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How thoughtful design, flexibility and respect turn services into real homes
When we sat down with Hannah Doherty, one of Partnership of Care’s regional managers in Wales, her passion for creating safe, comforting and truly individualised homes shone through immediately. Her insight took us on a tour of the residential and respite services she oversees, each one unique, each one shaped around the people who live there.
What became clear, very quickly, is that these aren’t just services. They are homes. Carefully designed, thoughtfully adapted, and deeply respected by the teams who run them.
Parkside: A Residential Home Built Around the Individual
Parkside opened in 2023, and from the moment Hannah began describing it, you could sense how special it is. Unlike a traditional shared residential home, Parkside is made up of four individual flats, each one self-contained, with its own living and dining space, kitchen, bathroom and personalised additional room.
Every flat feels completely different. One is warm and cosy, filled with homely touches and soft colours; another is stripped back, robust and safe, designed for someone who needs anti-ligature fittings, strengthened furniture and simplicity to feel comfortable.
Hannah explained that this is exactly the point, “Each home is bespoke. People don’t fit into services. Our services fit around them.”
Parkside also has a shared communal room, a space used for crafts, birthdays, Christmas dinners and quiet chats. Although everyone has their own separate home, they come together for celebrations and shared moments… just as neighbours would.
Most importantly, people tend to stay for many years. This isn’t a place with constant movement, it’s somewhere to settle, belong and build a life.
Safe Haven: Traditional Residential Care in a Breath Taking Setting
Safe Haven is the newest part of the Welsh residential portfolio, and in almost every way, it contrasts beautifully with Parkside. Set in a stunning location with mountains stretching beyond the garden, it feels open, peaceful and rooted in nature.
Inside, the home has five bedrooms (soon to be seven once renovations are complete). Each person has their own en-suite room, with shared lounge and conservatory spaces that people drift between during the day. One person has a lounge of his own due to mobility needs, another example of tailoring the environment to the person.
The home is currently undergoing refurbishment to make the spaces even brighter and more modern. Hannah laughed as she warned us: “If you’re taking photos, you might want to wait, it’s going to look much nicer very soon!”
Safe Haven is a more traditional residential service than Parkside, but the ethos is the same: create a place where people can feel secure, valued and understood.
Kellis: A Warm, Homely Residential Home
Kellis sits in a lovely part of Hengoed and is one of the longest-running homes in the region. Three gentlemen live there, long-term residents who have formed strong relationships with the staff who support them.
The house itself is welcoming and comfortable, with a shared lounge, dining area and conservatory, a large, adapted garden and individual bedrooms upstairs. Each person has space that feels familiar and personal, while the shared rooms bring everyone together in a relaxed, homely way.
There’s nothing clinical or restrictive about Kellis. It’s the kind of place where you can imagine someone settling into their favourite chair after lunch or chatting with staff while dinner cooks in the shared kitchen.
Respite at The Bryre : A Bright, Joyful Home with a Working Farm
If Parkside is bespoke and Safe Haven is scenic, then The Bryre is something entirely its own, a cheerful, vibrant respite home with a farm right on the doorstep.
Yes, a real working farm.
Sheep, goats, wide open fields and fresh air can be seen from the windows and explored with support. Families often say that simply arriving at The Bryre feels like a little holiday.
Inside, the home has four bedrooms, the Blue Room, Red Room, Pink Room and Green Room, each with an en-suite bathroom and its own character. People who use the service typically visit for up to 28 days at a time, giving families a chance to rest and reset, while their loved one enjoys a change of scenery.
There is a large, shared lounge, dining room and kitchen, along with plenty of space to relax indoors or outdoors. The energy of the home is friendly and warm, and the farm outside gives it a sense of freedom that most respite homes simply can’t offer.
A Thoughtful, Person-Led Approach
Throughout our conversation, Hannah’s dedication to tailoring each environment and routine to the person came through again and again. Whether someone needs a quiet sensory space, a robust and low-stimulus flat, a homely, shared house, or a colourful respite break with fresh air and animals, the Welsh services are built to offer exactly what each person needs.
Residential and respite care here is not about fitting into a system. It’s about creating homes that honour the person, their preferences, their stability, their wellbeing, and the small everyday moments that make life richer.
