Your child's rights to inclusive education in Spain

Key rules

• Support hours: No national law gives a child a fixed number of support hours; support is set by the assessment and the region's rules.
• Reasonable adjustments: Schools must make reasonable adjustments unless they impose a disproportionate burden, and refusing them can be discrimination.
• Assessment: The written assessment report drives everything, so get a copy.
• Region: The details and the pace of support differ by region.

What you can rely on

Your child has an enforceable right to be included in ordinary schooling, to be treated without discrimination and to receive reasonable adjustments. Three layers of law back this: the national education law, the general disability rights law and the UN disability convention.

What is not guaranteed is a set amount of support. The amount depends on your child's assessment and on the rules of your region.

What is a firm right

• Schooling and inclusion. Inclusion is a founding principle of the education law. Schools and administrations must work towards it.
• Non-discrimination. Refusing a reasonable adjustment can itself count as discrimination for a disabled pupil.
• Reasonable adjustments. These are changes that let your child take part, such as adapted materials, space or methods. The school must make them unless they would be a disproportionate burden. The school has to show that burden. It cannot simply assert it.
• Early detection and assessment. Administrations must identify and assess needs. Ask for this early.
• Support the assessment recognises. If the official report says your child needs a certain type of support, the administration must provide it. Courts can order it, or order a review of support that is clearly inadequate.

What depends on resources

The law requires administrations to provide "the resources needed", within their budget. In practice, how fast and how fully support arrives differs between regions and between schools.

No national law gives a child a fixed number of support hours. Support is set by the assessment and the region's rules. Courts rarely fix hours themselves.

Who is covered

The rights reach beyond disability. The education law covers pupils needing specific educational support: special educational needs, developmental delay, language or learning difficulties, ADHD, high intellectual capacity, late arrival into the Spanish system, and some personal or school-history conditions. If your child arrived recently from abroad and is struggling with the language, this may apply to you.

Using the UN convention

Spain ratified the UN disability convention in 2007. It is part of Spanish law and prevails over ordinary law if they conflict. Its inclusive education article is used in disputes, and the Supreme Court has relied on it to back mainstream placement. Courts apply it case by case, so the result depends on your facts.

What to do

Start with a request for an assessment and get the written report. The support your child gets will follow from what that report recognises. The checklist below walks you through the steps, and the questions below it cover adjustments and court action. Regional rules differ, so check your region's education authority for its staffing and support rules.

Checklist

• Ask the school or your regional education authority for a psychopedagogical evaluation of your child, since early detection and assessment are mandatory.

• Request a copy of the written report and the dictamen de escolarización (the official report that sets your child's schooling and support).

• Check which support the report recognises, such as a PT teacher, a speech therapist (AL) or an educational assistant.

• Ask the school in writing for the reasonable adjustments your child needs, such as changes to materials, space or assessment.

• Confirm in writing that the school is giving the support the report recognises.

• Look up your region's staffing and support rules, because the level of support depends on the assessment and on regional resources.

• Keep copies of every request, reply and report, in case you need to challenge a decision later.

Frequently asked questions

Can I rely on the UN disability convention in a dispute with my child's school?

Yes, Spain's courts accept the UN disability convention in education disputes, but they apply it case by case. Spain ratified it, so it is part of Spanish law and prevails over ordinary law if the two conflict.

What counts as a reasonable adjustment in school?

A reasonable adjustment is a change the school must make so your child can take part, unless it would be a disproportionate burden. Refusing one without good reason can count as discrimination under the general disability law. Ask the school to put your request in writing.

Which children does the education law cover besides those with a disability?

The education law covers every pupil who needs specific educational support, not only disabled pupils. That includes ADHD, learning or language difficulties, high intellectual capacity and late arrival into the school system. Early detection and assessment are mandatory duties.

Can a court order the school to give my child more support?

Yes, a court can order the administration to provide the support already recognised in your child's assessment, or to review support that is inadequate. Courts rarely fix a number of hours. Your child's assessment is the document that carries the most weight.