Families from CEIP Nuestra Señora del Rosario are still occupying the Town Hall of Benaoján after the Junta detailed the safety measures adopted due to the construction work. Some parents accept these measures, but others continue the protest.
The families of CEIP Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Benaoján have begun a 48-hour sit-in at the Town Hall to demand a solution that allows around 130 students to return to classes normally. The protest, as reported by Diario Sur, marks two weeks since the official start of the school year and comes after work was halted on a municipal building adjacent to the school.
The parents have set up in the municipal offices with chairs and signs reading messages like “Education cannot wait. Our children first” or “Your delays are costing us.” They announced their decision to occupy on Monday, after claiming that work which had begun hours earlier on the adjacent building was stopped.
The territorial delegate for Educational Development, Miguel Briones, travelled to Benaoján on Tuesday to meet with the families and explain the measures adopted at the school. Education has detailed the changes implemented in recent days: the reinforcement of barriers separating students from the construction site, with new metal fences, the isolation of affected areas, and a reorganisation of spaces. Early years and the first years of Primary are being moved to adjacent facilities, while the rest of the students are distributed across different floors of the school.
Some parents have accepted the explanations, but others have decided to maintain the sit-in that began in the morning, so the protest continues despite the Junta's intervention. The proposal defended by the families involves temporarily relocating all students to the building of the former elderly residence, which is currently unused.
“We are once again left with uncertainty about when our children will enter school and when they will recover their education”
This was expressed by the spokesperson for the parents, Roberto Benítez, who claims that only minor interior modifications would be needed to adapt the facilities, including the removal of four partitions and the installation of some divisions. He explains that work was set to begin on Monday after several days of discussions, but was halted shortly thereafter.
The families hold both the Town Hall and the Territorial Delegation of Education responsible for the failure of the alternative solution and argue that if work were to resume immediately, the building could be ready to accommodate students in a few days.
Another point of contention is the conditions of the centre. Benítez states that they have a report from the municipal architect advising against the use of the building due to structural problems, and that the Fire Department recently visited the facilities and warned of deficiencies. Both claims are supported by the families and are pending official confirmation from the involved agencies.
The position of Education is different. The Junta stated at the beginning of the school year that the technical management of the works had issued a favourable report for school use after adopting safety measures such as fencing off the construction areas, closing access to affected toilets and the semi-basement, shoring up the sanitary flooring, and cleaning the passageways. The relocation of early years groups to nearby municipal facilities was also authorised at that time.
The origin of the problem lies in the works to eliminate architectural barriers being carried out at the school, budgeted at 199,574 euros and including, among other interventions, an elevator and a new access ramp. Since the first day of class, the families have deemed the measures taken insufficient and have maintained their refusal to allow all students to coexist with the construction work, demanding a provisional location for all students.
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