Ei-iE

Spain: summer school holidays uncover social exclusion

published 18 July 2017 updated 26 July 2017

The depth and breadth of social exclusion become more apparent with the beginning of the summer school holidays in Spain, where 30 percent of children live at risk of poverty.

The Spanish education union FECCOO, affiliated to Education International (EI), has denounced the situation of millions of children who live at risk of poverty and social exclusion in the country. This situation becomes more evident during the summer months, with schools closed and unable to provide meals and daycare for children.

The union is blaming the government’s cuts in social spending for the “expansion of poverty” and demands more investment in education to tackle it - at national, regional and local level. FECCOO has called for an “urgent action plan” to be set up as soon as possible and which would include other stakeholders from civil society. This plan should guarantee the provision of quality education for all children, also touching upon important aspects like health, nutrition, inclusive and healthy leisure activities and extracurricular subjects.