The SafaMadrid Coexistence Team has set itself the fundamental objective of working to improve coexistence, channelling the initiatives of all sectors of the educational community, promoting a culture of peace and the peaceful resolution of conflicts.
We believe that in this sense, prevention and training are essential, as well as giving pupils an active role in school coexistence.
For all these reasons we have a very attractive project, the Pupil Helpers, a “network of help among equals”. These are pupils in Primary 6, Secondary and Baccalaureate who voluntarily take on the mission of detecting situations of vulnerability, risk or violence among their classmates and offer them help. And when they consider that the situation requires it, they refer them to the other structures included in the Plan de Convivencia (Coexistence Plan).
They are not class delegates, nor are they “police”, but students who detect tensions and conflicts between classmates before adults do and can intervene before a conflict escalates by listening, talking and mediating informally between the parties. They receive specific training and their actions are supervised by the tutors and the Coexistence Team. In this way, the pupils participating each year are presented with the opportunity to develop social skills and conflict resolution strategies, as well as their own autonomy.

The first team of 30 Student Helpers, in the 2017-18 academic year, from 1st ESO to 1st Bach. Thirty students inaugurated this Peer Helper Programme with great enthusiasm, knowing that they were contributing to improving coexistence at Sagrada Familia de Madrid.
Year 2022-23. Our sixth Peer Helper team, with more than 70 participants, also includes 6th grade students. The same enthusiasm, the same desire to work together, the same pride in knowing that they contribute their time and effort to make the school a more welcoming place.

Almudena Fernández Drake