← Back to homeO Castro British International School
Mos, Spain · est. 2008 · Private
Illustration · Mos
O Castro British International School is a private secular British school in Mos, in the parish of San Pedro de Cela, less than 25 minutes from the centre of Vigo. The school was founded in 2008 by Maria Carmen Vázquez González; it calls itself the first British school in Vigo and the only one in Galicia where every stage, from three to eighteen, follows the British system, and it is fully accredited by the Galician government. Today the school belongs to Globeducate - a network of more than 60 schools in 12 countries - and within it to the Globeducate British International Schools cluster. Teaching follows the English National Curriculum with full immersion in English from day one; Spanish language and literature, Galician language and literature and social sciences follow the Spanish programme, and in secondary geography and history are also taught in Spanish. French is added from Year 5, and Portuguese can be taken at A-Level. Classes have up to 25 pupils, three classes per year group. Spanish pupils are 88 percent and foreign pupils 12 percent, about half of them British; there are 48 nationalities in the school in all. There are almost a hundred staff, more than fifty of them native English-speaking teachers. On 33000 square metres there are buildings with laboratories, two libraries, a rock studio and a ballet studio, woods with trails and outdoor classrooms, a 2000 square metre sports centre and an artificial grass pitch. More than twelve bus routes cover Vigo and the surrounding area as far as Pontevedra and the Portuguese border. In summer an English-language camp runs on campus for children aged 2 to 11.
Key facts
Programmes
Cambridge · IGCSE, A-Level
Admits from
3 years · Pre-School
Languages of instruction
English
Languages taught
Spanish, Galician, French, Portuguese
Summer camp
Yes, open to all
Admissions The school takes pupils aged 3 to 18 and writes that it takes both local and international families: there is a place even for those who have come from the other side of the globe, and it is possible to study for just one term. Admission runs in four steps: contact, an in-person or online visit, an English assessment for children aged seven and over, and the paperwork. The English test is ungraded and is not a selection test; it shows what support is needed, and marks from the two years before entry are also considered. Children whose first language is not Spanish learn Spanish as a foreign language, and newcomers are given buddies.
Stages and year groups Grades Early Years (3 years) - Year 13 (18 years). All stages of the British system on one campus: Early Years, primary, secondary and the sixth form, from 3 to 18. From Reception children begin reading and writing in Spanish, from Year 2 everyone studies Spanish; Spanish and Galician language and literature and social sciences are added to the British programme, and in secondary geography and history in Spanish. Pupils sit Cambridge Checkpoint in Year 9, IGCSE in Year 11, and A-Level plus the specific part of the Spanish PCE access examination in Year 13. The school day runs from 9:15 to 16:15, with classes of up to 25 pupils, three per year group.
Address Camiño de San Cosme 1, 36419 San Pedro de Cela, Mos (Pontevedra)
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
Cambridge · IGCSE, A-Level · authorised programmeGlobeducate · school is part of the networkschool is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations → What stands behind each entry
CambridgeCambridge International Education
Part of the University of Cambridge. It allows a school to teach the Cambridge programmes and to enter pupils for the exams. There are four stages and they are authorised separately: primary, lower secondary, IGCSE and A Level. If the stages are known they are named in the line below; if that line is missing, the school does not publish them, and the Cambridge registry does not show stages either - it gives only the name of the centre, the country and whether private candidates are accepted. Cambridge calls what it does registration rather than accreditation, and the network holds about ten thousand schools.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: IGCSE (ages 14-16), A-Level (ages 16-18). IGCSE means exams at around Year 10 or 11, the British counterpart of a lower secondary leaving certificate. A-Level is the senior years, and their results are what British and many other universities admit on.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Globeducateschool network
A K12 education group bringing together bilingual and international schools as well as online programmes. The site names "65+" schools in 11 countries and 40,000 pupils, and on all the pages read these numbers agree. Whether the group owns the schools, manages them or passes on its methodology under licence is not said on the site; the year of foundation and the country of registration are not named.
What this means for this school. The network owns or operates the school. Its accreditation and programme authorisation the school obtains separately, in its own name.
Exams and destinations from the school's official website
Exam results At IGCSE the share of grades from A* to C was 81 percent in 2023; in 2024: 55 percent of pupils achieved A*-B; in 2025: 56 percent achieved A*-B and 81 percent A*-C, best in mathematics, physics, biology, business and double award science. The school describes its A-Level results in words, without figures.
Where leavers go: Imperial College London · King's College London · University College London · University of Edinburgh · Lancaster University · University of Stirling · University of Brighton · University of Bristol · University of York · University of Manchester · University of Bath · Durham University and others, 24 universities in the school's list in all
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
✓Sports hall
✓Laboratories
✓Theatre or assembly hall
✓Library
✓Catering
✓School transport
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Sports ground or field · Art studio · Makerspace
Campus: A 33000 square metre campus in Mos near Vigo: energy-efficient modern buildings with ICT rooms, science laboratories, two libraries, a rock studio, a ballet studio and a psychomotor skills suite, the Creativity Lab workshop and the Black Box performance space. The grounds have recreational and wooded areas, nature trails, outdoor classrooms, the Green Zone vegetable garden, a 2000 square metre indoor sports centre and a multi-purpose artificial grass pitch for rugby and football. Its own kitchen with a chef and dietician, a breakfast club, and more than 12 bus routes across Vigo, Cangas, Moaña, Pontevedra, A Cañiza and to the Portuguese border.
Clubs and activities: Musical theatre · LAMDA · Pre-golf · Athletics · School orchestra · Programming and robotics · Science club · Debating · Chinese · Pre-football · Football · Basketball · Tennis · Table tennis · Horse riding · Chess · Ice skating · Multi-sports · Judo · Video game development · 3D design · App development · Public speaking · Music and movement · Rhythmic gymnastics · Ballet · Contemporary dance · Drawing and handicrafts · Literary and arts magazine
Summer camp: the school runs its own camp and takes children from outside as well
O Castro Summer Experience is an English-language camp on campus for children aged 2 to 11 from 29 June to 31 July, from 10:00 to 14:00, with early arrival from 9:00 and extended hours to 16:00, lunch and a bus from Vigo. The programme covers nature and the Green Zone garden, STEM and LEGO robotics in the Creativity Lab, performing arts in the Black Box and weekly trips to the outdoor pool in Mos; the youngest, aged 2 to 4, have a separate Baby Camp, and older children camp overnight at the school once a week. Prices are given in a brochure.
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
·Teacher qualificationsnot stated
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
✓Students per teacher or class sizein the key facts above
The school has almost a hundred staff, more than fifty of them native English-speaking teachers with experience in various countries. The English curriculum, the school says, is taught by qualified teachers experienced in that curriculum, and the Spanish one by qualified Spanish teachers. There are educational psychology and guidance departments, a special needs coordinator and team, and a school counsellor. The head of school is Leigh Davis. Classes have up to 25 pupils.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
✓Access control
·Nurse or medical roomnot stated on the website
✓Counsellor
✓Child protection policy
✓Staff training
·Anti-bullying policynot stated on the website
The school writes that all staff are regularly trained in safeguarding and that clear policies cover everything from visitors entering the school to work with families. The safeguarding team is led by a designated lead with primary and secondary leads. Secondary pupils have their own tutor and PSHE lessons; there is a special needs coordinator, a school counsellor and The Cottage, a space for emotional wellbeing; workshops on digital safety and first aid are held for pupils and parents.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
Academics and programmes (16%)85 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data80 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data80 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data90 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 Value for money (6%) scored at the median74 "Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 7 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives.
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