The new role of the Child and Adolescent Well-being and Protection Coordinator in educational centers: comparative analysis of the regulatory development in the different autonomous communnitiess

La nueva figura del Coordinador de Bienestar y Protección en los centros educativos: análisis comparado del desarrollo normativo en las diferentes comunidades autónomas

https://doi.org/10.4438/1988-592X-RE-2025-407-653

María José Arroyo González

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9416-7674

Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED)

Daniela Baridon Chauvie

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7307-6001

Universidad Internacional de La Rioja

Raquel López Carrasco

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1615-981X

CES Don Bosco

Joaquín González Cabrera

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2865-3428

Universidad Internacional de La Rioja

Abstract

The protection of children and adolescents is a global priority for today’s societies. Data from different official bodies on the different types of violence in childhood are more than worrying. Among the possible causes are the absence of a comprehensive approach to child protection, the lack of teacher training, the lack of coordination of the professionals involved, and the scarcity of resources. In this context, the Organic Law 8/2021, the LOPIVI (2021), arises and, with it, the new figure of the Child and Adolescent Well-being and Protection Coordinator (CWP) in educational centres. This law proposes a holistic approach to the prevention of child violence, generating protective environments in coordination with professionals from different fields. It is up to the Autonomous Communities to specify its implementation. A content analysis of the regulations developed on CWPs by the different autonomous communities up to December 2021 is proposed. Different categories have been established to compare the legislation: implementation of the figure, type of legislation developed, professional profile, aid for developing the functions and types of activities carried out. From the analysis, it can be seen that the enacted legislation is unbalanced and does not follow a common pattern, either in terms of the requirements demanded or the functions to be carried out, with wide divergences, ranging from communities that have not implemented it to others that assimilate it to existing figures. The main conclusion is the prematurity and precariousness of its implementation, highlighting the lack of prior and global reflection to structure and guide this process. At present, this can be considered a situation of inequity in Spain due to the educational inequalities it generates between some communities.

Keywords: childhood, adolescence, child protection, legislation, content analysis.

Resumen

La protección a la infancia y la adolescencia es una prioridad mundial para las sociedades actuales. Los datos de los distintos organismos oficiales sobre los diferentes tipos de violencia en la infancia son más que preocupantes. Entre las posibles causas se señalan la ausencia de un enfoque integral en la protección de la infancia, la falta de formación del profesorado, la poca coordinación de los profesionales implicados y la escasez de recursos. Es en este contexto donde surge la LOPIVI (2021) y con ella la nueva figura del Coordinador de Bienestar y Protección a la Infancia y Adolescencia (CBP) en los centros educativos. Esta plantea un enfoque holístico en la prevención de la violencia infantil, generando entornos protectores y en coordinación con profesionales de distintos ámbitos. Son las comunidades autónomas quienes deben concretar su implantación. Se plantea un análisis de contenido de las normativas desarrolladas sobre CBP por las distintas comunidades autónomas hasta diciembre de 2021. Se han establecido distintas categorías para comparar la legislación: implantación de la figura, tipo de legislación desarrollada, perfil profesional, ayudas para el desarrollo de las funciones de actividades desarrolladas. Del análisis realizado, se colige que las legislaciones promulgadas son desiguales y no siguen un patrón común, ni en requisitos exigidos, ni funciones a desarrollar, existiendo grandes divergencias, desde comunidades que no la han implantado a otras que lo asimilan a figuras existentes. La principal conclusión es la prematuridad y precariedad con la que se ha producido su implantación, poniendo en relieve la falta de una reflexión previa y global que estructure y guíe este proceso. En el momento actual, este hecho puede considerarse una situación de inequidad en España por las desigualdades educativas que genera entre unas comunidades y otras.

Palabras clave: infancia, adolescencia, protección de la infancia, legislación, análisis de contenido.

Introduction: The need to improve the protection of children and adolescents in today’s societies: What’s going wrong?

Investment in child protection is an unavoidable requirement for the development of today’s societies, as evidenced by Goal 16.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals (UN, 2015), which calls for an end to all forms of violence against children. There is also an international concern for child protection and the regulatory development for its guarantee, but the data on childhood violence are extremely worrying. In Spain, 55,354 complaints were filed in 2021 with a child or an adolescent as the victim (Ministerio del Interior, 2022). Of these, 8,317 complaints of crimes against sexual freedom and indemnity stand out, of which 1 out of 2 complaints refer to children and adolescents as victims. Other studies indicate that 7 out of 10 cases of sexual violence reviewed by the Supreme Court in 2020 refer to children or adolescents as victims (Poder Judicial España [Spanish Judicial Branch], 2021). According to data from the Fundación ANAR (2020), the growth rate of cases of sexual abuse was 300.4%, indicating that they have been multiplied by 4, increasing from 273 cases in 2008 to 1093 cases in 2020. Likewise, cybercrime figures continue to rise: according to data from the Ministerio del Interior, 2020, 3430 cybercrime complaints against minors were filed in Spain, compared to 2286 filed in 2017. In addition to violence habitually produced by adults, we can add peer-produced violence, especially in the educational setting, as attested by the international report by UNESCO (2021), where 1 out of 3 students suffered bullying at least once in the month before the survey (32% of the total). In this regard, the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study is a large school survey that is carried out every four years in collaboration with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Regional Office for Europe, which informs that around 1 in 10 (11%) boys and girls reported having been bullied at school at least 2-3 times a month in the last two months (Cosma et al., 2024). In the Spanish context, we can highlight the UNICEF study that indicates a prevalence of victimisation between 19.9-33.6% and cybervictimisation between 12.2-22.5% in a representative sample of Compulsory Secondary Education schoolchildren (Andrade et al., 2021). In 2023, the Colacao Foundation’s study with a large sample of schoolchildren, including primary school students from fourth grade, places the prevalence of victimisation at 6.2% (Díaz-Aguado et al., 2023). In addition, a slightly lower percentage of victims or cybervictims can be considered stable after more than 12 months of reporting suffering from this problem in the Spanish context (González-Cabrera et al., 2021; González-Cabrera et al., 2022). In this line, data from the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional, Spanish acronym MEFP, 2023) on the telephone service created to attend to cases of bullying in schools answered 10835 calls between September 2021 and 2022, of which 33% were classified as bullying with the corresponding treatment.

The data indicated are only a part of those that exist in this reality, showing that violence against children and adolescents persists in the school and social environment. Moreover, it is latent and difficult to eradicate. Despite the figures, the number of violence cases detected is far from the actual cases, as they depend on the professionals’ detection and notification capacity and the victims’ access to assistance and legal resources (Plataforma de Infancia [Childhood Platform], 2021).

We cannot forget the problems related to mental health in childhood and adolescence. There is considerable evidence linking mental health and psychological well-being and their importance when defining the results that are expected to be achieved in life. However, the impact of mental illness on the affected human lives is incalculable (UNICEF, 2021c). The data should raise concern: every year, nearly 46,000 children and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 take their own lives. Suicide has become the fourth leading cause of death among young people between the ages of 15 and 19 (UNICEF, 2021c) and is currently a topic of social and political concern in the face of the increase in cases.

All the above makes it clear that society is facing a widespread problem of great magnitude because it affects children and adolescents of all ages and cultural and economic levels. It also occurs in multiple contexts: family, peers and the online reality to which youth is increasingly exposed (Subrahmanyam & Smahel, 2010), especially in the school setting.

However, despite international concern and legislation, the figures continue to increase. The Save the Children (2018) report on child abuse points to three main factors: firstly, the teachers’ lack of training, as they are the ones who spend the most time with the students. There is a gap in their initial training, as well as in the permanent training of in-service teachers, in content related to the prevention, detection, and intervention in cases of child violence. We also note that no clear protocols in schools describe the steps to be followed and the professionals involved in them. Secondly, there is evidence of a lack of coordination between workers in the different areas involved in cases of violence: educational, judicial, and health services, because the procedures to be followed are unclear, and there is no integrated system that facilitates the follow-up of the cases. Finally, there is a lack of resources in all the sectors involved in child protection, which materialises in the work overload of these professionals from social services, protection, or the system.

Given the above, the need to address and strengthen the comprehensive approach to preventing violence and protecting children in schools is obvious. This is what UNESCO (2016) calls the Whole School Approach, and it proposes to address the needs of students, staff, and the broader community within the curriculum and throughout the school and learning environment. It involves collective and collaborative action in and by a school community to improve student learning, behaviour, and well-being, as well as the conditions that underpin them.

The new role of the Child and Adolescents Well-being and Protection Coordinatior in Sapnish schools

It is clear that the objective of any educational system is for the children to learn, but there is ample evidence of how the lack of child protection affects school performance, school adaptation and cognitive difficulties (Polanin et al., 2021). For this reason, schools must guarantee this protection as an initial prerequisite, and it is in this context that the Organic Law 8/2021 of June 4 on the integral protection of children and adolescents against violence (hereafter, the Spanish acronym LOPIVI, 2021) and the role of the Child and Adolescents Well-being and Protection Coordinator (CWP) emerged. This new regulatory framework underlines the need for a holistic and comprehensive approach to the prevention of child and adolescent violence, generating protective and coordinated environments with different networks of professionals from different fields, with the requisite involvement of the entire educational community and society.

Its ultimate purpose is to guarantee the protective function that school environments should exercise, previously contemplated in the Organic Law 2/2006 on Education. Thus, it establishes that, in accordance with Article 124 of the aforementioned law, all educational centres will prepare a Coexistence Plan. This Plan must include the promotion of good treatment and peaceful conflict resolution (article 31.1), the teachers’ functions in the different posts and positions they may occupy concerning the promotion, recognition and protection of children’s rights in the face of any form of violence that occurs, both within and outside the school, and in the application of the mandatory protocols in each case (Articles 31.2 and 31.3). The law guarantees the supervision of staff recruitment in educational establishments with the provision of a negative certification from the Central Register of Sex Offenders, both for teaching and non-teaching staff who work in the institution on a paid or voluntary basis (Article 32).

However, the most innovative proposal is the creation of the figure of the CWP (Article 35). This regulatory framework must be developed by the autonomous communities (hereafter, ACs) to which the competencies in the field of education were transferred. Organic Law 3/2020, in its sole Article 66, has added Article 124 to Section 5, which establishes that the education administrations will regulate the action protocols against any manifestation of violence, as well as the requirements and functions of the CWP (in any centre, regardless of its ownership). This person will act under the supervision of the centre’s director, and the ACs will determine the CWP post’s requirements and functions, although the minimums are established by the law itself (Sánchez-Barroso, 2022). The ultimate goal is to turn the school into a factor for protecting children and adolescents. To carry out this mission comprehensively, a proactive culture of child protection must be created with the rest of the social institutions involved. Collaboration is therefore key: either with the management team, which bears the final responsibility, or with the tutors, through tutorial action, and with the educational guidance team, which had already been participating in tasks such as applying the coexistence plan. However, this depends on the regulatory development carried out in each AC within the framework of its competence adequacy, which may lead to differences and doubts, as warned by Sánchez-Barroso (2022).

To date, there seem to be no empirical studies analysing the impact of the CWP figure. However, several previous works on this subject have been carried out, using more legal and informative approaches (Cabedo-Mallo, 2023; Sánchez-Barroso, 2022). Therefore, our field still needs to address a critical vision of the current time.

Table I summarises the functions attributed to the CWP in the LOPIVI (2021). Their lack of specificity is striking. However, after the 2022/23 academic year had begun, the MEFP published a guide for the Coordinator of well-being and protection in the school community (Espinosa, 2022). To a large extent, this guide is based on the proposals made by UNICEF (2021b) and offers some guidelines for their implementation in schools. Table I shows the original functions of the LOPIVI (2021), organised by phases of action according to the type of activities carried out, together with the subsequent specifications of the MEFP. This organisation was used a posteriori to unravel the results in terms of the proposal of the CWP’s functions implemented with the analysed regulations, which generates a common thread for the present work.

Methodology

An exploratory and cross-sectional comparative research design was used. Specifically, the qualitative analysis technique proposed by Flick (2004) was used in the research with the following phases: 1) Define the material based on the research questions; in this case, the sample was represented by the CWP regulations in the different ACs until December 2023; (2) Data collection: The regulations were obtained by the researchers from the websites of the different ACs; (3) Material Features: All the documents analysed are educational regulations of different ranks (instructions, resolutions and orders). (4) Definition of the direction of the analysis of the text based on the following research questions, subsequently proceeding to (5) the establishment of categories and (6) the interpretation of the results based on the research questions. The following research questions were posed.

1) How have the CWP’s functions and actions been legislated and specified in the different ACs? Have regulations been developed in this regard? Do CWPs specifically carry out their functions?

2) What is the CWP’s professional profile? What type of specific training has been considered by the different educational administrations? Are their functions followed up?

3) Have the CWP’s functions in the educational centre been specified, and the internal and/or external coordination with other professionals involved in child protection?

Different procedures have been used to decompose and classify texts based on thematic categories, where inference is highlighted as a central element. This way, the analysis established the categories based on the research questions according to the aspects of interest indicated in the specific literature on the subject (Espinosa, 2022; Plataforma de Infancia, 2021; UNICEF, 2021a, b). We used the initial open coding described by Flick (2004), followed by axial coding, where the categories from the previous phase were refined and differentiated, and subsequently, selective coding was performed. All this was synthesised in several categories of analysis that will guide the ordering and presentation of the study results (see Table II). The establishment of the categories in Table II was mixed. On the one hand, previous categories were selected and, on the other, expanded while analysing the information.

Considering the above, we tried to ensure that the categories system was exhaustive, representative, homogeneous, pertinent, univocal, clear and concrete (Guix, 2008). Throughout the block of results, a coding system in tables was performed to facilitate reading and replicability and subsequent reanalysis when the legislative framework is modified.

Results

Implementation of the figure of the CWP: Type of regulation developed

The first distinction made is between the ACs¹ that have implemented the figure of the CWP and those that have not. Of the 18 ACs of Spain (considering the autonomous regions of Ceuta and Melilla), 14 implemented the figure in the 2022/23 school year, 3 did so later, in 2023/2024 (Balearic Islands, Galicia and Catalonia), with Castilla y León being the only one that did not have regulations at the beginning of 2024. In the development of the regulations, there was a great diversity in their typology or rank and their specifications; most of them were low-ranking regulations (instructions for the beginning of the course). In them, there seems to be little development (sometimes none) of the CWP’s functions. It should be noted that there was a more extensive and notable development in Andalusia, the Canary Islands, Madrid, Extremadura and La Rioja.

CWP Professional Profile

Under this heading, several key elements are analysed, which are summarised in Table III. Firstly, concerning the professional teacher proposed for the post, there was a group of ACs that indicated that the position would be occupied by the person in charge of Coexistence (Andalusia, Navarre, Valencia and the Basque Country). On the other hand, the Balearic and Canary Islands replaced the coexistence coordinator with the CWP, and La Rioja integrated the two figures, resulting in the creation of the coordinator of coexistence, welfare and protection. Finally, Extremadura initially chose someone from the management team, whereas Cantabria presented the greatest singularity because the task was performed in collaboration with the management, the counselor and Technical Community Service Teachers (PTSC, Spanish acronym of Profesorado Técnico de Servicio a la Comunidad). The rest of the communities indicated someone from the faculty or did not specify who was proposed for the post.

In the schools, mainly the management team appointed the CWP post (Andalusia, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, Galicia, Madrid, Navarre, Valencia, Ceuta and Melilla, Extremadura and La Rioja). The prerequisites for training were scarce, with the Canary Islands, Madrid, Extremadura, Galicia and La Rioja establishing levels of prior training (although variable and with different levels of specificity). As for the specific training for the post, only Madrid indicated that it would be necessary to take a training course regulated by the Ministry and, in the case of Asturias, that this training would be contemplated in the Annual Plan for Teachers’ Permanent Training. In Extremadura and La Rioja, a commitment to such training was required by those who assumed the CWP post to develop its competencies, but without further specificity. In the case of the Balearic Islands, the administration would provide training. Finally, concerning the Administration’s follow-up of the CWP’s functions, only the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Extremadura, and La Rioja explicitly mentioned this point. Table III shows the categories analysed so far.

Development supports for the CWP’s functions

Given the breadth of functions assigned to the CWP, the grants contemplated for its development are analysed, taking into account that this professional must also perform their usual teaching functions. No specific time allocation was included in the following CAs for the development of the CWP’s functions: Andalusia, Aragon, the Balearic Islands, Cantabria, Catalonia, Navarre, Valencia and the Basque Country. In the rest of the ACs, an effort was made to detail periods dedicated to the role of CWP, although with great diversity, as seen in Table IV. Concerning economic remuneration, only the Canary Islands, Catalonia and Galicia referred to this point through a specific complement for its performance.

Regarding the internal and external coordination of the CWP, although the LOPIVI (2021) clearly alludes to this aspect, it is unspecified in most ACs. Only Madrid, Extremadura, Galicia, and La Rioja described detailed internal/external coordination (coordination with social services for prevention and referral protocols). This point can be seen in Table IV.

Development of functions by type of activities

The development of the CWP’s functions proposed in the LOPIVI (2021), its organisation by blocks and type of activities are outlined in Table V. The Canary Islands, Extremadura, Galicia and La Rioja are the ACs that provide more detail, gathering and expanding the functions indicated by the LOPIVI. Extremadura presented a more definite development of the functions and specified a series of descriptors, professionals, and internal and external coordination networks. La Rioja described in detail the functions in its regulations. Unlike the previous CAs, the Canary Islands organised the functions in three blocks: dissemination, prevention and intervention-coordination, whereas Galicia did this through coordination groups (with the management team, the Guidance Department and the Students’ Parents’ Association). The Balearic Islands and Catalonia complied with the functions indicated in the LOPIVI. No specification in this regard was found in Aragon, Cantabria, Madrid, Valencia, Asturias or Murcia.

Conclusions

The first conclusion to be drawn from the results is that there is no unified development of the figure of the CWP in Spain. This may be due to the prematurity and precariousness of the development of its regulation. Despite the mandatory application of the figure since 2021, at the beginning of the 2022/2023 academic year, the task was still pending in four ACs: Castilla y León, Catalonia, Galicia and the Balearic Islands. In the 2023-2024 academic year, only Castilla y León had not yet incorporated the figure, which has aroused complaints from the teachers’ union of that community (Calvo, 2023), as well as demands from the PTSC, who indicate that they have been performing this role since the 1990s (González, 2021). The regulatory developments are also very diverse, ranging from developments virtually identical to those of the LOPIVI (2021) to those that have reflectively adapted the law to their regional peculiarities. This situation implies that students in some Spanish regions may have better opportunities and possibilities than others, potentially generating indicators of educational inequality depending on the context where they live. Public authorities should consider this potential inequity, and the regulatory development should be reviewed to adjust to minimum standards in all cases. The following paragraphs will extensively and interdependently answer the research questions that have guided the research principles.

In those communities with a normative development, many approaches give rise to unique realities compared to each other. This is reflected in the different aspects analysed: professional profile, training, hours allocated to functions, and internal/external coordination and selection, among others. Regarding the most relevant aspects, such as the professional profile of the person who occupies the post, different trends can be seen: the most frequent is that the CWP post will be occupied by the already existing Coexistence coordinator in the centres; a second solution is that the post falls to the management teams and, in other centres, any member can be the CWP. It seems logical to think that we are facing a complex situation, as it is a question of incorporating a new figure of great relevance and multiple functions, but which has been absorbed by professionals who already had numerous occupations, with the possible saturation implied. Likewise, as indicated by Cabedo-Mallol (2023), several groups have raised their voices, claiming that the CWP’s functions have been carried out by social educators, psycho-pedagogs, or PTSCs from the Guidance Department. The demands of years associated with the need for more posts in the educational system for these professionals are now blurred by the incorporation of external staff or the appointment of faculty members without training in specific topics to perform the CWP’s functions. In addition, no specific indications have been established concerning the training the CWP should receive in the centre. In fact, only five ACs indicate specific training, where Extremadura is positively highlighted. In contrast, Madrid offers an ad hoc course of 30 hours that does not seem to guarantee a solid and competence-based training for the position, as it is far from the approach of the training proposed by UNICEF (2021b). The lack of a specific profile coupled with the lack of training entails the risk that the person who assumes the post will not be up to the required skill level for the role. This would pose a structural problem for the development of the role and, therefore, for fully meeting the law’s purposes.

It is the obligation of the ACs to specify the CWP’s functions, including among them at least those proposed by the LOPIVI (Sánchez-Barroso, 2022). The fact that six ACs do not refer to the functions casts doubts on their compliance with the law. In addition, the detailed analysis of the functions associated with the CWP reveals the need for an extensive background and competencies in multiple topics (not necessarily associated with the management of a centre and many additional competencies besides the usual ones of coexistence) for those who will occupy the post. Given this, it seems surprising that only five ACs include, in numerous and different ways, these aspects and the necessary specific and continuous training. The educational administration does not specify how it will monitor the CWP’s work, which is a relevant systemic incongruity and a breach of the regulatory framework set out in the LOPIVI (Sánchez-Barroso, 2022). On the other hand, the lack of monitoring of the functions also implies ignorance about the implementation process, not evaluating it or being capable of obtaining feedback to improve it in the academic years.

Given the complexity and diversity of the CWP’s work, the need for internal and external coordination is evident, an aspect not specified in the legislation developed. Thus, we see how the vast majority point out the need for coordination with the management team, scarcely mentioning internal (Faculty and Guidance Department) and external coordination with security forces and Social Services (in the case of Madrid). This can be a relevant limitation for many actions requiring additional follow-up or referral to respond to the problems detected adequately.

The same applies to the “specific support” that facilitates the CWP’s work. We find that only a few of the ACs have assigned an exclusive number of hours for the CWP to carry out their work, and this is always subject to the needs of the service. Only the Canary Islands, Catalonia and Galicia contemplate the specific economic remuneration for the CWP figure. This way, due to the absence of a clearly defined profile and solvent specific training, one could conclude that the CWP post’s implementation will have considerable room for improvement in successive years, and that the same human resources will continue to be overloaded with functions.

As for the functions and activities to be carried out by the CWP, many are textually limited to the proposals of the LOPIVI (2021). Special mention should be made of Extremadura, which has prioritised the primary prevention of violence, following the indications of UNICEF (2021b), and which, together with the Canary Islands and La Rioja, has expanded the functions proposed by this law. The same applies to the instruments for detecting violence, which are only mentioned by La Rioja. Finally, it is worrying that only two ACs (Extremadura and La Rioja) mention actions referring to risk groups, which are also indicated by law as a priority.

In future research, the functions of the CWP should be monitored over time to see how its implementation develops in the different ACs in all the points contemplated in this manuscript. Likewise, it is necessary to differentially study the evolution and usefulness of the CWP figure in communities with a more solid regulatory framework and more developed coexistence structures and compare them to ACs without such structures. We need empirical studies that allow us to know current CWPs’ perceptions of the adequacy of the practical reality of the LOPIVI (2021) and to compare what is indicated by the norm and what is really being carried out or could be carried out to produce the necessary adjustments.

Final recommendations

We conclude this work with some proposals for the implementation and actions of the CWP based on the need for and relevance of this figure in educational centres. However, its mere creation in a law does not guarantee that it will be properly developed or that it will serve the purposes for which it was designed. The planning of a law and its application must be associated with contingent lines of training, recognition and monitoring that do not seem to have occurred in the 2023/24 academic year, opening the debate for the lines to be followed by the political authorities in the coming years. Some of the ideas that we offer are:

1) Equity in education systems is essential to ensure that they equally promote social justice, human development and social cohesion. Therefore, it seems obvious that the starting point is that this resource should be available in the same way in all educational centres in our country and for all children and adolescents, regardless of their place of birth, economic resources or the type of school they attend.

2) We need to specify the CWPs’ performance in terms of their functions, resources, and training forms, leaving each AC to seek ways to implement them, considering their particularities. This would avoid the current disparity existing in Spanish territory.

3) It is necessary to outline the spaces and tasks of this new figure differentially with the Guidance Departments or the coexistence coordinators that already existed in the centres. Establishing a differential profile would greatly help schools and professionals in their daily operations and avoid overlapping functions.

4) When applying and developing the LOPIVI (2021), it is necessary not to merge these functions with school management tasks because the people in charge would be overloaded.

5) Concrete economic and material actions should be contemplated so CWPs can perform their work properly. The available human resources should clearly describe the key issues (training or specific schedule). All this requires allocating a specific budget item for this purpose and perhaps increasing the staffing to address these problems. This should not be a matter of goodwill on the part of the ACs or the professionals who hold the post.

6) Another relevant aspect is a model of initial and continuous training of CWPs at the national level, which would consider the work that must be carried out and the difficulties encountered. Establishing a training network would allow for exchanging experiences among professionals from all over Spain.

Considering all the above, it can be said that the state of application of the LOPIVI (2021) in Spain is uneven in terms of the figure of the CWP, and it is necessary to improve its implementation and development in the coming years to provide a real response to the fundaments pursued in the law.

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González-Cabrera, J., Díaz-López, A., Caba-Machado, V., Ortega-Barón, J., Echezarraga, A., Fernández-González, L., & Machimbarrena, J. M. (2022). Epidemiology of peer cybervictimization and its relationship with health-related quality of life in adolescents: A prospective study. Journal of Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12128

González-Cabrera, J., Montiel, I., Ortega-Barón, J., Calvete, E., Orue, I., & Machimbarrena, J. M. (2021). Epidemiology of peer victimisation and its impact on health-related quality of life in adolescents: A prospective study. School Mental Health. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-021-09421-1

Guix, J. (2008). El análisis de contenido, ¿qué nos están diciendo? [Content analysis, are they it telling us?]. Revista de Calidad Asistencial: Órgano de la Sociedad Española de Calidad Asistencial 23 (1), 26-30. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1134-282X(08)70464-0

Ley Orgánica 2/2006, de 3 de mayo, de Educación. Boletín Oficial del Estado, 106, de 4 de mayo de 2006, 17158-17207 [Organic Law 2/2006 of May 3, of Educacion. Official State Bulletin, 106, of May 4, 2006, 17158-17207]. https://www.boe.es/buscar/pdf/2006/BOE-A-2006-7899-consolidado.pdf

Ley Orgánica 3/2020, de 29 de diciembre, por la que se modifica la Ley Orgánica 2/2006, de 3 de mayo, de Educación. Boletín Oficial del Estado, 340, de 30 de diciembre de 2020, 122868-122953 [Organic Law 3/2020 of Deember 29, amending Organic Law 2/2006, of May 3, on Education. Official State Bulletin, 340, of December 30, 2020,]. https://www.boe.es/buscar/doc.php?id=BOE-A-2020-17264

Ley Orgánica 8/2021, de 4 de junio, de protección integral a la infancia y la adolescencia frente a la violencia. Boletín Oficial del Estado, 134, de 5 de junio de 2021, 68657-68730 [Organic Law 8/2021 of June 4, of the comprehensive protection of children and adolescents against violence. Official State Bulletin, 134, of June 5, 2021, 68657-68730]. https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2021-9347

Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional [MEFP] (2023). Informe del curso 2021-2022. Servicio de atención telefónica de casos de malos tratos y acoso en el ámbito de los centros docentes del sistema educativo español [Report of the 2021-2022 academic year. Telephone service for cases of ill-treatment and in the educational establishment of the Spanish education system] https://www.educacionfpydeportes.gob.es/mc/sgctie/convivencia-escolar/recursos-nuevo/publicaciones/informes-acoso.html

Ministerio del Interior (2020). Estudio sobre la cibercriminalidad en España 2020 [Study on cybercrime in Spain 2020]. Madrid. https://www.interior.gob.es/opencms/pdf/prensa/balances-e-informes/2020/INFORME-Cibercriminalidad-2020.pdf

Ministerio del Interior (2022). Victimizaciones [Victimizations]. https://estadisticasdecriminalidad.ses.mir.es/publico/portalestadistico/portal/datos.html?type=pcaxis&path=/Datos4/&file=pcaxis

Plataforma de Infancia (2021). Guía sobre la Ley Orgánica de Protección integral a la Infancia y la Adolescencia frente a la Violencia [Guide on the Organic Law for the Comprehensive Protection of Children and Adolescents against Violence]. POI España. https://www.observatoriodelainfancia.es/ficherosoia/documentos/7642_d_Guia-LOPIVI.pdf

Poder Judicial España (2021). Siete de cada diez casos de violencia sexual revisados por el Tribunal Supremo en 2020 tenían como víctimas a menores de edad [Seven out of ten cases of sexual violence reviewed by the Supreme Court in 2020 had minors as victims]. https://www.poderjudicial.es/cgpj/eu/Botere-Judiziala/Botere-Judizialaren-Kontseilu-Nagusia/Lehen-Orria-/Siete-de-cada-diez-casos-de-violencia-sexual-revisados-por-el-Tribunal-Supremo-en-2020-tenian-como-victimas-a-menores-de-edad-

Polanin, J. R., Espelage, D. L., Grotpeter, J. K., Spinney, E., Ingram, K. M., Valido, A., El Sheikh, A., Torgal, C., & Robinson, L. (2021). A meta-analysis of longitudinal partial correlations between school violence and mental health, school performance, and criminal or delinquent acts. Psychological Bulletin, 147(2), 115–133. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000314

Sanchez-Barroso, B. (2022). La protección a la infancia y la adolescencia desde un punto de vista competencial: evolución y límites tras la Ley Orgánica 8/2021 de 4 de junio [The protection of children and adolescents from a competence point of view: Evolution and limits after Organic Law 8/2021 of June 4]. Revista de Derecho Político, 114, 149-176. https://doi.org/10.5944/rdp.114.2022.34145

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Subrahmanyam, K. & Smahel, D. (2010). Connecting online behavior to adolescent development: A theoretical framework. In K. Subrahmanyam & D. Smahel (Eds.), Digital youth: The role of media in development (pp. 27-40). New York, NY: Springer-Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6278-2

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UNESCO (2016). Whole school approach. https://openlearning.unesco.org/assets/courseware/v1/1554885be57ff8c7ed500abe187e6eca/asset-v1:UNESCO+UNESCO-04+2021_01+type@asset+block/Whole_school_approach.pdf

UNESCO (2021). Más allá de los números: Poner fin a la violencia y el acoso en el ámbito escolar. Objetivos del Desarrollo Sostenible-Educación 2030 [Beyond the numbers: Ending violence and bullying in the school environment. Sustainable Development Goals - Education 2030]. https://bitly.ws/3eoc3

UNICEF (2021a). Hoja de Ruta para la LOPIVI [Roadmap for the LOPIVI]. UNICEF-Spain. https://www.unicef.es/sites/unicef.es/files/communication/LOPIVI-hoja-ruta.pdf

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Normative references

Andalusia

Instructions of July 1, 2022, of the General Directorate for Attention to Diversity, Participation and School Coexistence regarding the coordination of the well-being and protection of children and adolescents in public schools in Andalusia. Junta de Andalucía, Council of Education and Sport, July 1, 2022, 1-4. https://bit.ly/3MffwX2

Aragon

Instructions for public centres of Early Childhood and Primary Education and public centres of Special Education in the Autonomous Community of Aragon concerning the 2022/2023 academic year. General Technical Secretariat of the Education Inspectorate of the Government of Aragon, July 15, 2022, 1-45. https://bit.ly/42Em5bL

Instructions for Secondary Education institutes in the Autonomous Community of Aragon concerning the 2022/2023 academic year. General Technical Secretariat of the Education Inspectorate of the Government of Aragon, July 15, 2022, 1-62. https://bit.ly/3Mg1O6m

Autonomous Community of Navarre

Resolution 231/2022, of June 10, of the Director General of Education, approving the instructions that will regulate, during the 2022-2023 academic year, the organisation and operation of the educational centres that teach the second cycle of Early Childhood Education, Primary Education, Compulsory Secondary Education and High School in the territorial area of Navarre. Official Bulletin of Navarre, 155, August 4, 2022, 1-82. https://bit.ly/3Bb9h0i

Balearic Islands

Resolution of the Council of Education and Professional Vocation of May 24, 2023, for the establishment of the functions and composition of the Commission of Coexistence and Welfare and the creation of the figure of the coordinator for the welfare and protection of students in the non-university educational centres with public funds of the Balearic Islands. Official Bulletin of the Balearic Islands, 69, May 25, 2023, 29651-29656. https://die.caib.es/normativa/html/120/020.html

Basque Country

Organisation of the 2022-2023 academic year in public Early Childhood and Primary Education centres. Resolution of the Vice-Council of Education. Basque Government, Department of Education, July 1, 2022, 1-77. https://bit.ly/42DxfNa

Organisation of the 2022-2023 academic year in Secondary Education institutes. Resolution of the Vice-Council of Education. Basque Government, Department of Education, July 1, 2022, 1-93. https://bit.ly/3BaEAs9

Canary Islands

Resolution of the General Directorate for Planning, Innovation and Quality of the Council of Education, Universities, Culture and Sports of the Government of the Canary Islands establishing the coordinator for the well-being and protection of students in non-university educational centres supported by public funds. Government of the Canary Islands, June 30, 2022, 1-11. https://bit.ly/3BdUEcv

Resolution of the Vice-Council of Education, Universities and Sports issuing organisational and operational instructions for non-university public educational centres in the autonomous community of the Canary Islands for the 2022-2023 academic year. Government of the Canary Islands, July 7, 2022, 1-54. https://bit.ly/41jqsHy

Cantabria

Instructions for the start of the 22/23 academic year. Public Early Childhood and Primary Education Centres. Academic year 2022-2023. Government of Cantabria. Council of Education and Vocational Training. August 26, 2022, 1-44. https://bit.ly/3ps9jyd

Instructions for the start of the 22/23 academic year. Secondary Education Institutes. Academic year 2022-2023. Government of Cantabria. Council of Education and Vocational Training. August 26, 2022, 1-51. https://bit.ly/3BeWk5r

Castilla La Mancha

Order 118/2022, of June 14, of the Council of Education, Culture and Sports, regulating the organisation and operation of public centres that provide Compulsory Secondary Education, High School and Vocational Training in the community of Castilla-La Mancha. [2022/5883]. 2022/21489] Official Bulletin of Castilla-La Mancha, Year XLI, 118, June 22, 2022, 21582-21612. https://bit.ly/42pv4gz

Order 121/2022, of June 14, of the Council of Education, Culture and Sports, regulating the organisation and operation of public centres that provide Early Childhood and Primary Education in the autonomous community of Castilla-La Mancha. [2022/5912] Official Bulletin of Castilla-La Mancha, Year XLI, 118, June 22, 2022, 21582-21612. https://bit.ly/3I0GqzA

Catalonia

Documents for the organisation and management of the centres. Coexistence and school climate. June 20, 2023. Generalitat de Catalunya. https://acortar.link/JyaREI

Gencat (October 31, 2023) The Government creates the complementary remuneration for the coordination of Coeducation, Coexistence and Welfare of students [Press release] Department of Education. https://acortar.link/DY5Mla

Ceuta and Melilla

Instructions from the Secretary of State for Education and the General Secretariat for Vocational Training for their application in general education in the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla during the 2022-2023 school year. Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, July 29, 2022, 1-57. https://bit.ly/3HYz4N2

Community of Madrid

Instructions from the Vice-Councils of Educational Policy and Educational Organisation at the start of the 2022-2023 school year in non-university public educational centres in Madrid. Vice-Presidency, Council of Education and Universities, July 13, 2022, 1-63. https://bit.ly/3McRn2r

Order 6/2023, of January 3, of the Vice-Presidency, Council of Education and Universities, establishing the structure and functions of the coexistence and anti-bullying unit. Official Bulletin of Madrid, 13, January 16, 2023, 145-150. https://bit.ly/3MeluHF

Resolution of October 4, 2022, of the Vice-Council of Educational Organisation, issuing instructions to schools to apply action protocols for any type of violence. Official Bulletin of Madrid, 241, October 10, 2022, 181-186.

Extremadura

Instruction No. 7/2022, of May 9, of the General Secretariat of Education, which determines the process for appointing the coordinator of welfare and protection in educational centres, as well as specifying the functions. Junta de Extremadura, Council of Education and Employment, May 9, 2022, 1-17. https://bit.ly/3NSVH9n

Galicia

ORDER of August 23, 2023, establishing the figure of the coordinator of welfare and coexistence in educational centres in Galicia. Official Bulletin of Galicia, 165, of August 31, 2023, 51117-51122. https://acortar.link/bwGBnl

La Rioja

Decree 31/2022, of June 1, regulating coexistence in educational centres supported by public funds in the Autonomous Community of La Rioja. Official Bulletin of La Rioja, 106, June 3, 2022, 8951-8968. https://bit.ly/3LVptHZ

Order EDC/69/2022, of October 24, adopting measures for the promotion of coexistence in educational centres supported by public funds in the Autonomous Community of La Rioja. Official Bulletin of La Rioja, 205, October 25, 2022, 18824-18851. https://bit.ly/3nX2mVg

Principality of Asturias

Circular at the beginning of the academic year 2022/2023. Public schools. Government of Asturias. Council of Education, July 12, 2022, 1-81. https://bit.ly/3O3GouJ

Region of Murcia

Order of June 23, 2022, of the Council of Education, which establishes procedures in the field of human resources for the 2022-2023 academic year. Official Bulletin of Murcia, 147, June 28, 2022, 21100-21220. https://bit.ly/3NZgf02

Valencian Community

Resolution of July 5, 2022, of the Regional Secretary of Education and Vocational Training, approving the instructions for the organisation and operation of centres that provide second-cycle Early Childhood Education and Primary Education during the 2022-2023 academic year. [2022/6454] Diari Oficial de la Generalitat Valenciana, 9378, July 8, 2022, 35623-35699. https://bit.ly/42vyi2o

Contact address: Joaquín González Cabrera. Universidad Internacional de La Rioja, Facultad de Educación, Centro de Investigación, Transferencia e Innovación (CITEI). Avenida de la Paz 137, 26006 Logroño, La Rioja, España. E-mail: joaquin.gonzalez@unir.net

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¹ In Spain, an AC is a territorial entity that, within the current Spanish constitutional legal system, is endowed with autonomy, with its own institutions and representatives and specific legislative, executive and administrative powers.