We are Childhood First

Childhood First is a children’s charity providing outstanding residential care and special education, integrated with effective therapeutic treatment, to children and young people affected by abuse, neglect and deprivation.  

Further details of our therapeutic residential services may be found here:

Make a Referral

As a therapeutic residential care provider we work in partnership with all Local Authorities across the country to provide placements for children who are subject to a care order. If you are a parent, an adoptive parent or a foster carer and you believe that Childhood First could be the right service for your child, please seek the support of your allocated social worker. It is the responsibility of Childrens Services to identify the right service that will meet the needs of your child. Unfortunately, we are unable to receive referrals from members of the public, either by phone or email, nor are we able to offer advice on your family circumstances.

If you are a local authority social worker and you would like to make a referral to our services or find out more information on behalf of a parent or a young person you are responsible for, you can contact our services directly by email.

You can contact our referral team directly on the referrals@childhoodfirst.org.uk email address.

Please be aware we will only respond to referrals and email enquiries that originate from an official .gov.uk email domain.