Leading with heart and determination to change children’s lives

Emily Aklan, CEO and Founder of Serenity Welfare, tells Karen McLauchlan why passion, drive and a hands-on approach to leadership ensure she and her team are changing young people’s lives for the better

Making a difference – that’s Emily Aklan to the core.

As well as building better futures for young people through her business Serenity Welfare, she believes in nurturing the wellbeing of every member of staff she has around her.

Treating people as you would like to be treated is an ethos that’s now earned her national recognition, with Serenity recently crowned a winner in The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2025 list in the health and social care category for small businesses.

“It’s an exceptional achievement,” said Emily, who is CEO and Founder of Serenity Welfare, which is also a Patron member of the Hertfordshire Chamber of Commerce.

“Health and social care isn’t an easy industry. But without staff you don’t have a business – you can’t run a ship by yourself. This is a job where we’re serving society’s most vulnerable children, it can be challenging and emotionally draining for everyone.”

With a wellbeing centre at its head office, access to sporting facilities, social events and team building, Serenity’s team –which stands at 82 – also benefit from essential emotional support to prevent burn-out in this gruelling sector.

Emily swapped a career in construction for the world of social care nine years ago when she founded Serenity Welfare – a 24/7 welfare service for children and young people.

It was born out of her despair in discovering vulnerable children are often picked up from care homes or police stations in handcuffs and treated as criminals rather than young people desperate for help.

A desire to do things differently and give at-risk youngsters the dignity, compassion and care they deserve, created Serenity.

Based in a 17th-century manor house in Broxbourne that was once a children’s home, it provides comprehensive welfare services for children and young people, including those in care, working with local authorities across the UK, charities, schools and other professionals.

Its services include secure transport, 24-hour crisis support, children’s residential homes, respite care, creative therapies and wellbeing interventions.

It also has a small residential children’s home – with two more sites due to open this year. Plus, it has now registered a cottage on its site as a respite centre.

Emily says being a Chamber Patron member has helped boost Serenity’s profile and champion its work, including Hope Instead of Handcuffs – its campaign to end the use of handcuffs and physical restraints on children in care by private transport providers.

“Hertfordshire Chamber is so well run and supportive, it has been wonderful in its backing for the campaign and helping raise awareness with me,” said Emily.

“Plus, having those connections through the Chamber has given us access to so much help and advice.”

Serenity has worked with hundreds of young people and firmly believes in rehabilitation.

“We must ensure children’s voices are heard and they’re treated with the upmost respect. Sadly, the narrative is often these are ‘naughty children’ or are in care as it’s ‘their fault’.

I’m hoping that changes.”

Like so many businesses, Emily says finding the right team remains a challenge for Serenity.

“Ask any CEO what their biggest challenge is and they’re likely to say staffing,” she said. “I’m very blessed to have longevity of staff. But it’s hard to find more people of the same calibre and anyone new must share the same passion to nurture young people.

“It’s not a joke what we do, we’re protecting and safeguarding society’s most vulnerable children, so we have to be even more picky choosing who to work with.”

Putting time and energy into her staff is a key focus of Emily’s leadership style.

“People here talk about the Serenity Family – and we do feel like a family,” she said, “I’m often seen as the Mother Hen!

“I’m a CEO but also a counsellor, a mother, a friend. People aren’t just staff; they’re people with their own challenges and experiences in life. We nurture them and look after them while I’m steering the ship.

“Communication is so important, from me all the way to the front line. And we all have determination and passion for what we do. Happy staff makes for a happy business, and ultimately happy children that we work with.”

But she admits it takes hard work and resilience to run a business, particularly Serenity.

“You have to truly believe in what you’re doing, and you’ll sacrifice your time, energy and possibly even your friends and family for a while.

“Many times I’ve wanted to give up, but all of a sudden a letter will arrive from a young person we have helped – it’s like a sign from above to keep on going.

“I never forget why I’m doing what I do. It is hard, and not everyone can do it. But it’s a calling for me and equally the team is on the same page as me.”

She added: “We’re on this quest together and we’ve got to make a difference. Whether a child is in our care for 10 minutes or 10 months, you leave a positive imprint behind.

“If you nurture and care for children and they genuinely feel you are working in their best interests, that leaves a positive impact which can be life changing.”