This is an intervention foreseen in the first Education Charter of the municipality of Lagos, whose need was reiterated in 2017 as part of the review process of this diagnostic and planning instrument. The project had been in the portfolio for several years, so it had to be updated to comply with legislative changes in the meantime. In this review process some changes have been introduced due to the experience gained in the management of school equipment, such as: the coverage of the access path between the school entrance and the interior of the school; the installation of a shading structure in the kindergarten courtyard; the creation of conditions in preschool classrooms so that children can sleep; the installation of diaper changes; the installation of interactive whiteboards in the 1st cycle classrooms; the installation of photovoltaic panels for energy use of the extensive flat roof of the building; among other changes aimed at the functionality of the facilities.

On the other hand, the intervention will create the necessary conditions for the provision of school meals in the establishment itself, and it is no longer necessary to move students to other institutions outside the school space (situation that currently happens with EB1 da Luz students). At the preschool level we intend to: adapt the spaces to current pedagogical practices; ending the functioning of a single room, which has disadvantages in terms of resource management and teaching; and increase the public response at this level of education, contributing to its universality.

The new equipment will be built on a 17,766 m2 area of ??municipal land, located at the joint of two communication routes: the Luz-Espiche connecting road and the local connecting road to the Bela Vista residential nucleus of the Chesgal Cooperative.

The building is characterized by having a set of 8 classrooms spread over two floors (4 for basic education, 2 for expressions and 2 with kindergarten valence). Kitchen, dining room, multipurpose room, library, teachers’ room and room for non-teaching staff, parental assistance office, changing rooms and toilets and storage spaces occupy the remaining area of ??the interior space. Outside the grounds will be equipped with a multisport, a covered playground and another discovery, a zone for the practice of traditional games, a teaching time, green spaces and parking. All outdoor playground areas will be interconnected by ramps, ensuring barrier-free accessibility.

The intervention will increase the number of preschool and 1st cycle classrooms. This solution will entail the redefinition of the school network throughout the parish, with a likely impact on the current Luz EB1 and Espiche EB1 + JI.

In the context of the municipality and the region itself, this is a priority investment, since the expansion of the supply capacity will allow the end of the dual school hours that are still being practiced at EB1 de Espiche, with the exceptional authorization of the Ministry of Education, and adopt the normal schedule that is practiced in all other schools of the public school system of the county.

The Municipality expects to obtain co-financing as part of the application that will be submitted to the Algarve Regional Operational Programme - CRESC Algarve 2020 (Notice ALG-73-2016-01 - 7th amendment, which opened the possibility of financing for other equipment in the region, also considered as priority 2).