The Spanish Constitution of 1978 establishes a decentralised State in which educational powers are divided between the central government and the autonomous communities. Organic Law 2/2006 (LOE) and Organic Law 3/2020 (LOMLOE) determine this division and the participation of the central and regional governments in curriculum design for all levels of education (early childhood, primary, compulsory secondary education, upper secondary education, vocational education and training, and special education programmes). The central government's educational powers are distributed between the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports (MEFD) for non-university and sports education, and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (MCIU) for university education. In Ceuta and Melilla, non-university education falls under the authority of the MEFD.

Levels of Curriculum Implementation

The curriculum is organised into several levels:

1. Central Level: The Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports (MEFD) establishes the minimum learning standards, timetables (50% in regions with a co-official language and 60% in others), and, in Vocational Education and Training (VET), the learning outcomes; it may also establish mixed curricula in international cooperation.
2. Regional Level: The autonomous communities establish the official curriculum, incorporating the minimum learning standards, regulate timetables, and periodically review the curriculum.
3. School Level: Schools develop and supplement the curriculum in their educational project.
4. Classroom Level: Teachers develop classroom lesson plans and adapt them to the specific educational support needs of their students.

Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports (Central Level)

The MEFD carries out most of the educational functions at the central level: it proposes and implements education and VET policy (for the education system and for employment, excluding university education) and promotes international cooperation and relations in these areas. Its powers guarantee the homogeneity of the system and basic equality in the exercise of the right to education. It has regulatory powers to govern the basic elements of the system throughout the country and executive powers in Ceuta and Melilla.

Organisation of the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MEFD)

According to Royal Decrees 1009/2023 and 274/2024, it is structured as follows:

• Secretary of State for Education (Directorate General for Evaluation and Territorial Cooperation; Directorate General for Educational Planning and Management);
• Higher Council for Sports;
• General Secretariat for Vocational Education and Training (Directorate General for Vocational Training Planning, Innovation, and Management);
• Undersecretariat for Education, Vocational Training, and Sports.

Detailed information on the ministerial structure can be found in the MEFD organisational chart.

The Secretary of State for Education oversees the State School Council, the Supreme Council for Artistic Education, the Sectoral Committee for Education, and the State Observatory for School Coexistence. It assumes the following functions:

• organisation, evaluation, and innovation of non-university education;
• planning and management of the education within its authority;
• design and management of scholarships;
• promotion of equality and accessibility;
• relations with the autonomous communities and local entities;
• State Education Inspectorate;
• guidelines on the organisation of teaching staff.

The Superior Sports Council maintains authority over sports education.

The General Secretariat for Vocational Training carries out functions related to the Vocational Education and Training System:

• updating the National Catalogue of Standards of Vocational Competences;
• organisation and regulatory development of the Vocational Education and Training System within the educational system and for employment;
• curriculum design within its area of ​​management;
• recognition and validation of foreign Vocational Education and Training qualifications;
• development of the Spanish Qualifications Framework (MECU);
• organisation of the procedures for the evaluation and accreditation of basic and professional skills acquired through work experience and non-formal and informal learning pathways; 
• coordination, collaboration, and territorial cooperation with the autonomous communities and other public administrations regarding Vocational Education and Training and lifelong learning;
• actions for the promotion and development of the career guidance system.

It oversees the Directorate General for Planning, Innovation, and Management of Vocational Training, three deputy directorates general (Organisation; Dual Training and Business Relations; System Evaluation and Quality), the National Institute for Qualifications, and the Career Guidance Unit. It has a Technical Office and receives support from the Sectoral Conference on Vocational Education and Training and the General Council for Vocational Education and Training.

Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Central Level)

This Ministry is responsible for university policy and representation in EU and international bodies. Its structure (Royal Decree 472/2024) includes:

• General Secretariat for Research;
• General Secretariat for Universities;
• General Secretariat for Innovation;
• PERTE Commissioner for Avant-Garde Health;
• Directorate General for Planning, Coordination and Knowledge Transfer.

Detailed information on the ministerial structure can be found in the MCNU Organisational Chart.

The General Secretariat for Universities is responsible for developing university policy, coordinating, and evaluating programmes, organising and managing state initiatives in university education, managing EU programmes, and promoting student mobility (EU and non-EU) through SEPIE. The UIMP, ANECA, and SEPIE are attached to it; the UNED (National Distance Education University) is linked to the Ministry through this Secretariat. Also reporting to it are the Colegio de España en París, a Technical Office, and three deputy directorates general:

• the Sub-directorate General for Institutional Relations, Programmes and Quality in the University Sphere;
• the Sub-directorate General for University Teacher Training and Management of Aid Programmes;
• the Sub-directorate General for Degrees and University Organisation.

Ministry of Culture (central level)

According to Royal Decree 323/2024, the Ministry of Culture (MCLT) is organised into the Secretary of State for Culture (with three directorates general) and the Under-secretariat for Culture. It carries out functions related to Spanish historical heritage, state museums, arts, books and reading, film and audiovisual media, state libraries, the promotion of Spanish culture, and cultural cooperation, including international cooperation in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation (MAUC).

Detailed information on the ministerial structure can be found in the MCLT Organisational Chart.

Regional Education Administration (Regional Level)

The regional education ministries or departments implement state regulations and manage non-university education within their territories. They regulate non-core aspects of the system and assume executive powers, except for those reserved to the State. The regional university ministries or departments coordinate university education at the regional level.

The autonomous communities exercise a wide range of powers in the field of non-university education. Among the most relevant are educational inspection, ownership, and oversight of the operation of public and private schools, the planning and implementation of renovations, equipment, and construction, as well as staff management. They also assume functions related to educational research and innovation, the development of the national basic curriculum, the granting of subsidies to private schools, the management of scholarships and grants, curriculum development, and the regulation of their own School Councils.

In the university sphere, the autonomous communities also have broad powers that include, among others, the planning and coordination of the university system within their territory, the creation and authorisation of universities, coordination among institutions, and the approval of their statutes. They also play a role in admission procedures, the regulation of university-specific degrees, the financing of the system, the awarding of their own scholarships, the remuneration system for contracted teaching and research staff and the supplementary payments for civil servants, and participate in quality assurance processes.

Each autonomous community establishes its own model of educational administration, typically through specific ministries or departments. Within this framework, various consultative and participatory bodies operate, most notably the Regional School Councils, the Regional Councils for Vocational Training, the Regional Councils and Schools for Advanced Artistic Education, and Councils for Universities, reflecting the organisational and functional diversity across the different territories.

Coordination bodies between the central and regional levels

Sectoral Conference on Education

The Sectoral Conference on Education is a body for cooperation between the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports (MEFD) and the autonomous communities to ensure coherence and integration of the education system. Its main functions are:

• serving as a channel for information and participation in the development of educational regulations;
• advising on regulations that the State must adopt in the exercise of its powers and that require consideration by the autonomous communities;
• examining and proposing measures to guarantee basic equality in the exercise of the right to education;
• exchanging information between public administrations on the education system, as well as on projects and study programmes;
• proposing and agreeing criteria that ensure student mobility throughout the country;
• establishing basic principles of personnel policy and the criteria that guarantee the mobility of teaching staff in Spain;
• channelling information on international agreements in education and acting as a general channel for participation in specialised international organisations.

General Assembly for University Policy

In the university field, General Assembly for University Policy coordinates, agrees upon and facilitates cooperation on university policy between the central government and the autonomous communities. It is chaired by the Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities and brings together the heads of university education from the regional governments. Its functions include:

• establishing and evaluating the general guidelines of university policy, its integration into the European Higher Education Area, and its relationship with scientific and technological research policies;
• planning, informing, consulting and advising on the general and multi-year programming of university teaching, including the necessary human, material, and financial resources;
• approving coordination criteria for national evaluation, certification, and accreditation activities;
• proposing and assessing measures to promote collaboration between universities and businesses;
• coordinating the preparation and monitoring of reports on the application of the principle of gender equality in universities.