Ratios in 0-3 nurseries: the Ministry's proposal and how to prepare

Until now, the first cycle of early-years education has been the stage in which each autonomous region set its own ratios, with notable differences between territories. The Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sport wants to change that: a draft royal decree proposes, for the first time, national ratios for ages 0 to 3, and they are considerably lower than the current ones in many regions.

For a nursery, whether state, grant-aided, or private, the proposal affects three underlying decisions: how many children fit in each room, how much staff is needed and, as a result, what each place costs.

What the draft proposes

The figures in the draft known in September 2026 are these:

• Under 1: 4 children per professional.
• Ages 1 to 2: 6 children per professional.
• Ages 2 to 3: 8 children per professional.

The text also sets material conditions for first-cycle rooms: at least 2 square metres per place in each unit, a multipurpose room of 30 square metres, and an exclusive-use playground of at least 75 square metres.

The instrument chosen is an amendment to Royal Decree 132/2010, which regulates the minimum requirements for centres. The regions could approve ratios lower than the national ones.

Expected timetable

According to the draft, application would be progressive:

• 2027-2028: the first level of the cycle.
• Following years: extension to the other levels.
• 2029-2030: full implementation.

The same draft includes changes in other stages, such as a maximum of 20 pupils per class in the second cycle of early years, with their own timetables. The text went through public consultation in July 2026 and still has to complete its passage, so the figures and dates are provisional.

Why it has provoked so much reaction

The proposal has split the sector. The unions see it as an improvement in conditions for children and staff. On the other side, Escuelas Católicas and the unions in grant-aided education warned that the new ratios can mean a financial burden that leads to the closure of many private 0-3 schools. Some regions have also opposed it: the Region of Murcia, for example, defends its current ratio of 20 pupils in rooms for ages 2 to 3.

The reason is easy to see in numbers.

What it means in practice: an example

An indicative example, for a nursery in a region where today a room for ages 2 to 3 can have 20 children with one educator and occasional support:

• With the proposed ratio of 8 per professional, those 20 children would need three professionals, or the room would have to come down to 16 children with two.
• In a room for ages 1 to 2 with 13 children, the ratio of 6 would require three professionals, or coming down to 12 children with two.

In both cases, either staff cost goes up or the number of places goes down, and either changes the cost per child. For a private nursery, that is passed on to the fee. For a nursery with subsidised places or free provision funded by the region, it depends on whether the funding module is adjusted to the new ratios.

Each nursery should do this calculation with its own data: its region's current ratios, staffing, metres per room, and occupancy by age.

How to prepare now

Even if the text is not approved, the proposed timetable leaves little margin: enrolment and staffing decisions for 2027-2028 are made over the course of this year. Some reasonable steps:

1. Calculate scenarios by room: current children, proposed ratio, professionals needed, and the difference in cost.
2. Measure the spaces: square metres per place, multipurpose room, and playground, against the draft minimums.
3. Review occupancy by age: which rooms are full and which are not, and how demand is evolving in your area.
4. Prepare the staffing plan: hiring, timetables, and support, with time to find qualified profiles.
5. If you have subsidised places, follow your region's talks on funding; we explain it in free childcare for ages 0-3 and subsidised places.
6. Tell families early about any change in groups or fees. Surprises at April enrolment are paid for in trust.

The data you will need

Planning with lower ratios requires having to hand data that many nurseries keep scattered: children by room and by exact age, dates of birth to foresee the move from one age band to the next, each professional's hours, occupancy month by month, and the real cost per place. With that data in a single system, simulating a scenario takes minutes; spread across spreadsheets, it is weeks of work.

Conclusion

The proposal of ratios of 4, 6, and 8 children per professional can change the economic model of many nurseries, especially private ones. It is not approved and it can change, but its timetable starts in 2027-2028. Nurseries that run their numbers this year, by room and by age, will have room to decide; those that wait for the final text will have to decide in a hurry.

If you want to see how to organise rooms, ages, staff, and fees for your nursery in a single system, see Edena for nurseries or book a demo.