Special needs school placement

It is for anyone considering, planning or carrying out a move to Spain with a child who needs support. After reading, you will know your placement options, how to decide between them and how to apply so a place is not lost.

Start with "Mainstream, specific classroom or special school: your placement options". It explains each setting, what the evaluation report recommends and what you can still choose as a family. The other articles then build on it: the inclusion debate, applying for reserved places, whether to disclose a diagnosis, arriving mid-year, and non-public schools.

Key rules

• Reserved places: Regions usually reserve two or three places per group in publicly funded schools for pupils with specific support needs.
• Family preference: The family must be heard and its preference is taken into account, but it is not binding on the administration.
• Compulsory schooling: Schools must take pupils of compulsory age, which is from 6 to 16.
• Who proposes: The orientation team proposes the setting in a written report, and the regional education administration decides.
• Report: Get the psychopedagogical report before the application window opens, because you attach it to the application.
• Same window: You apply in the same window and with the same application as every other family.

Special needs school placement: the whole process, step by step

From report to placement

• Get the psychopedagogical evaluation and the dictamen de escolarización (the report recommending a type of school) from your regional guidance service. See: Mainstream, specific classroom or special school: your placement options: Before the application window opens in spring

• Take part in the hearing with the guidance service and say which setting you prefer. You can send written objections if you disagree. See: Mainstream, specific classroom or special school: your placement options: While the report is being prepared, before it is approved

• Decide whether to tell the school about the diagnosis. See: Should you tell a school about your child's diagnosis when applying?: Before you submit the application

• Submit the ordinary application, using the special-needs route for reserved places. See: Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas): In spring: Andalucía 1 to 31 March, Cataluña around March, Madrid around March to April, Comunidad Valenciana around April

• Check the provisional lists and the final allocation: Provisional lists in April or May, final allocation from June to July

• If you disagree with the decision, file an administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) to the regional education head: Within one month of the resolution in the standard case; the period varies by region

• If you arrive mid-year or miss the window, ask the education administration for a placement with support. See: Arriving mid-year or after the deadline with a child who needs support: As soon as you arrive or realise you missed the window

• Check whether a private, concertada or international school can give real support. See: Can private, subsidised (concertada) and international schools support your child?: Alongside the main application, if you want a non-public option

Check the exact application dates for your region and course with your regional education department.

Documents you may need

• ID or passport of the parent or guardian — Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas)

• Ordinary admission application form — Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas)

• Psychopedagogical report — Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas)

• Disability certificate — Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas)

• Proof of family circumstances — Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas)

Special needs school placement: questions that cross several articles

Who decides which type of school my child goes to?

The regional education administration decides, based on the dictamen from the guidance service after a psychopedagogical evaluation. The service is the EOEP or EAT in Madrid, the EAP in Cataluña, the EOE in Andalucía and the SPE in the Comunitat Valenciana.

Can I appeal if the placement is not the one I wanted?

Yes, you can appeal the resolution administratively and then go to the courts, though your preference is heard and not binding. Start by sending written objections during the hearing.

Do children with special needs apply on a different calendar?

No, they use the same calendar and application as other pupils, but the school setting is decided with the dictamen. Special school and specific classroom places are allocated by the education administration, not by the points scale. Read Applying for a school place with reserved places (plazas reservadas) and Should you tell a school about your child's diagnosis when applying?

What if I arrive after the application window has closed?

You can still ask for a place with support outside the normal window. Schools must take pupils of compulsory age, which is from 6 to 16. Read Arriving mid-year or after the deadline with a child who needs support for how to ask.