, ADL) |
| Contract length | Enterprise agreement (typically annual+) | Month-to-month (cancel anytime) |
Honest assessment
Where Access is stronger
- Enterprise scale — serves large multi-site care organisations
- Comprehensive product suite — HR, payroll, finance, care planning, eMAR in one vendor
- Dedicated account management and implementation support
- Deep UK regulatory expertise — long track record with CQC-regulated providers
- Integrations with UK-specific payroll, finance, and HR systems
- Formal training programmes and certification
- UK local authority commissioning integrations
- Access People integration for end-to-end HR + care planning
- Long track record in UK care — CM2000 heritage spanning 20+ years
Where KareShift is stronger
- Transparent pricing — no sales process, no enterprise contracts
- 90-day free trial — evaluate fully, no commitment
- Self-serve signup — live in minutes, not weeks
- Flat tiers by team size — no per-module pricing
- Month-to-month billing — no annual lock-in
- Multi-country support (AU, NZ, UK, CA)
- Xero Payroll integration (Scale and Aged Care plans) — direct timesheet sync
- Custom forms with conditional logic, PDF export, signature pad (Growth, Scale and Aged Care plans)
- In-app messaging with push notifications
- Voice dictation for care notes
- Shift Offers — broadcast open shifts
- Open Shift Board — post unfilled visits, eligible carers self-claim
- Structured care plans + service user goals & outcome tracking
- Cancellation policy automation — calculates the fee for late cancels / no-shows and adds it to the invoice
- Visit confirmation — GPS + clock evidence and anomaly flags on every visit
- More affordable for agencies under 50 carers
Signs KareShift is a better fit
- You're a small-to-medium agency (5–50 carers) — enterprise tools are overkill
- You want to see pricing and sign up without talking to sales
- You don't want to pay separately for each module (care planning, eMAR, rostering)
- You want 90 days to evaluate, not a demo followed by a contract negotiation
- You operate in multiple countries (AU, NZ, CA alongside UK)
When Access is a better fit
Large organisation (100+ staff)
If you operate multiple sites with complex staffing, payroll, and HR requirements, Access's enterprise platform handles that scale and complexity with dedicated support.
You need a full enterprise suite
If you want HR, payroll, finance, and care planning from a single vendor with integrated workflows, Access's breadth of enterprise products may reduce integration headaches.
Already invested in Access
If you're already using Access products and your team is trained on their workflows, adding their care planning module to your existing stack may be simpler than switching entirely.
Frequently asked questions
Not exactly. The Access Group is a large UK enterprise software company (£1B+ revenue, 6,000+ employees) that acquired CM2000 — a specialist home care monitoring product. CM2000's functionality is now part of Access Health & Social Care. If you're searching for "CM2000 alternative," you're evaluating the Access Group's care division.
Access serves organisations of all sizes, but their sales process, implementation approach, and contract structure are designed for larger organisations. Small agencies (under 20 carers) may find the enterprise sales cycle and potential module-based pricing complex relative to self-serve alternatives.
As of Aug 2026, Access does not publicly offer a self-serve free trial for their care planning products. Evaluation typically involves a sales demo and enterprise engagement. KareShift offers a 90-day free trial for up to 5 workers (Xero Payroll sync and payroll export need a paid plan) — no credit card, no sales call required.
Published pricing. No enterprise contract.
eMAR, rostering, care planning and compliance on a flat tier by team size. Xero Payroll is on the Scale plan. 90-day free trial.
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