A total of 714 schools across the country will remain closed, as demographic decline has left too few students—mainly in mountainous areas and on islands, but also in major urban centers in Attica—while the number of closures has been increasing every year since 2018.
This year, about 1,210,000 students will be enrolled, down from 1,363,912 in the 2018–2019 school year. The problem is most acute in primary schools and kindergartens: this year, 319 primary schools and 312 kindergartens will not operate, compared to 247 and 212, respectively, in 2018–2019.
According to Kathimerini, an Education Ministry official explained that a school is suspended when it has fewer than 15 students. There are exceptions, however—for example, on small islands or in mountain villages where schools remain open with fewer students because of the long distance to the nearest school—while students from suspended schools are transferred to neighboring ones.
In total, 12,764 schools will operate in the 2025–2026 school year (down from 13,478).
A school remains under suspension for three years, and if during that period it fails to reach the minimum required number of students, it is permanently closed.
This year’s total of 714 suspended schools also includes secondary education institutions, most of them junior high schools. High schools are more difficult to close due to lack of students, as they generally operate in larger urban centers, serving pupils both from the city and surrounding villages.
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