A new survey by the union STEPV at the start of the 2026/27 school year reports major organisational and infrastructure shortcomings in state schools in the Comunitat ValencianaAccording to the survey, which covered more than 200 schools, staffing plans are incomplete at many schools at the start of term. In particular, in Educación Secundaria y Bachillerato 57.6 per cent of the schools surveyed report teacher shortages. Nearly eight in ten secondary schools also say they have received no additional staff despite rising pupil numbers.
Alongside staff shortages, school leaders criticise delays in the start date for Personal de Administración y Servicios (PAS). They also cite inadequate measures to tackle classroom heat as a third major problem. The funding announced by the Generalitat Valenciana and the existing air-conditioning plan are said by the union to fall short in many places of both current temperatures and immediate needs. According to the survey, several schools are still holding lessons in difficult thermal conditions.
The Conselleria d’Educació says that emergency measures and long-term programmes are getting under way. According to the authorities, these include additional funding for schools under particular pressure and the phased rollout of permanent cooling and ventilation solutions. A plan with priority lists and stages has also been announced under the name Plan Edu Clima The authorities and the union disagree over whether these steps will sufficiently ease short-term staff shortages and heat stress.
STEPV sees the problems as structural: recurring vacancies at the start of the school year, delays in filling key posts and an overloaded administrative process lead to cancelled lessons, combined classes and makeshift arrangements for classrooms. The survey also highlights growing pressure on school leaders, who have to juggle staff organisation, communication with parents and ad hoc measures to cool classrooms.
The situation is increasing pressure on the Comunitat Valenciana to be transparent about the timetable, funding and measurable interim targets for air-conditioning measures, and to speed up the filling of vacancies. The union says it will monitor developments over the coming weeks and consider further action if there is no improvement. At the same time, the Conselleria d’Educació says it is continuing with the measures and adapting them in dialogue with schools and social partners. The survey’s documented findings, the responsible authority’s account and the expectations expressed by both sides for the coming weeks should be clearly distinguished.
Editor: Phillipe Schmidt-Araguin (Article created with AI assistance).