Size of the classroom.

Gross floor area per student

There are no rules for classroom size. Schools do have a minimum number of square meters floor area per student. All spaces count, including toilets and hallways. You can calculate if the school meets this rule: divide the total floor area of the school by the total number of students.

The standards

The space needed differs per school type and grade:

• Primary school: 3.5 square meters floor area per student.
• Secondary school: between 5.7 and 14.8 square meters per student.
• Learning pathway support: each student has 0.7 (year 1 and 2) or 1.2 (year 3 and 4) extra square meters, on top of the standard square meters.
• Special primary education: 6.6 square meters floor area per student.
• Special education: between 7.8 and 15.8 square meters floor area per student.
• Secondary special education: between 7.7 and 15.3 square meters floor area per student.

A full overview of the number of square meters per school type and grade is in the executive order on provisions in primary and secondary education housing. It also states how big a school must be, called the fixed foot. The central government also provides more information in one place.

Size of the schoolyard

There are no national rules for the size of the schoolyard. The municipality usually includes this in the education housing regulations. You can request these from the municipality or the school.

More information

• Executive order on provisions in primary and secondary education housing
• Central government about classroom size