The management of School No. 20 warns of numerous deficiencies in the facilities that “put children’s physical safety at risk,” less than a year after the school opened.
Schools in Orihuela are being overwhelmed by a lack of maintenance, resulting in daily problems affecting the entire educational community. This is reflected in the avalanche of formal complaints received by the City Council over the past month.
Although this situation has persisted for years, it has worsened recently due to additional issues with heating systems, pushing frustration beyond the Education Department and placing the spotlight directly on the Mayor’s Office.
One of the most striking cases is School No. 20, the third school on the coast, which is already showing numerous deficiencies despite having been open for less than a year.
The school’s management has informed the City Council that the condition of the facilities poses a real risk to student safety.
Among the issues reported are: cracks in the multi-purpose sports court that increase the risk of falls and injuries; a deteriorated perimeter fence with loose mesh compromising privacy, and a damaged post that could topple over; the absence of proper drinking fountains—currently replaced by exposed taps with visible pipes that children easily tamper with and break, creating accident risks; broken rubbish bins that cannot be properly emptied, contributing to dirt accumulation in the playground; and a playground surface in poor condition, with accumulated dirt affecting hygiene and health standards.
Additional concerns include a broken fence around the school playground with visible nails that could cause serious injuries, and an excessive number of stones in the playground, which frequently leads to incidents as students throw them during their breaks.
All of this is compounded by the lack of shaded areas in outdoor spaces, particularly in the playground where students spend their free time and participate in outdoor activities. This shortcoming becomes especially serious during the hotter months, exposing children to health risks such as heatstroke, fainting, dizziness, dehydration, and even burns from prolonged sun exposure.
“Given that these are children, many of them very young and with limited ability to recognize warning symptoms, we believe this situation represents a lack of basic safety and welfare conditions. It directly affects the normal development of the school day and the students’ right to a safe educational environment,” the letter emphasizes.
Safety Risks
“All these deficiencies put the physical integrity of boys and girls at risk,” the document concludes. The school states that it has acted “responsibly, cautiously, and within its scope of authority, documenting the issues and attempting to minimize their impact.” However, it warns that “the persistence of these problems and the lack of structural solutions make it impossible to continue bearing this burden without institutional support.”
As a result, the school is urging the City Council to adopt urgent and effective measures, warning that “should these situations lead to harm to students, the school will have exhausted all available courses of action, and responsibility will rest with the competent authority.”
Classrooms dangerously cold
The Parents’ Association (AFA) of CEIP Playas de Orihuela has also issued an urgent appeal raising public concern over ongoing boiler problems that threaten pupils’ wellbeing. Despite multiple formal notices to the City Council throughout 2025 reporting a non-functioning boiler and lack of gas supply—including impacts on Early Years—no solution has been confirmed.
Winter temperatures, often as low as 3°C, leave classrooms dangerously cold. Families have resorted to electric heaters, but the school’s electrical system cannot safely support them, causing outages.
The City Council has claimed for some time that it is dealing with the matter but there has still been no progress. The AFA urges urgent action to ensure safe, suitable learning conditions.
Meeting Requested
Maintenance shortcomings are evident throughout the municipality. The management of CEIP Virgen de los Desamparados has requested a meeting with all school leadership teams to address the state of maintenance, as was done at the beginning of last year.
At that time, Education Councillor Vicente Pina said that a new maintenance contract—the first of its kind—would have a budget of around one million euros, according to estimates. The intention was for it to be operational in the final four months of the year, which has still not happened.
The same school has once again requested the pruning and removal of tree branches in various areas of the campus—especially in Early Childhood Education—due to safety concerns for students. The school stresses that this request has been ongoing since June 2024 without any response.
Families from the Miguel Hernández and Andrés Manjón schools have also submitted formal complaints, highlighting numerous unresolved issues that have accumulated over months or even years. These include plumbing, electrical, masonry, carpentry, air conditioning, and other basic maintenance tasks.
They argue that this situation constitutes a failure by the municipality to meet its obligations regarding the upkeep of educational facilities. Consequently, they are requesting a meeting with the Education Department and the implementation of a municipal maintenance plan with a clear timetable, defined responsibilities, and maximum response times.
Leaks and Flooding
Complaints continue to surface at other schools as well, including damaged flooring and broken doors at the Hurchillo school, requests for plumbing and electrical repairs at CEIP Nuestra Señora de Monserrate in Molins, and as many as three formal complaints regarding damage at the Antonio Sequeros Special Education Centre.
Among the reported issues are floor tiles swollen by storm damage, preventing doors from functioning properly.
Heavy rainfall in mid-December has also caused leaks at the Hurchillo school, where water is further deteriorating an area under construction that has been stalled since February 2023.
Flooded classrooms have been reported at Villar Palasí and Virgen de la Puerta schools, where there are also problems with dampness, a partially collapsed ceiling, and numerous broken blinds that have not been repaired since September.
