CEIP Rodríguez Marín in Osuna faces the school year with nearly 700 enrolled students and classes of up to 28 in Year 2. Families are asking the Junta for a fifth class for that level.
The school year 2026-2027 began this Thursday in Osuna with around 2,000 students back in the classrooms. The day was marked by a gathering of mothers and fathers at the gates of CEIP Rodríguez Marín, who are demanding a fifth class in Year 2 to reduce class sizes that reach 28 students per class.
The centre is one of the primary and infant schools with the highest enrolment in Andalusia, with nearly 700 pupils this year. This figure makes the organisation of classrooms and the allocation of resources a central issue for the educational community.
The protest has focused on Year 2, where all classes exceed 25 students and some reach 28. Families emphasise that this level has a high number of students with special educational needs and support, and they are demanding that the Junta de Andalucía establish a fifth unit.
The municipal delegate for Education, Ana Lebrón, attended the gathering alongside the second deputy mayor, Asunción Bellido, and the delegate for Social Welfare, Mª Carmen Berraquero. Lebrón supported the demand and reminded everyone that the problem has been ongoing.
"The problem is not new; it has been raised since last June, with families receiving silence in response from the Territorial Delegation of Education of the Junta de Andalucía"
The delegate believes that at this level, even a ratio of 25 students should not be applied as a starting point, due to the presence of students with special educational needs. According to the data she has, nearly 50% of Year 2 students have specific needs: about 25% are already diagnosed and another 25% are awaiting diagnosis.
"We cannot allow a ratio of 28 people in a class where almost half need specialised attention"
Lebrón warned of the consequences of these figures: more students per classroom means fewer resources, lower quality of teaching, less attention, and more difficulties for teachers. She also pointed out that administrative numbers do not reflect reality.
"On paper, it might add up, but in practice, the reality is that each and every student will feel disadvantaged"
The municipal official announced that, although the Osuna City Council has no direct competencies in Education, it will pass on the families' complaint to the Municipal School Council when it is convened.
"The Osuna City Council, although it has no direct competencies in education, will always show its support for families and the educational community"
The school's director, Fidel González, explained that the school is starting the year with nearly 700 students distributed across four classes at all levels, except in Year 5, where there is a fifth class. In Year 2, 109 students have enrolled.
"It has not been possible to establish a fifth unit in Year 2 either, precisely the level that concentrates the greatest concern of the centre due to its ratios and the needs of the students, because we have a ratio that approaches 28 students and it would have been appropriate to split it into a fifth unit"
González lamented that this fifth unit has not been created, which in his opinion would have allowed for a smoother start to the year and better ensured equality of opportunity. The director assured that the centre will work with the available resources and will continue to demand improvements.
The president of the AMPA, Sonja Schreiner, supported the gathering and described it as sad that, after the measures announced by the Junta to reduce class sizes, the school faces the year with classes of up to 28 students. Schreiner insisted that not only is the number of students per classroom concerning, but also the presence of students with special educational needs, and announced that families will continue their mobilisations.
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