Cities / Barcelona / Richmond International School
Richmond International School
Small British curriculum school in Sant Pere de Ribes, between Sitges and Vilanova i la Geltrú, around 35 minutes south of central Barcelona. Opened 2013, NABSS member, runs the English National Curriculum from age 3 through A Levels.
In brief
Small British curriculum school in Sant Pere de Ribes, between Sitges and Vilanova i la Geltrú, around 35 minutes south of central Barcelona. Opened 2013, NABSS member, runs the English National Curriculum from age 3 through A Levels.
Genuinely small: the size is the pitch, with low teacher-to-student ratios and a primary feel that families on the Garraf coast have leaned into rather than commuting up to BSB Castelldefels or Sitges town. A Levels were added in 2017, so the senior school is still relatively young.
Parent voice splits sharply. The positive thread is warmth and care, a strong head, happy children, and stronger Maths than UK norms. The negative thread, persistent enough to take seriously, is that management is felt to over-promise on facilities and amenities at admissions, and that teaching consistency is uneven across staff. Useful for families committed to the Garraf area who want British schooling without a long commute, with the caveat that this is a small operation and quality varies year to year.
Reviews
A small British school on the Garraf coast, half an hour from Barcelona by car and walkable from Sant Pere de Ribes. The roll sits around 160 to 170, English national curriculum from 3 to 18, with IGCSEs and A levels added in 2017. Parents describe a family feel and close adult attention; the recurring grumble is on the management side, around communication and the gap between what is promised at the gate and what arrives in practice.
Positives
- Small and personal. Low class sizes and a tight staff body mean teachers know every child by name. Parents talk about a warm, family atmosphere and easy access to teachers.
- British curriculum on the Garraf coast. Full English national curriculum through to A level, taught in English with Spanish, Catalan and French alongside. A useful option for British-track families who do not want a Barcelona commute.
- Early years and primary. The strongest praise lands in the younger years, where the small-school setup and assistant ratios in the infant rooms come through most clearly.
Considerations
- Management and communication. Parents talk about disorganisation on the office side, promises at enrolment that do not always land, and patchy communication when things change mid-year.
- Exam preparation at the top end. A minority of parents say curriculum coverage at IGCSE and A level can feel light against the official syllabus, and turnover of older pupils is mentioned.
- Fee transparency. Fees are not published on the school site. Third-party listings indicate roughly EUR 750 a month at early years rising to around EUR 1,100 at A level, plus a registration charge in the region of EUR 2,500. Worth confirming directly.