In response to COVID-19, an international group of mental health professionals and service managers collaborated to mitigate the potential conflict anticipated as being inherent in enacting restrictive public health measures.The group utilised a Delphi approach of four iterative stages to develop a strengths based, person-centred and recovery-oriented framework to support services in preserving a therapeutic milieu specifically within inpatient mental health settings during situations of pandemic.The framework incorporated the core principles of ‘therapeutic community’, Safewards, recovery, and trauma informed care with emphasis placed on preserving a safe supportive environment, while promoting the principles of trust, safety, collaboration, choice and empowerment.The lessons learned from this pandemic-imposed initiative have the potential to enrich the quality of the care experience, for both care recipients and providers, within inpatient settings beyond the pandemic.