The Herreño centre, a pioneer in offering the full cycle for ages 0 to 3, will be the venue for the institutional event on September 9. The Ministry of Education highlights its commitment to equal opportunities.
The Ministry of Education, Vocational Training, Physical Activity and Sports of the Government of the Canary Islands has chosen CEIP Tigaday, in the municipality of La Frontera (El Hierro), to hold the official opening ceremony for the 2026/27 school year. The event will take place on Wednesday, September 9, coinciding with the start of classes for students in Early Childhood Education, Primary Education, and Special Education.
Minister Poli Suárez announced the decision during his speech at the last Education Commission of the political course in the Parliament of the Canary Islands. Suárez highlighted that the choice of CEIP Tigaday reflects the symbolic value of this centre, which was the first in the archipelago to implement the complete cycle of Early Childhood Education for ages 0 to 3. “We wanted the school year to start at a centre that has marked a before and after in the implementation of the first cycle of Early Childhood Education in the Canary Islands,” he stated.
CEIP Tigaday, located on the island of El Hierro, represents a gesture towards the non-capital islands, as explained by the minister. “This centre demonstrates that significant changes in education also originate from our non-capital islands and can become a reference for the entire archipelago,” Suárez added. The event will feature representation from the regional government.
The Ministry has emphasized that the promotion of the first cycle of Early Childhood Education has been one of the main priorities of the legislative term. Since the 2022-2023 school year, the Canary Islands has increased from 34 classrooms and 593 places for students aged 0 to 3 to 3,885 places distributed across 239 classrooms in educational centres throughout all the islands. This figure even exceeds the target set by the Ministry for the legislative term.
CEIP Tigaday was a pioneer in this area, successfully implementing the complete cycle for ages 0 to 3 thanks to the collaboration between the Ministry and the Town Hall of La Frontera. Since then, the centre has experienced sustained growth in its educational community, increasing from 246 students in the 2023-2024 school year to 324 in the previous year. During that same period, the number of students in the first cycle of Early Childhood Education has risen from 42 to over fifty in subsequent years.
The school calendar will continue after the event in El Hierro. On Thursday, September 10, classes will begin for students in Compulsory Secondary Education. On Friday, September 11, students in Baccalaureate will start, while Vocational Training, artistic education, and other special regime teachings will commence their courses on September 16.
For families in El Hierro, the choice of CEIP Tigaday represents recognition of the educational work on the island and an opportunity to highlight their needs. The centre, which already has places for the youngest children, is consolidating as a model to follow in the archipelago. The ministry hopes that this gesture will strengthen families' trust in public education and encourage enrolment in the first cycle of Early Childhood Education.
The opening ceremony for the 2026/27 school year will take place in the context of consolidating the educational policies of the Canary government. The expansion of places for ages 0 to 3 has been one of the most notable measures, and CEIP Tigaday is an example of how institutional collaboration can yield results. Minister Suárez insisted that “the promotion of the first cycle of Early Childhood Education has been consolidated and is transforming the Canary Islands, offering new opportunities to thousands of families.”
With the start of the school year, the Ministry is also focusing on equal opportunities, regardless of the island or municipality of residence. CEIP Tigaday, with its complete offering for ages 0 to 3, is a symbol of that commitment. The educational community of El Hierro eagerly awaits the event on September 9, which will place the island at the centre of educational news in the Canary Islands.
