The municipal high school Sjöparksskolan, with around 400 students, was performing so poorly that the Swedish School Inspectorate decided to take over the school in February this year. This is called a state corrective measure and has only been carried out once before, in Botkyrka six years ago.
The problems at Sjöparksskolan, which is Gällivare's only upper secondary school, have been numerous and recurring: teaching that never took place, students with a high rate of absenteeism, students who have not received special support, and a messy and unsafe environment.
Second lowest in the country
When the Swedish School Inspectorate takes over a school, it means that the authority's appointed advisor on site leads the school's work to address the problems. The Swedish School Inspectorate notes that Gällivare Municipality has implemented a number of measures, but that it is important that the work continues forward.
A central problem has been, and is, the difficulty in finding qualified teachers. The proportion of qualified teachers in Gällivare municipality's schools is 46 percent, slightly lower at Sjöparksskolan. The proportion in Gällivare is the second lowest in the country. The national average for municipal schools is 73 percent.
I am positively surprised that in several places in the decision they actually write about the problems we have with the supply of skills, says Peter Olsson.
“The municipality’s responsibility”
The Swedish School Inspectorate writes in its decision that even though the situation has improved, the lack of qualified personnel remains a problem. “The fact that many teachers are unqualified and need support in their work also contributes to a higher workload for the qualified and licensed teachers at the school,” the Swedish School Inspectorate writes.
"It is a responsibility that the municipality has to be able to recruit. We are well aware of the challenges that exist in Gällivare and the municipality has been clear in the dialogue with us," says the Swedish Schools Inspectorate's Director General Marie Axelsson.
The authority will follow up on Gällivare Municipality's work in the fall of 2026.
We have good knowledge of the challenges at the school and of course we will look at them, says Marie Axelsson.
