The research presented here is justified by the lack of tradition in Spain with regards to socioeducational intervention programmes based on training and group support, as well as the proven benefits of these methods in foster care. It addresses the need to go deeper into the acquisition and consolidation of the core professional competences for running socioeducational groups with foster families. After a process of participatory action-research with 39 professionals from the Child Protection System from different regions of Spain, we see an improvement in the development of the competences necessary to establish a supportive relationship with families, management and group dynamics, as well as the crystallization of attitudinal changes in professional practices. Data have been collected on the basis of methodological complementarity and a pre-test-post-test design that has identified and explained the changes in the evolution of competences and professional practices.

Placement in kinship family has existed informally throughout time. There are many countries in which kinship family care is the most common measure used for child protection. However, it is a subject of continuous debate. One of the major issues is that kinship foster care is relied upon without carrying out an evaluation study of the family; often the child is placed directly with grandparents and uncles simply because they are direct family. This article presents an assessment tool to evaluate extended families in order to ensure the welfare of the child. The tool was created as a result of the cooperative research of 126 professionals from seven regions of Spain. The tool can identify the strengths and weaknesses of families by considering six factors: personal characteristics, the coverage of basic needs, collaboration with professionals, the family structure and dynamics, the relationship between family, child, and biological family, and, finally, the attitude towards the placement. The assessment tool is innovative and introduces the opportunity to consider the skills of the kinship foster care family, the needs of support, and which families are unfit to take care of the child. To conclude, the tool tries to overcome one of the principal disadvantages of kinship foster care: the lack of knowledge about the kinship family.

This article focuses on the information that children need to be given when they are moving to a fostering placement. Generally, children are not consulted or informed prior to the foster decisions being made, nor when they arrive at the placement. Therefore, they do not usually know their foster care situation and the changes it implies for their lives. The literature available shows that informing children is the first step in enabling them to participate in their own fostering process. Participation empowers them and endorses successful intervention. In order to understand which information is crucial for children's wellbeing and adaption to this initial fostering moment, a qualitative research study was carried out. The study was developed in Spain and it used focus groups and interviews as instruments to gather information. The sample was composed of 30 fostered children, 42 parents, and 63 child care professionals. The results show the importance of sharing five essential aspects with children: a) the real reasons for family separation; b) the intervention which took place before removing them from their home; c) their rights as fostered children; d) the characteristics of the foster placement; e) the visitation schedule. It helps children to cope with their new situation by empowering them and making them more adaptive to face all of the changes which are coming. Finally, some good practice tips for professional were also stated in order to improve the information sharing experience.