About us
WHAT IS RURAL LIFE?
Rural Life is a project funded by MITECO and MITV
It was born in the Mancomunidad del Interior Tierra del Vino (Valencian Region, 1 hour from the capital) from public-private collaboration with the aim of curbing the impact of depopulation. Its mission is to attract European families with school-age children to spend a school term in public schools in the Requena – Utiel region.
In the inland villages of Valencia there are quality public schools with student-teacher ratios that are hard to beat in the big cities, which is why this initiative has been promoted to offer these places free of charge to families who can move to these villages for a period of time (the school year, a semester or a trimester). This is an extraordinary opportunity both for the families who can take advantage of this programme and for the host towns for their cultural exchange with European pupils.
WE SEEK TO COMBINE TWO INTERESTS
Contribute to the revitalisation of rural areas by optimising available school places
Enjoy a family experience of linguistic and cultural immersion for the whole family
TURNKEY PROCESS
You will only have to make the decision to come or not, we will organise the rest for free. From Rural Life we will manage all the logistics and needs so that you don’t have to worry about anything but enjoying the experience.
Safety and reliability
We are a project endorsed by public institutions, so we offer all the guarantees of security and reliability. All procedures and services are supervised by public bodies, so you will have the peace of mind of always receiving accurate and quality information from the first step. We will always be present in the mediation, procedures and during your stay.
Public bodies that endorse the project:
- MITECO (Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge).
- MITV (Mancomunidad del Interior Tierra del Vino)
- Local councils of the villages involved in the project.
A professional management team will facilitate all logistical and other aspects.
Hospitality at destination
We believe that it’s very important how the families participating in the programme are received at the destination. How do I settle in, how do I cover day-to-day needs, how do I integrate my children with their schoolmates, the relationship with other parents, the teachers and the rest of the people in the village… In short, how do I cover any need for travel, medical care or reinforcement in language classes or any other subject.
We know that there are many details that can make the experience satisfactory or not, so we have developed protocols that cover all of them. The most important thing is that you will always have someone to turn to for any circumstance that may arise.
Management of school places
The programme is endorsed by the Conselleria de Educación Comunidad Valenciana (Spain), so we will provide you with all the bureaucratic details to formalise your enrolment. We will inform you of all the peculiarities, validations, syllabus, available places, with information directly from official sources.
You will not have any problems with the validation and validity of the qualifications studied. You will have the peace of mind that your children will not lose a course due to administrative or validation issues.
We will provide you with all the forms and steps to formalise enrolment in a public school free of charge (both the administration and the school place will be free of charge for you).
We will indicate you the necessary procedure and course for each of your children.
Bureaucracy
We have developed protocols that cover all the traceability of bureaucratic needs that respond to:
- What administrative procedures I have to carry out to move from my current country of residence to a public school in Spain (Valencian Community), to reside there for a period of time and for my children to attend the corresponding school year.
- How do I manage other aspects regarding residence permits, possible insurances, administrative obstacles, possible payments or legal requirements, health care cards, formalisation of renting, etc.
In short, belonging to the Rural Life programme allows you to have all the necessary advice centrally, from official sources and free of charge.
Housing management
To move your place of residence for a period of time it is essential to find a house that meets your needs. In Rural Life we also offer you rental housing options with all the guarantees. We have selected a selection of homes for rent and we have classified them by type, price, services, connectivity and condition. The properties that we offer in our stock are checked and supervised.
We offer all the advice and mediation to formalise the rental contract with the owners. You won’t have to look for housing on your own or formalise the formalities so that everything is legal and completely trustworthy. In addition, you will have someone to turn to if you have any problems related to the property during your stay.
The advice and formalisation service is free, you will only have to pay the rent according to the property you have decided to rent.
Other services
The Rural Life project arises with a public vocation to facilitate the access of families to rural areas, therefore our motivation is to give support to any aspect that families who decide to participate in the programme may need. The main support or service is based on the accompaniment for any needs and doubts that may arise during the process of the programme. The most important thing is that you will have us as a reference to communicate and solve all the procedures in any of the phases:
- Preliminary phase: Moments of prior information, doubts, concerns.
- Contracting phase: Time to finalise all the paperwork and bureaucratic aspects.
- Execution phase: Time to finalise the practical and logistical aspects of settling into your new residence, including medical services, school enrolment, language courses and any other needs during your stay.
Our team
Rural Life is a project that arises from public-private collaboration, with the participation of MITV and local companies. It is a project financed by MITECO with European funds, the contribution of MITV and the different town councils that form it.
We are made up of two bodies:
- Supervisory body: Mancomunidad del Interior Tierra del Vino.
- Management Body: it is formed by a multidisciplinary team of professionals, with a wide experience in the management of projects in the rural, tourist, educational and public management fields, as well as in Sustainable Development projects.
All this provides the official character in terms of supervision, quality and legality of the work and actions undertaken in the management of the project.
MEET THE RURAL LIFE COMMUNITY
Connect with the countryside!
Rural Life is a project with a fully public vocation. Therefore, the social and human dimension of the project is very important. The initiative is based on the values promoted by the SDGs, aimed at promoting the values of sustainability, healthy living and values integrated with nature. We want to fight against the European problem of depopulation of rural areas, but promoting the values of respect for nature and all the formulas for healthy and sustainable lives. We believe that living our children’s childhood in a natural environment is an extraordinary vital experience for their formation and growth as people. It is a way of instilling values by putting into practice, on a daily basis, a healthier and more sustainable way of life.
There are many advantages that the rural world offers for the development of our children and their education. Meeting other people with similar values to ours, with other cultures and countries, knowing another language, are aspects that determine the future human and professional level of a person. On a social level, it is an opportunity to create relationships with other families who share the same values and concerns with whom we can contact online before formalising our participation, but also at the destination. On a professional level, you will be able to contact with people from all over Europe who want to live with more flexible working hours, who telework or who are linked to transnational professional projects in the circular and digital economy.
Be part of the Rural Life Community and connect with other families,
get to know their experiences and share yours!