Geographical accessibility

Organic Law 2/2006 on Education (LOE), on article 80.1, as amended by Organic Law 3/2020 (LOMLOE), establishes that, in order to make the principle of equity effective in the exercise of the right to education, public authorities are responsible for developing actions aimed at people, groups, social environments and territorial areas that are in a situation of socio-educational and cultural vulnerability with the aim of eliminating the barriers that limit their access, presence, participation or learning.

These actions have two objectives:

• reinforce the action of the education system in such a way as to avoid inequalities derived from geographical, social, economic, cultural, ethnic or other factors;
• give effect to the principle of equity in the fulfilment of the right to education.

During the primary education stage, the education authorities are committed to guaranteeing a free school place in the same municipality or established schooling zone.

In addition, rural and island schools receive specific attention. In this respect, it is established that the education authorities must take into account their specific nature in order to provide the means and organisational systems necessary to meet their particular needs and guarantee equal opportunities.

In this context, and within basic education (which in Spain takes place between the ages of six and sixteen: Primary Education and Compulsory Secondary Education), in those rural areas and islands where it is considered advisable, students are allowed to attend school in a municipality close to their residence in order to guarantee the quality of education. In this case, the education authorities must provide free school transport services and, if necessary, a dining room and boarding school.

In general, the aspects to be considered when planning educational provision in a specific geographical area are:

• urban areas: the birth rate, the increase in the number of foreign pupils and the growth of population in emerging areas;
• rural and island areas: the difficult access to geographical areas, birth and death rates, the ageing of the population and the number of seasonal workers.

On the other hand, according to Article 9 dof the LOE, as amended by the LOMLOE, territorial cooperation programmes take into account as criteria for the territorial distribution of economic resources the singularity of these programmes in terms of favouring equal opportunities. The following aspects will be particularly valued:

• volume of students enrolled in relation to the objectives of the programme in public and publicly-funded private schools;
• socially disadvantaged rural or urban areas;
• depopulation;
• demographic dispersion;
• insularity.

Admission requirements and choice of school

As it was already mentioned, primary education is one of the two educational stages constituting basic, compulsory and cost-free education. This stage of schooling is for students between the ages of six and twelve. They are enrolled in the school in the calendar year in which they turn six years old.

Article 84 of the LOE, as amended by the LOMLOE, establishes that the education authorities are responsible for regulating the admission of students to public and publicly-funded private schools. This regulation must ensure the following aspects:

• the right to education;
• equal access;
• freedom of choice of centre by the families or the person exercising legal guardianship.

This regulation must provide for the necessary measures to avoid segregation of pupils due to socio-economic or other reasons. In all cases, an adequate and balanced distribution of students with specific educational support needs among schools must be observed.

Only when there are not enough places to meet the demand, do public schools and publicly-funded private schools apply a series of priority admission criteria, which are common and applicable throughout the State, without any of them being exclusive in nature.

One of the criteria is the existence of siblings enrolled in the school or parents or legal guardians working at the school. Proximity to the home or place of work of a parent or legal guardian is also taken into account. Another factor considered is the per capita income of the family unit.

Priority is also given to the legal status of large family, multiple births or single-parent families. The foster care situation of the person to be educated is also a relevant criterion, as is the presence of a disability in the person to be educated or in any of their parents, legal guardians or siblings.

Other relevant criteria include being a victim of gender-based violence or terrorism. in the case of students from abroad, or with late integration into the Spanish education system, who are within compulsory schooling age groups, the incorporation into any of the grades that make up Primary Education is carried out according to their circumstances, knowledge, age and academic history, so that they can successfully continue their education.

None of these criteria is exclusive and may not account for more than 30 % of the total maximum score, except for the distance to the family home, which may exceed this limit.

Under no circumstances will there be discrimination on the grounds of birth, racial or ethnic origin, sex, religion, opinion, disability, age, illness, sexual orientation or gender identity or any other personal or social condition or circumstance.

Still, if there are not enough school places, priority is given in the schooling area corresponding to the home or place of work of one of the parents or legal guardians to pupils coming from the early childhood education centres they are attached to. Priority is also given to pupils whose schooling is due to the change of residence of the family unit due to forced mobility of either parent, a disability of any of the family members, or as a result of acts of gender-based violence.

Admission is the responsibility of the education authorities of each autonomous community. To this end, they may constitute commissions or bodies of admission which guarantee and must establish the corresponding ways for the families to complain against the decisions taken in the said procedures.

The School Board is in charge of admission in public schools, while in publicly-funded private schools this responsibility also corresponds to the owner of the school. On the other hand, private schools have autonomy for establishing their own admission procedures.

With the intention of guaranteeing equity, the Act on Education (LOE), as amended by the LOMLOE,  includes a series of measures aimed at achieving the full inclusion and integration of those students who require educational attention differing from the ordinary. 

With regard to their schooling, pupils with special educational needs are governed by the principles of normalisation and inclusion, ensuring non-discrimination and equal access to and continuance in the education system. The schooling of these pupils in special education units or centres will only take place when their needs cannot be met within the framework of measures for attention to diversity in mainstream institutions.

In the case of pupils with high intellectual abilities, action plans are adopted, as well as curricular enrichment programmes appropriate to these needs, which enable them to develop their abilities to their fullest potential. The Government establishes the rules to provide flexibility in the schooling of these pupils at this stage.

Finally, students with specific learning difficulties or in a situation of socio-educational vulnerability are also governed by the principles of normalisation and inclusion, ensuring non-discrimination and equal access to and continuance in the education system.

Age levels and grouping of pupils

Primary education is usually completed between the ages of 6 and 12. Pupils have the right and obligation to be schooled from the calendar year in which they turn 6.

This stage is divided into six academic years, three cycles of two academic years each. Class groups are usually made up taking into account the year of birth, which usually leads to the following distribution of primary education students according to age and academic year:

• first year: 6-7 years old;
• second year: 7-8 years old;
• third year: 8-9 years old;
• fourth year: 9-10 years old;
• fifth year: 10-11 years old;
• sixth year: 11-12 years old.

In each group a member of the teaching staff is assigned as class teacher, as well as being responsible for teaching most of the knowledge areas.

All primary school teachers have competence in all areas of this level, but those related to Music, Physical Education, foreign languages or other disciplines determined by the government, through the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports (MEFD), after consultation with the Autonomous Communities, will be taught by teaching staff with the corresponding specialisation or qualification.

The qualification required for teaching in primary education is that corresponding to school teacher specialised in Primary Education or the equivalent Bachelor degree. For the teaching of certain areas, the Government, after consulting the autonomous communities, for teaching purposes, may authorise other university qualifications than the ones mentioned above.

With regard to the numerical proportion between teachers and students per unit (ratio), it should be noted that this is regulated in the LOE, as amended by the LOMLOE, which establishes a maximum of twenty-five students per classroom. However, education authorities may authorise an increase of up to ten per cent of the maximum number of students per classroom in public and publicly-funded private schools in the same schooling area for various reasons, including the need to accommodate the immediate enrolment of late entrants. Needs are also considered due to the transfer of the family unit during an extraordinary schooling period, either due to forced mobility of either parent or legal guardian, or as a result of the initiation of a family placement measure for the person attending school.

Organisation of the school year

Respecting the minimum requirements established by law for the whole of the State (a minimum of 175 school days), the educational authorities are responsible for establishing the annual school calendar in their respective administrative areas.

Activity in schools starts on September 1st and ends at least on June 30th. For students, the teaching activity begins during the month of September and ends at the end of June. The exact dates are set by the educational authorities in each autonomous community. The teaching activity is organised taking into account the Christmas, Easter and summer holidays, giving rise to terms of varying length. However, the autonomous community of Cantabria has implemented, since the 2016-2017 academic year, a school calendar with five two-month periods.

School holidays for students are spread out over the whole year in the following manner, which may vary from one Autonomous Community to another:

• around eleven weeks of summer holidays;
• at least 2 weeks of Christmas holidays,
• approximately 10 days at the end of March or beginning of April (Easter holidays);
• between one and six for Carnival;
• around twelve days declared as public holidays or non-school days by the MEFD or the regional or local authorities.

During the summer holidays, educational institutions may remain open until the end of July for administrative purposes. Depending on the organisation of each educational centre, the same may occur on non-holiday days during the Christmas and Easter breaks.

In addition to traditional Christian celebrations, Eid al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan, is a public holiday in the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla. In Melilla, Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and Eid al-Adha (Muslim Easter) are also public holidays.

Organisation of the school day and week

Schools establish the weekly and daily timetable, respecting the minimum number of teaching days established by law and in the guidelines on school day set by each autonomous community.

The school general timetable, included in the School Development Plan (PEC), must specify the following aspects:

• school opening time and conditions;
• teaching hours;
• availability of school services and facilities out of school hours.

The weekly timetable  is organized from Monday to Friday, except holidays, according to the school calendar. In general, the number of daily teaching hours is five, which is equivalent to twenty-five teaching hours per week.

As far as the school day is concerned, there are some particularities. In schools with a split school day, the teaching activity with students is usually not less than three hours in the morning and not more than two hours in the afternoon. Between the two periods, there is a free break, the duration of which is usually not less than two hours. However, schools may suggest a different distribution of school hours, provided that they comply with the rules and regulations set out by their educational authorities. In schools with a continuous school day, the teaching activity with students is carried out in the morning. In both cases, the morning timetable includes a thirty-minute break for recess, which is considered part of the five teaching hours per day. In centres with a continuous school day, this thirty minute recess can be covered in two different teaching periods (of fifteen minutes each or of twenty and ten minutes, respectively).

The weekly and daily timetable, as proposed by the management team, must be approved by the School Council and ratified by the competent education authority. Should the scheduled teaching activities not be allowed to take place, the relevant education authority returns the proposal to the school so that it can be revised and corrected.

Outside the school day, and depending on the specific educational institution​, other activities are carried out. In schools with a split school day, between thirty minutes and an hour are dedicated to lunch, and the remaining time until the start of classes in the afternoon is used for breaks. 

Additionally, in all schools there may be services in place for the admission of students one hour or one and a half hour before the lessons. During this time, games are often played and breakfast is sometimes provided.

After school hours, schools offer remedial courses and extracurricular activities related to educational issues of interest, such as languages, ICT, sports, arts, reading and writing, directed study activities, etc. These services are available for families, usually on a fee-paying basis, and are voluntary for pupils.