The Olive Tree School

The Olive Tree School is an International British School located in Sant Pere de Ribes, between Sitges and Vilanova i la Geltrù in The Garraf region, a popular residential area with the international community, around 40 km to the south of Barcelona.
We teach the English curriculum as established by the British government providing education for children aged 3 to 16 with classes limited to a maximum of 20 pupils to ensure every child's welfare and learning needs are met.
We are inspected every 4 years by NABSS, the inspection body of The British Council, who accredit all British Schools operating in Spain. Our latest Inspection Report is from November 2024: ''The good leadership and management are evident in the consistency of expectations across the school, notably in the quality of teaching and learning and behaviour.’’

Upcoming Open Days:

Saturday 22nd March - 11.00 to 13.00
Saturday 26th April - 11.00 to 13.00

Families are encouraged to bring their children along.
To register: https://www.theolivetreeschool.es/open-days-international-school

Primary Language(s)

English

Curriculum

British

Qualifications

British iGCSEs

Age Range

3 - 16 years old

Welcome Note

We founded The Olive Tree School 15 years ago in a small apartment with just 20 children. We have grown into a school of around 200 pupils with 30 different nationalities represented in the school community. We offer a warm, family atmosphere, where children feel comfortable to embark on their learning journey. Our classes are limited to a maximum of 20 children, which allows us dedicate the attention required to every child so that their welfare is prioritised. We encourage our children to aim high, to be inquisitive and to have the confidence to question the world around them. Our active school community welcomes new families every year as they settle into a new life in Spain and meet the Spanish & Catalan families who choose our British educational model. We would love to see you at one of our Open Days where I'll be there to explain in more depth about teaching and learning at our school together with other school leaders from our Pre-School (Nursery or Kindergarten), Primary and Secondary Schools.

I look forward to meeting you and your children.

Audrey Reeder, Founder and Headteacher of The Olive Tree School

School Ethos

We provide education for children from 3 years of age to 16:
Saplings is the name of our pre-school for ages 3 to 5 (Nursery & Reception years in the British system, or Kindergarten in US).
The Saplings children have their own 700m garden with a vegetable plot, mature trees, and a landscaped playground offering ample opportunity for outdoor learning. The classrooms are spacious and designed to stimulate the imaginations of our youngest pupils.
You will find a warm, nurturing environment where your children take their first steps in communication and language, physical development, and personal, social, and emotional development. We blend these with early exploration of reading, numbers, music and movement, art, and drama to inspire a love for learning. We are not aligned to any specific methodology. Our British trained teachers lead activities which allow children to explore the world around them through play. The skills which form the foundation for their learning journey through active learning interacting with people, objects and events in an atmosphere of free play.

Primary Years 1 to 6 (K2 to Grade 5 in the US system) for 5 to 11 years
The teachers deliver the curriculum using project based learning rather than standard text books. Children take an active role in hands-on activities which promote inquiry and problem-solving from an early age. This creative approach engages pupils and helps them to develop academically and emotionally in an atmosphere of warmth and kindness.

Our classes are limited to a maximum of 20 pupils ensuring an excellent teacher to pupil ratio. All Primary classes benefit from a teaching assistant which ensures that our learning model is very much pupil-centred with every child following their own learning path and meeting their own education challenges on a daily basis.

Secondary Years 7 to 11 (Grades 6 to 10 in the US system) for 11 to 16 years
Pupils are encouraged to aim high, working together collaboratively. By fostering teamwork and the development of social skills pupils engage communicatively in their learning path. Teachers act as mentors, guiding learning and promoting pupil autonomy. Respect and responsibility are promoted as core values. Our strong academic record of success is helped by an environment where each pupil is challenged and supported in their learning - on an hourly basis. Everyone succeeds, advancing at their own pace.

At Age 16 our pupils take the IGCSE exams. Our record of results is outstanding and well above the average GCSE results for English schools.

Languages

Primary Language

English

Additional languages offered

In Primary and Secondary, Spanish and Catalan are taught in accordance with the requirements of The Generalitat (The Catalan Regional Government).

Language support available

Children who join our pre-school at age 3 or 4 do not generally require any additional language support as a total immersion language acquisition methodology is followed. The vast majority of pupils develop the necessary communication skills in English to progress into our Primary school.

Children joining our Primary school from families where English is not spoken at home are assessed and, where necessary, additional language support is provided in individual tutoring sessions. We work with every child and every family to ensure that the adaption to an English language learning environment is a smooth one.

Children joining our Secondary school are expected to have a certain proficiency in English. Extra support and tutoring is provided for those that require some extra support in this area. We do not require any pupils to take a test or entrance exam. We assess each child holistically based on their skills & emotional development.

Curriculum

We follow the English National Curriculum as established by the UK government. We do not adopt a text book approach to delivering the curriculum. Our teachers plan lessons carefully to engage pupils with project based learning activities in Primary years. This approach continues into Secondary, where analytical skills and critical thinking is developed. The IGCSE course followed from age 14 to 16 prepares pupils to take their exams and to optimise their results in IGCSE.

Qualifications

IGCSE (International General Certificate of Education) - The examinations taken by all pupils in England and Wales. IGCSE's are recognised by the Spanish Education Department and accreditation for completing obligatory Secondary education in Spain is available allowing access to further and higher education in the Spanish public system if required. The Olive Tree School is an accredited Pearson Edexcel Examination Centre. Pearson Edexcel is one of the examination boards authorised to deleiver the IGCSE exams.

Facilities

Our pre-school facilities include a 700m2 lanscaped garden equipped with climbing frame, sandpit, allotment and a variety of play activies. Outdoor learning is an integral part of the pre-school experience with children regularly visiting the forest across the road from the school too. The indoor learning space is equipped to spark the imagination and has kitchen facilities for home-baking, a regular activity.

Our Primary and Secondary facilities include a Science lab, an ICT room, a busy Art studio, two peaceful libraries, a bright, well equipped Music room, several outdoor classrooms, a thriving vegetable plot and a much-loved theatre. And there are four gorgeous upright pianos dotted around school for our pupils to play.

Our outdoor space covers 4000 sq metres, giving pupils a wide range of ways they can spend their free time. Our beautiful new 1000 sq metre sports hall is unique in the area! It has basketball courts, a 7-a-side football pitch and volleyball/ badminton courts.

First Year Joining Fee

Children joining at Nursery level aged 3 are exempt from the Registration Fee.
The Registration Fee for the rest of our children is 2750€ for the first child and 1750€ for a sibling.
This fee is only paid once on joining the school and is not returnable.
A fee of 300€ is payable for inclusion on the Waiting List for new pupils. This fee is non-refundable but is discounted from the registration fee if a child subsequently resisters with the school.

Annual Tuition

Fees for 2025/26 are as follows:
- Nursery - 8.850€
- Reception - 9.500€
- Years 1 to 6 - 11.575€
- Years 7 to 9 - 12.685€
- Years 10 to 11 - 13.185 €

Additional Fees

- Lunch (optional) is charged at 7,95€
- Exam fees for GCSE are charged as extras
- School excursions and Colonias (summer residential trip) are charged as extras

Discounts

2% discount of the annual fee if paid in full before 5th August 2025.
30% discount in tuition fees for a third child and any subsequent children.

Current Fees

https://www.theolivetreeschool.es/tuition-fees

Fees

School in Numbers

School size

194

Classes per grade / age

There is one class per year group

Class sizes

Maximum class size is 20 throughout the school.

Nationalities

There are 30 different nationalities represented in our school.
Our Spanish/Catalan families make up around 30% of our school, with the other 70% divided more or less equally between native speaker families and those for whom English is a second language.

Student Support

What learning needs the school can support

We have a dedicated SEND team to provide the necessary learning support for those with additional learning needs. Every child is assessed and if any specific additional learning requirements are identified a programme of individual support is discussed and agreed with parents. Additonal learning support is provided for English, phonics, literacy, dyslexia, dyscalculia amongst others.

What support staff are available

We have a teaching assistant for each class in Primary, which in combination with the limitation on class size, means the ratio of teaching staff to children is particularly favourable. We have one dedicated SEND teacher, a speech therapist, and where necessary we refer families to a local educational psychologist.

Admissions

Details of entry criteria

We do not have any specific entry criteria. Each child is assessed on their own merits. There is no entry test on admission.

Details of entry tests

We do not use entry tests in our admissions system.

Further Information

We invite children to spend a day or two with us so they can experience our learning environment for themselves. For those entering at Nursery level, we invite children to a 'playdate' of a couple of hours once they are 3 years old.

Extra Curriculars

We have a wide variety of After School Clubs including:
- Teatime Club (Early Years) Monday to Thursday 16.00 to 17.00
- Taekwondo Club
- Football Club
- Basketball Club
- Musical Theatre Club (Junior & Senior)
- Dance Club
- Debating Club
- Sewing Club
- Forest School Club
- Stop-Motion Animation Club
- LAMDA (preparation of drama exams)
- Individual Music Tuition (piano, guitar, drums, flute, violin)
We publish the programme of After School Clubs every term and children sign up on half-termly basis.