From Suggestions to Results. Visible Improvements and an Improved Evaluation

At Colegio Internacional Aravaca, we close the first term of the academic year with a clear takeaway: listening to families and acting quickly works

At Colegio Internacional Aravaca, we close the first term of the academic year with a clear takeaway: listening to families and acting quickly works. Two of the most important challenges at the start of this school year, morning access to the school and the adaptation of the school lunch menu, have found effective solutions and, most importantly, ones that have been well received by our educational community. This is something we are particularly proud of.

Smoother arrivals, calmer mornings

One of the main sources of tension at the beginning of the school year was congestion during morning drop-off, especially around access points and the car park. This was most noticeable in Primary, although it also affected Early Years and Secondary.
To address this, we brought forward the opening time of the car park gate to 8:45 am,a simple measure that has proved highly effective.

Family feedback was immediate: access is now more orderly, more comfortable and much smoother, reducing friction and improving the start of the day for everyone.

The school canteen: from initial difficulty to clear improvement

The second major challenge was adapting the school menu to Royal Decree 315/2025, which applies at a national level and introduces significant changes to food frequencies and combinations. As with any major change, the initial reception was not entirely positive,  something we fully understood and shared.

Rather than closing the issue, we began working straight away alongside Aramark’s nutritionists, the school leadership team, and with the active collaboration of a parent from the school. Together, we reviewed menu design, adjusted combinations and sought more balanced and appealing options for students, while continuing to fully comply with the regulations.

The result has been a very significant improvement, clearly acknowledged by families themselves. Today, the canteen is receiving much more positive feedback, confirming that we are on the right path.

Families at the heart of continuous improvement

These advances would not be possible without an open and ongoing communication channel. Responding to family suggestions is essential for us, as their experience is key to ensuring that the school is, and continues to be, their preferred choice.

We would like to remind families that the digital suggestions box is always available via the Weekly, weekly reminders, the parent portal, and also through WhatsApp. All proposals are read promptly and assessed in order to find solutions as quickly as possible, wherever feasible.

An NPS that reflects trust and a genuine connection

In addition, families responded very positively to the first-term satisfaction survey (NPS), with an improvement of 15 points, an especially strong increase that makes us proud and confirms that we are moving in the right direction.
Comments consistently highlight the high quality of teaching, personalised attention, approachability and dedication, and the positive impact on students, who feel supported, motivated and are learning well. As one parent put it, “The school has improved significantly in recent years.”

Concepts such as teachers, attention, involvement, follow-up and quality appear repeatedly and explain why the teaching staff are one of the main drivers of satisfaction.

This result does not mean the work is finished. We also take note of areas for improvement that emerge, such as occasional teacher turnover (a nationwide challenge) or the request for greater academic challenge at certain stages, and we continue working on them. The overall picture is clear: there is a high level of trust and emotional connection with the school. We will keep listening, adjusting and improving to strengthen this positive experience and move forward together.

Looking ahead, with our feet on the ground

We know these are not the only challenges. In any school, there is always room for improvement, and we continue to work on areas such as the experience of official school photos, which we aim to optimise in future editions.

We also hold regular meetings with parent representatives, a committed and constructive team that channels family concerns. Many issues have already been resolved; others are in progress, as they have been identified and are being followed up.

We do not aim to be perfect, but we do aim to improve every day. Communication between families and the school is now closer, more frequent and more effective, supported by increased participation in events, meetings and school life.

We close this term with a clear and positive message: when families and the school move forward together, the educational experience improves. We will continue listening, refining and progressing to build an ever-happier educational community and the best possible experience for everyone.