About Us | Safehouses Fostering

The birth of Safehouses Fostering

Established in 1997, Safehouses Fostering is an independent fostering agency based in the Greater Manchester area. Our care service has been Ofsted rated ‘Outstanding’ – we provide a foster care service that combines best practice with personalised support to meet individual needs.

We have deep roots in the region, and our reputation is founded on trust and team work. In order to change young lives and meet the needs of children, our foster carers must feel strongly supported at all times. Working in partnership with Local Authorities, schools and other involved agencies helps achieve this.

What we do

Our wealth of experience as a foster care provider is a valuable resource for both established foster carers and for those beginning their new career.

What we do, of course, is care for children and young people who need to be cared for. It’s more than just a job.

Safehouses Fostering is proud to be part of the Five Rivers Child Care Group. Five Rivers is a Social Enterprise committed to transforming the lives of children and young people through reinvesting their surplus in children’s futures. This means that Safehouses is able to retain its unique ethos, where ‘belonging’ is an essential part of our practice and the service we deliver has been recognised by Ofsted to be of outstanding quality for our fostering families.

Where we're based

Safehouses Fostering is based in Denshaw, just outside Oldham, within easy access to provide foster care services in West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and East Lancashire.

We run training courses from our centre, and also education and leisure activities for the young people. Training includes online and creative learning. We often make use of our garden and the beautiful countryside around for get-together activities.

Our foster carers live within a wide catchment area, including Oldham, Rochdale, Manchester, Tameside, Huddersfield, Salford, Wigan, Halifax, Trafford, Bacup and all places in between.

Who we work with

We have over two decades building connections with regional and national charities and accredited governing bodies

Meet our team

Our dedicated, regional team are here to guide you on your fostering journey. Come and meet who you’ll be working with.

Contact us

Connect with us to speak to our team or connect with some of our existing foster parents.

Work with us

Find out about working with Safehouses Fostering – view our current vacancies here.

Meet our foster families

Fostering stories

"We had talked about fostering for years but we waited until out our youngest child had grown up. The Out of Hours service is priceless when you first start. You ring up and you speak to someone you know, not just a voice on the phone."

Karen & John

"Just one recent example is the support Safehouses have given regarding family contact arrangements for one of our foster children. Safehouses sorted out somewhere nice to meet, convenient for the parents, and a Safehouses social worker provided supervision for the contact meetings."

Paul & Debbie

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