How to choose a good school in Spain

Terms used

• padrón — The padrón is the local register of residents kept by your town hall; it proves where you live.

Key rules

• Rankings: No official school ranking exists in Spain, so unofficial lists are a weak guide.
• Priority: Location and admission chances come first, then language and programme, then ethos and facilities.
• Shortlist size: Aim for 5 to 8 realistic schools, including safe options.
• Official information: Your region's education department school finder and admission call are the best sources.

There is no official ranking, so build your own shortlist

The authorities publish no comparison of schools. Newspapers and websites publish unofficial rankings built on partial data such as university entrance results, surveys or reputation, and they reflect the families a school attracts as much as its teaching. Treat them as a loose hint at most.

Work through these criteria in order: the first decide what is realistic, the last decide between schools that are all realistic.

1. Fix your non-negotiables. Decide the school type (public, concertado, private or international), the language of teaching (Spanish, a co-official regional language, English or bilingual) and the stages the school covers. A school that runs through to ESO saves you a change later.
2. Check location and admission chances. Proximity often decides who gets a place. The address on your padrón or a parent's work address earns points, so a school close by is worth more than a better school you are unlikely to get into.
3. Look at the language model and programmes. Compare how many subjects are taught in English or another language, and whether there are music, sport or other programmes.
4. Consider ethos and size. Decide whether you want a secular or religious school, and how many classes there are per year and how big they are.
5. Check the practical side. Compare concertado fees and extras, the timetable, and services such as the comedor, early-morning care, after-school activities and transport.

Where to find official information

Each region's education department publishes a school finder with the school type, address, stages, language programmes and contact details; Madrid, Catalonia, Andalucía and Valencia all have one. Many regions also publish the yearly admission call, with the school zones, the places offered and the points scale, which shows how much your address is worth at each school. Results by school are not published in a comparable way, and national statistics, such as pupil-teacher ratios, cover the country as a whole.

Make the shortlist and visit

Include safe options, because the application lets you rank several schools by preference. Open days (jornadas de puertas abiertas) run between January and April, and some schools start in the autumn. The application period falls between March and May: Madrid usually opens in spring, and Catalonia in March to April. If you miss the open days, many schools offer visits by appointment, and private schools accept visits all year.

Questions to ask each school

• Is the school in the admissions system, does it have free places in your child's year, and how do points or direct admission work? Ask for its área de influencia (admission zone) and how many points proximity gives.
• How does it support pupils who do not speak the language and pupils with special educational needs, and which exemptions from the regional language exist?
• Is it jornada continua (day ends early afternoon) or jornada partida (long lunch break), and what are the exact hours, the early-morning care (aula matinal) and the after-school activities, with prices?
• What does the comedor (school canteen) cost, are meals cooked on site, how are allergies handled and how many monitors supervise?
• What are the travel time and school bus, the total of fees, books, uniform and meals, and what does the AMPA (parents' association) charge and organise?
• What are the class size and pupils per teacher, which stages does it cover, what is the religion option and its alternative, and what is its educational project?
• Which documents does it need? Identity and address papers go in with the form, and school records can follow: Documents you need to enrol your child in a Spanish school.

Before you have an address and in special cases

Public and concertado places depend on your home or workplace address, usually proved with the padrón or a rental contract. While your area is undecided, research your region's admission rules and calendar, shortlist schools in several possible areas and contact the regional education department or local admissions office about free places. Private and international schools use no catchment areas, so you can apply to them without a local address. Gather your child's school records now, so you are ready once you have an address.

If you arrive mid-year, speed matters more than the shortlist: Joining a Spanish school in the middle of the school year. For a child with special educational needs, Checking special needs provision before you choose where to live in Spain lists what to verify at each school.