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Background: This study aimed to adapt and validate a staff version of the PLANEA Independent Life Skills Assessment tools, which were then used to explore the convergence between self-reported and staff views of independent living skills of young people in residential child care in Spain. Method: A sample of 422 care-experienced young people was evaluated by their residential or care workers (n = 219) using the staff version of PLANEA instruments. Psychometric analyses were carried out to study dimensionality and measuring properties of the instruments, while t-tests, Pearson correlations and Fisher's z were used to study convergence between informants. Results: The results show that the internal structure of the instruments was confirmed for the staff versions (three first-order factors and one second-order factor model for PLANEA-S, unidimensional model for PLANEA-9-S, and two-factor correlated model for PLANEA-T-S). The instruments showed excellent reliability (ω = .80-.97) and discriminative capacity. Staff showed less optimistic views than young people about their independent living skills but not their autonomy to perform everyday life tasks. This was mediated by the role of the adult respondent towards the young person evaluated. Conclusions: As conclusions we can say that the validated staff version of the PLANEA Independent Life Skills Assessment tools expands the scope for assessing this construct in young people in care from a multi-informant perspective. This is key for child protection services to address young people's individual needs and inform decision-making regarding the provision of support services that will promote a successful transition from care to adulthood for them.La evaluación de habilidades para la vida independiente de jóvenes en el sistema de protección: un enfoque multiinformante R E S U M E N Antecedentes: El objetivo de este estudio fue de adaptar y validar una versión para personal educador de los instrumentos PLANEA de evaluación de habilidades para la vida independiente. Dichos instrumentos se emplearon para explorar la convergencia entre el nivel de habilidades para la vida independiente percibido por jóvenes en acogimiento residencial y sus educadores. Método: La muestra se compuso de 422 jóvenes residentes en recursos de acogimiento residencial o de apoyo para extutelados, quienes fueron evaluados por personal educador (n = 219) utilizando los instrumentos PLANEA. Se realizaron análisis estadísticos para estudiar la dimensionalidad y propiedades psicométricas de los instrumentos y se emplearon pruebas t de Student, correlaciones de Pearson y z de Fisher para estudiar el nivel de convergencia entre informantes. Resultados: Los resultados confirman la estructura interna esperada para los instrumentos (tres factores de primer orden y un factor de segundo orden para PLANEA-S, modelo unidimensional para PLANEA-9-S y modelo bifactorial correlacionado para PLANEA-T-S). Los instrumentos mostraron niveles excelentes de fiabilidad (ω = .80-.97) y capacidad discriminativa. El persona...

The social changes experienced in many countries have prolonged the transition to adult life for young people. That being said, those who leave child care cannot afford this privilege, in that they do not benefit from the same support and resources, having to confront an accelerated transition which exposes them to increased risk of negative outcomes and social exclusion. Moreover, this transition might be even riskier for unaccompanied migrant care leavers, who are four times as vulnerable, given their status as young people in care, as adolescents, as migrants and being unaccompanied. This paper seeks to explore the profiles, needs, and experiences of unaccompanied young migrants in comparison with other care leavers. Data were collected by means of a semi-structured interview to explore their pre-care, in-care, and aftercare experiences. A highly specific profile of unaccompanied young migrants has been revealed that differs from the other care leavers in terms of worse educational, occupational, and economic outcomes, limited support networks, and more obstacles to accessing aftercare supports. Conversely, they also exhibited some strengths, such as having less pre-care, in care, and aftercare traumatic experiences, less psychological distress and fewer risky behaviors compared with other care leavers.

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This chapter provides information about PLANEA, a flexible online life skills training program for youth in residential care. The PLANEA program gradually supports the development of autonomy and life skills in residential settings according to each young person’s unique needs and characteristics. The initial version was piloted in Spain at local request, but the program has clear cross-national roots as it built upon and extends an earlier transition program in Finland and several other European countries. PLANEA follows in a longstanding line of applied research projects in Spanish residential care originating from the Child and Family Research Group (GIFI) at the University of Oviedo in Spain. This project, in particular, as well as its predecessor studies provides a model of partnership between youth and family practice and universities that we believe has much to commend it.