More staff, more inclusion, and better-prepared schools for the new academic year

More than 1.6 million pupils have started the 2026–2027 school year in schools across Catalonia, which begins with more staff and new resources to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse school system.

In total, the structural workforce will reach 94,422 professionals, including teaching staff, educational support staff, and administrative staff — 1,830 more than at the start of last year, a boost that will expand schools’ capacity in particularly sensitive areas such as welcoming newly arrived pupils, inclusive education, and support for pupils with specific educational needs.

Teaching posts alone now total 85,052 at the start of the year, 1,103 more than last year. Over the past five years, teaching posts across Catalonia have risen by 7,799.

More reception classrooms for an increasingly diverse student body

One of this year’s main areas of reinforcement is reception classrooms, a key resource for helping newly arrived pupils join the school system. This September, 500 new places have been added, bringing the total number of these support spaces in Catalonia to 2,141 — 1,400 more than twenty years ago. Class size in these classrooms is capped at 18 pupils, with the aim of allowing more personalised attention during pupils’ first months in the system.

Support does not end once a pupil leaves these spaces. The new school year also adds 50 places to strengthen reception in basic vocational training, and a further 50 to provide language support within mainstream classrooms for pupils who have completed this first stage but still need to build their language skills.

Reception support is conceived as a gradual process: easing pupils’ arrival, reinforcing their language learning, and ensuring they can continue to progress within the mainstream classroom.

More resources for a more inclusive education

Responding to diversity also means strengthening resources for pupils with specific educational needs. Special education schools will add 204 new places, equivalent to 80 groups, with an investment of €6.3 million. Three bilingual schools using Catalan sign language will also open, designed to let deaf pupils develop their skills in a specialised educational setting.

The Department will also expand the APPA programme, which is designed to detect learning needs. Having been applied in Years 1 and 3 of primary school last year, it will this year extend to Year 5, meaning the tests will reach 36,000 pupils. Detecting these difficulties early allows schools to act sooner and adapt resources to each pupil’s needs.

In the earliest stages of education, the reinforcement also includes 582 new public places for children aged 0 to 3, created in partnership with local authorities.

Schools renewed to meet new challenges

Improving educational resources also means improving the spaces where teaching happens each day. For the 2026–2027 school year, seven schools will begin classes in new buildings, while six major projects will be under construction over the coming months.

Renewing school facilities allows the network to expand and modernise, responding to the needs of a school community that is itself changing — new spaces for learning, but also facilities designed to better accommodate pupil diversity and new ways of teaching and learning.

Preparing schools for the future

The school system is also introducing measures this year to address one of the biggest shifts now transforming education: the arrival of artificial intelligence. This September, the Department will publish guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence in schools, aimed at pupils, teachers, and families.

The aim is to offer a common framework so the technology can be introduced responsibly and safely. Among other points, the guidelines will establish that under-14s should not use general-purpose AI tools independently unless they are specifically designed for educational settings, while those aged 14 to 18 will need authorisation to do so.

The focus will also fall on data protection and on the restrictions set out under European regulation. As for research work, AI use will be permitted provided it is documented and its contributions verified.

More support for staff and school leadership teams

Improving the school system also means supporting those within it. This year will see the introduction of a professional wellbeing scheme for teachers, backed by a team of psychologists and other professionals offering tools for classroom management and preventing burnout.

Healthcare professionals will also be deployed to ensure pupils with chronic illnesses and care needs are looked after during the school day. Following last year’s successful pilot, the service will extend to 50% of Catalonia’s schools this year, reaching 100% the year after.

And to allow school leadership teams to focus more on pedagogical leadership, a pilot scheme will launch in three areas introducing a school business manager role, who will take on part of the school’s financial, budgetary and procurement responsibilities.

The return to classrooms has begun, then, with more staff to support diversity, more resources to ease reception, and new facilities to adapt schools to the needs of a school community that is itself evolving.