Plainclothes Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) agents will be assigned to several secondary schools in Lleida province and Val d'Aran as part of a new pilot programme, according to the Department of Education. The initiative, set to begin next week, will see officers provide support to the educational community for 18 months.
Four public secondary centres in the Urgell region, specifically in Tàrrega, Bellpuig, and Agramunt, will participate. These include the Ribera del Sió institute in Agramunt, Lo Pla d’Urgell in Bellpuig, and the Manuel de Pedrolo and Alfons Costafreda institutes in Tàrrega. The assigned agent will be shared among these four schools, addressing issues such as school absenteeism and other incidents, and will be available for immediate mediation when required, officials said.
The Department of Education emphasised that this measure "does not respond to any security problem, but rather the will to add capabilities" to the school environment. The agents will operate in plain clothes, aiming to integrate seamlessly into the school community.
Expanding Support Across Catalonia
Beyond the Urgell region, the pilot programme will also be implemented in Val d’Aran, affecting the IES Val d'Aran in Vielha and the Escola Ostaleria in Les. These areas are among several educational zones across Catalonia selected for the initial phase of the programme, which is scheduled to run for one and a half years. Other participating locations include L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Vic, and two centres each in El Prat de Llobregat and Sabadell.
The Catalan Ministry of Education noted that nine other autonomous communities in Spain have already adopted similar measures. The pilot's duration will allow for an evaluation of its effectiveness and potential for broader implementation across Catalonia's educational system in the future.
