The Spanish congregation of the Capuchin Tertiary Order of Our Lady of Sorrows, founded in 1889 to provide correctional education and moralization for young delinquents, ran almost all of the Spanish reformatory schools as soon as they were established. The inadequate training of the congregation’s members, however, was rapidly criticized. This is why, at the beginning of the 20th century, a number of study trips abroad were organized to analyze the workings of reformatory institutions in France, England, Holland, Germany and, above all, Belgium. This paper is based on the analysis of a series of periodicals published by the Capuchin Order whose archives, kept in Rome, cannot be accessed. This will allow us to assess the place of Spain in the transnational transfer process of social and health policies for children; the case of the Iberian Peninsula is generally not mentioned in comparative studies. It will provide an opportunity to underline some of the characteristics of the Spanish system: timing out-of-synch with the other western countries, omnipresence of the private sector and lack of structural funding.