Españaula Blog: Your Guide to Schools & Education in Málaga & the Costa del Sol

September 1st is here and for many families going the public or concertado school route after moving to Spain, the plan is simple: arrive over the summer, secure housing and the padrón, and enroll your child in school as soon as offices re-open in September.

As I walk several families through this process right now, I thought I’d share the basics for those applying for a place outside of the normal admissions window.

Here is what I recommend families do.

1. Make sure you have your padrón sorted

For public and concertado schools, your registered address (empadronamiento) is an important part of the process. If you have just arrived, getting on the padrón should be one of your first priorities. Before securing a contract, make sure it is explicitly a long-term contract (over six months), and you are authorized to be on the padrón. Luckily, most schools will accept proof of registration rather than the padrón itself, so families should be able to enroll without waiting the typical 6 weeks for the padrón to be ready. Once it is ready, you will need to bring it to the school secretary for them to update your documentation. 

2. Gather your documents

The exact documentation can vary depending on your situation, but I recommend having the following ready:

• Completed Anexo IX form 
• Parent passports or identification
• Child’s passport or identification
• Birth certificate or family documentation
• Padrón certificate (or proof of registration) 
• Documentation showing the child’s previous school year or academic records, if applicable (depending on age, this likely won’t be asked for)
• Vaccination or health documentation

If documents are not in Spanish, you may be asked for translations depending on the document and the school. Having everything together before you start contacting schools will make the process much easier.

3. Identify schools with availability 

This is where the process becomes different from regular admissions. During the normal application period, families submit applications and schools follow the established admissions process. If you arrive in September, you are looking for available places.

That means you cannot necessarily choose any school you want and expect a place to be available. I recommend creating a list of schools in your area and contacting them directly to ask whether they have vacancies for your child’s year group. You may have a particular school that you love, but if they have no places, you need to know what your alternatives are.

The alternative is to go directly to the Delegación Territorial de Educación en Málaga, where they can assist with placement. This is a more streamlined approach, however the downside is that they will likely assign you to the closest school with an opening without any alternative options. 

4. Talk to the school directly 

If you decide to contact schools directly, this is probably my biggest piece of advice for families arriving in September. Go to the school in-person. 

Email is useful, but when you are trying to find a place at the beginning of the school year, speaking directly with the administration can be much more productive. While this can also be handled by a phone call, if Spanish language is limited, it is far more useful to go in-person. 

Bring your documents with you and explain your situation clearly:

• You have recently arrived in Spain
• Your child needs a school place
• You are applying outside the regular admissions period
• You live in the school’s area
• You want to know whether they have a place available and what you need to do next

If the school does not have a vacancy, ask what the next step is and where you should submit the application. On the Anexo IX form that you will need to fill out, you will list alternative schools. Sometimes the first choice will have information about whether the other schools have places, and if not, you can either contact the next choice, or choose to go the Delegacion Territorial de Desarrollo Educativo route. 

5. Don’t panic if this feels complicated

The Spanish school system can feel particularly confusing when you are trying to navigate it for the first time, in another language, while also moving countries.

And September is not always the easiest time to get quick answers. Schools are dealing with the start of the academic year, staff are returning from summer, and families are trying to resolve last-minute issues.

The most important thing is to start the process as soon as you can and be prepared with all documentation you may need. Your child will be placed in a school, it just may take time and some patience to navigate the unknown. 

If you are moving to Málaga and need help understanding your school options or navigating enrollment, Españaula can help you work through the process and understand what your next steps should be.