Accessible Summary What is known on the subject? It is known that people with a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder often experience crises in their mental wellbeing. There is little evidence about the approaches of mental health nurses in community‐based crisis teams when working with people with a diagnosis of BPD. What the paper adds to the existing knowledge? This paper highlights that limited resources, work‐patterns and issues of stigma present challenges to delivering recovery‐oriented care. The paper highlights that nurses typically try to navigate the challenges to continue to provide individualized care, though their self‐assessment is that this is with mixed success. What are the implications for practice? The findings suggest that support is needed to develop brief interventions specific to teams working with people with a diagnosis of BPD who are at a point of crisis. Abstract IntroductionPeople with a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD) are often in contact with mental health services at a point of crisis, and in the UK, this includes Crisis Resolution Home Treatment teams (CRHTT). There is a drive for services to be recovery orientated; however, there is little evidence about the degree to which community services achieve this for people with a diagnosis of BPD when in crisis. Research AimTo understand the perceptions held by CRHTT clinicians about their provision of recovery‐orientated acute care, for people with a diagnosis of BPD. MethodFrom a purposive sample of a single CRHTT, seven registered mental health nurses were interviewed and Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis framework was used to interpret the data. ResultsFive themes emerged: person‐centred care; the timing is wrong; inconsistent staffing; the risks are too great; and BPD as a label. DiscussionThe results demonstrate tensions between a drive to deliver person‐centred care and a range of challenges that inhibit this, with the possibility of reframing a recovery approach as “recovery‐ready”. Implications for PracticeA whole‐system approach is required to enable a consistent recovery‐oriented approach, but research is also needed for brief interventions specific to this context.