Catholic School increases the number of students aged 0-3 by 49% thanks to the new placement agreement

PalmThe main employers' association of state-funded schools, Escola Catòlica, inaugurated the school year this Tuesday. According to the secretary general, Antoni Vives, the schools experienced a 49% increase in students between the ages of 0 and 3. This growth was possible thanks to the massive allocation of places promoted by the Ministry of Education. The new school year began with an additional 936 students in the state-funded school, while the public school registered a decrease of 823. The increase in the state-funded school is attributed precisely to the expansion of state-funded education for the 0-3 stage. This year, nine more of the association's schools offer this stage of education, with a total of 32 state-funded schools offering this stage. "There are 21 more schools studying the implementation of the 0-3 stage for the 2026-2027 academic year, which would bring the total to around 50 schools," Vives explained. "We are committed to responding to the needs of families at this important stage, offering an effective and quality option," he added.

During the event, the complicity between the Catholic charter school and the Ministry of Education, headed by Antoni Vera, was evident. So much so that the president of the employers' association, Llúcia Salleras, addressed the minister in an informal tone: "One point the minister added to his file last year—which he also has today—is to find out the real price of school places. But nothing has been done," she said, laughing.

In her turn to speak, Vera responded to the allusion, also laughing: "I'll move on to the list (of requests, from Lucía)." From here, she listed improvements she plans to make in the subsidized schools. "We will approve a new decree of concerts to give stability to our sector, for the proper functioning of the centers and relations with the Administration. We cannot be improvising every year in September," she assured.

Salleras also referred to various pending issues, such as the need to make school transport free for students in subsidized schools, 0-3 assignments to make it easier for students to complete the entire educational path from 0 to regularization, the need to debureaucratize the centers and the review of the amounts that families receive for the dining room scholarships, however, it must be kept in mind that the cost of meals in subsidized schools is significantly higher than in public schools, which is limited to 6.85 euros per day. vulnerable.

Vera responded: "Supporting private schools is not an ideological issue, but rather one of justice and public service." Regarding school transportation, she acknowledged that, despite having mentioned it last year, it has not been finalized. "The issue is complicated in general for all schools. My commitment is to get started, and that next year there will be a legal solution that makes it feasible," she said. According to data from Escola Catòlica, based on its schools, 43% of schools believe that the lack of free school transportation negatively influences the demand for places. This situation, they point out, can make it difficult for certain families to access educational opportunities, especially in areas where mobility is more difficult.

Another of the employers' demands has been equal pay with public schools and the inclusion of bonuses for hard-to-fill places, as is already the case in public schools. "Next year we will sit down to negotiate new framework agreements, and it will be here that we will reflect many of the demands. As for hard-to-fill places, we have authorized overtime to be used to fill them. The problem of staff shortages is widespread across all schools," Vera explained. Regarding red tape, he expressed his willingness to reduce it: "It's one of my obsessions." "Soon, schools will have Llull management software, and we have already implemented a single window to ensure fluid communication between schools and the Regional Ministry," the minister said. 6% more students with special needs

Catholic Schools sought to break the widespread perception that links state-funded schools with an educational model that is distant from the most vulnerable social reality. In this regard, they have provided data that, according to the employers' association, demonstrate their schools' commitment to inclusion and attention to diversity. According to the association, 22% of the associated schools have between 30% and 40% of students with Specific Educational Support Needs (SESE). Similarly, 45% of the schools have between 20% and 55% of students from families who have requested assistance to cover school lunch expenses.

Regarding the diversity of origins, 44% of Catholic Schools have a proportion of students of between 20% and 50% foreign origin. Of these, 43.1% come from European countries, 26.9% are Latin American, and 12.7% are from the Maghreb.

Finally, Escola Catòlica has reported that it has trained 650 professionals in artificial intelligence, and that during this academic year, training activities will be carried out to learn how to manage its use in the classroom. "We are committed to supporting students and teachers in the process of using it responsibly," stated Vives.