A small group of social workers is taking care of children who have been temporarily removed from their parents and are waiting for custody decisions.

The site's critics consensus reads: "Taking a brilliantly unobtrusive approach, A House Made of Splinters uncovers heartbreak and hope while observing the generational effects of war.

[27] Jack Seale reviewing for The Guardian rated the film with 4 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Full of almost intolerably cold, hard truths about what happens to little ones when society is fractured.

Concluding Fienberg opined, "Even if A House Made of Splinters can't completely decide if it wants to tell a story or the repetition of devastation and ephemeral uplift is enough, the faces here linger long after the movie ends.

"[29] Guy Lodge reviewing for Variety praised the cinematography of the film, writing, "Lereng Wilmont’s filmmaking [is] marked by unusual tenderness and human interest, shot with a camera that feels all but invisible to its subjects".

Concluding, Lodge stated, "A House Made of Splinters indulges in passages of visual poetry — light dancing on enraptured faces, two children’s silhouettes tracing the patterns on a backlit voile curtain," he added, "– that feel earned, granting breathing space and beauty to an environment that needs them most.

"[30] Elena Lazic wrote in Cineuropa, that the film "offers a window into [reality of life in Eastern Ukraine] through a temporary house for children who cannot be looked after by their parents".