Hi to all,

I had loads of questions about schools but think most have now been answered.
We will be moving to Nerja before Xmas and wondered how to get the kids in at a school at that time of year (they are 10 and 12).
Is it possible to get them in then.
If anyone is from Nerja and knows of a good school can they get in touch or anyone with general advice.
Also I have read that primary education is up to 14 years old, is this right? because that would then mean only looking at one school.
Also any help on estate agents in that area would be good for long term rental.
I have looked at Nerja Reality, C&G Inmobiliaria and Villsolrealestates, so any others would be great.

Hi,

My family is moving to Nerja in April 08. Myself, my husband and my son (aged 12).
I am also looking for information on schools in the area and how quickly we could get our son into school.
Any information you have would be wonderful.
Many thanks.
😊

Hi to Mandy,
I have researched as much as I can so will tell you what I know.
With regard to schools in Nerja have a look at http://www.aplaceabroad.com and look at the school guide section it will give you some details about what you need to register your son (this is only for state schools by the way) I had a quick look at International schools but they would drain our funds very quickly but I don’t what position you are in.
Before I prattle on about this let me know what sort of school you are after and then I will message you back with what I know.
Hope to speak soon

Thank you so much for replying to me. (I have never used a forum before so please forgive any errors).

We too looked at the International school in Almunecar and had the same worries as you regarding the draining of funds. We really want to make Nerja work long term for us and we feel that we probably need to be sensible when it comes to schooling. We have discussed state schools with our son and he is surprisingly keen to try it. He is currently having one to one spainish lessons to help him adjust.

Although we know Nerja very well from lots of holidays, we don’t really know anything about the local schools and l have not found any site that has helped me that much so far. Any help would be fantastic as we feel that getting him settled in, will really help us all.

When do you go…......................... ❓

Hi Mandy
I have found 4 Primary Schools in Nerja and 2 Secondry schools but I have read somewhere that primary in Nerja is up to 14 years old (I will try and check this out though).  What seems to happen is that you have to be within the catchment area of the school just as you do in the UK, advice seems to be to get your house first and register for your NIE numbers as you need this and a fixed address to register the kids.  There are alot of xpat kids in these schools and from what I can gather the school tries to buddy up the child with a Spanish child to help with integration, the teachers are obviously pushed to the limit with lots of foreign kids but I beleive the scooling to be very good.  You may find that your son will be put back a year to help him (not sure how he’d feel about that) mine don’t actually know that yet.  You didn’t say what year he was in but my 2 are currently year 8 and 6 so I am hoping they will pick it up ok, the younger the child the easier it is.
I do have addressess for the schools and phone numbers but have not contacted them yet as first we need to get a property.
We are renting for a year to see how everything goes first.
Can I ask what you and your partner do for work?
We are hoping to go out before Xmas but I am not sure yet if you can register the kids then as the intake time is September so really need to do it in may I think.
Ther are some great wesites to have a look at stuff on Spain try http://www.andalucia.com and www.aboluteaxarquia.com also just type in google Living in Spain it will come up with loads.
If you like pm me and I can tell you more.
How are you travelling there?
Regards Danbec

Sorry for not replying sooner…....it’s been a busy week my end with family birthdays.

My son is in year 8 and he seems happy enough about maybe dropping down a year (l think he would feel differently if we were moving elsewhere in the UK and he was moved down). We too will be renting for at least six months with the hope of finding work during that time, to be able to stay indefinately thereafter. My husband is a builder/decorator and the two boys will be travelling by Ferry and then driving down through Spain. I am currently a Fleet Manager /Buyer with a healthcare Co and a financial background. I have recently completed a TEFL course in the hope of doing some teaching but realise it’s more likely that l will initially work in a bar/restaurant. I will be flying over and meeting the boys in resort. We are currently selling the contents of our house so we need to make this work or we will be returning to absolutely nothing which is a bit of a scary thought. We have been to Nerja many times and we love it, so we have everything crossed at the moment. We have been advised that we need to look for rental property around Feb time, so it’s hard to plan as we do not know exactly where we are going to be living. Then there is the car, phones, bank accounts, etc etc to worry about !”!!!!!!!!! I will try to be online during the evening over Sat & Sun and maybe we can speak some more.
Kindest regards, Mandy

Hi Mandy
Your story sounds exactly like ours with regard to driving down and looking for work etc.
My husband is an HGV driver and I currently work in Admin for the Civil Service but we have both run a pub and a club so we don’t really mind working in a bar.
We were originally hoping to drive down but with regard to the car you can pay heavily for import tax, unfortunatly sometimes more than the car is worth.  If you register your car within 30 days of being in Spain you probably won’t have to pay import tax but to register you need to have your NIE number which can take I believe up to 6 weeks so its a bit of a catch 22.
I don’t mean to put the dampners on it but you will then need to pay for the headlights to be changed over and also the registration fee.  Lots of people seem to pay someone to do all of this for you but again it all adds to the cost.
We wanted to drive so we could take more personal belongings with us but have been advised that unless you really love your car sell it in the UK then buy cheap flights and buy one over there.
Also don’t forget the steering wheel is on the wrong side unless you have a LHD already (it can be a pain long term).
Second hand cars in Spain are quite a bit more expensive than the UK as they tend to hold their value better.
Hope this helps a bit more
Danbec