Catalan schools weigh enforcement steps and 2027 platform rollout after device ban begins

Catalan schools enter the 2025/26 academic year under a complete ban on smartphones and smartwatches for students in compulsory education, with the new rules applying from the September 8 start date.

The prohibition, introduced for the current school year, removes any prior allowances for classroom or school grounds use and coincides with a projected enrollment of 1,040,925 students across early childhood, primary and compulsory secondary levels.

Local measures already underway

Barcelona has directed 83 separate improvement, enlargement and renovation projects at schools during the summer break, drawn from a 95-measure package backed by more than €62 million in funding. These works target facilities ahead of the September 8 opening and run alongside the Xarxes per al canvi program, which is training staff at 152 Barcelona schools in updated teaching methods.

School segregation indices in the city have already moved lower, dropping from 0.49 to 0.39 in pre-school and primary education and from 0.44 to 0.34 in secondary education between the 2020/21 and 2023/24 years, according to the 2024 Education Opportunities Report.

Decisions required before 2027

Administrators must now determine how to monitor compliance with the device ban across all compulsory-education sites and how to phase in La Meva Educació, the single digital platform scheduled to replace multiple existing apps for grades, payments and absences starting in 2027. The platform will consolidate services previously handled through separate systems, requiring coordination between the Barcelona Education Consortium and individual school administrations.

Enrollment figures show a decline of 12,013 students compared with the prior year, linked to falling birth rates, which will influence staffing and resource allocation decisions in the months ahead.