About Us

About

Oakwood Fostering

Oakwood Fostering was co-founded by Kashif Mohammed and Jill Thorburn, two individuals with different journeys into fostering but a shared vision: to build the best possible fostering agency that is relational, responsive and focused on the long-term well-being of children.

Director

Kashif Mohammed

Kashif brings a unique perspective shaped by his close family connections to fostering. Seeing the profound difference that foster care can make in a child’s life inspired him to create an agency that truly supports foster parents and values their role.

Director

Jill Thorburn

Jill’s journey to Oakwood is from 30 years as a social work manager working with children in care. As well as running high quality services Jill has walked the walk and been a foster parent. Throughout her career, Jill has been at the forefront of developing innovative approaches to improving services for children in care.

Together, Kashif and Jill founded Oakwood Fostering to combine lived experience with professional expertise, creating a space where foster parent feel respected and equipped and where children are given every chance to grow, heal and thrive.

Registered Manager

Sophia Bowland

With over 15 years’ experience as a social worker and manager, Sophia leads Oakwood Fostering with compassion, professionalism and a clear focus on high standards. Her work is rooted in safeguarding, ethics and delivering real outcomes for children and families. She is committed to quality assurance, compliance and the day-to-day wellbeing of both foster parents and other colleagues.