Stichting Openbaar Primair Onderwijs Utrecht

What Stichting Openbaar Primair Onderwijs Utrecht does

Stichting Openbaar Primair Onderwijs Utrecht (SPO Utrecht) is a Dutch non-profit foundation (stichting) that operates as the governing board for 37 public primary schools across the city of Utrecht, Vleuten, and De Meern in the Netherlands. The organization serves approximately 10,000 students with a workforce of more than 1,100 education professionals, including teachers, support staff, school leaders, and specialists, and follows the subsidiariteitsprincipe (subsidiarity principle), granting significant autonomy to individual schools while providing centralized coordination through its stafbureau (Team Ortelius). The organization's motto is 'Samen leren groeien' (Learning and growing together), and its strategic direction is set out in the Koersplan 'Koersen op kansen' covering 2023–2027.

The product portfolio centers on publicly funded primary education, encompassing regular basisonderwijs, speciaal basisonderwijs (SBO), voortgezet speciaal onderwijs (VSO), and international education under a single organizational umbrella. Supporting infrastructure includes the SPO Utrecht Academie — an internal professional development academy with more than 25 professional networks and 60+ school trainers (schoolopleiders) — as well as the Starterspool (a three-year intensive coaching program for new teachers), the Flexpool (substitute teacher deployment), and the Diversiteitshub (diversity and inclusion initiative). The organization also operates a dedicated job portal and recruitment system (werkenbijspoutrecht.nl) to attract education professionals, alongside an annual Opening Festival and triennial Personnel Day at Tivoli Vredenburg.

Revenue is derived from Dutch government education funding allocated per student through the national primary education financing system; teacher compensation is governed by the CAO PO collective labor agreement, ranging from €3,463 gross per month at entry to €6,149 gross per month for specialized roles, plus 8% holiday allowance and 8.33% year-end bonus. SPO Utrecht is governed by a College van Bestuur (Executive Board) chaired by Anko van Hoepen alongside Anje-Margreet Woltjer, with a seven-member Raad van Toezicht (Supervisory Board) appointed by the Municipality of Utrecht for four-year terms. The organization is currently investigating the transfer of three additional schools from SOZKO (Stichting Overvecht Zuid voor het Katholiek Onderwijs), which would expand the network to 40 schools pending parent consultation (ouderraadpleging) scheduled for 21 May 2026 and GMR approval.

Name

Stichting Openbaar Primair Onderwijs Utrecht

Legal name

Stichting Openbaar Primair Onderwijs Utrecht

Website

https://spoutrecht.nl

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SPO Utrecht is a Dutch non-profit foundation operating 37 public primary schools across Utrecht, Vleuten, and De Meern, serving approximately 10,000 students with 1,100+ education professionals through government-funded primary, special, and international education programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Utrecht

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Government education funding: SPO Utrecht operates as a public school board (schoolbestuur) funded primarily through government funding allocated per student for primary education services. Revenue is derived from the Dutch public education funding system for the city of Utrecht.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SPO Utrecht is a non-profit foundation that governs 37 openbare (public) primary schools in Utrecht, Vleuten, and De Meern, serving approximately 10,000 students with over 1,100 education professionals. The organization provides regular basisonderwijs, speciaal basisonderwijs (SO/SBO), voortgezet speciaal onderwijs (VSO), and international education, while supporting schools through the SPO Utrecht Academie, Starterspool, Flexpool, and a centralized job portal.

Product overview

SPO Utrecht is a public primary school board (scholengroep) managing 37 openbare basisscholen (public primary schools) in Utrecht, Vleuten, and De Meern. The organization operates a unified network of schools offering regular basisonderwijs, speciaal onderwijs (SO), speciaal basisonderwijs (SO-B), voortgezet speciaal onderwijs (VSO), and international education. Supporting the core educational services are several sub-products: the SPO Utrecht Academie for professional development with over 25 networks and in-company training; the Job Portal for recruitment and job alerts; the Starterspool for mentoring new teachers with intensive coaching programs; the Flexpool for substitute teacher deployment; and the Diversiteitshub for diversity and inclusion initiatives. The schools maintain significant autonomy while being supported by a central stafbureau (Team Ortelius) and the College van Bestuur.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SPO Utrecht Schools Network A network of 37 openbare (public) primary schools across Utrecht, Vleuten, and De Meern offering regular basisonderwijs, speciaal basisonderwijs (SO), speciaal basisonderwijs (SO-B), voortgezet speciaal onderwijs (VSO), and international education programs to approximately 10,000 students.
• SPO Utrecht Academie Internal professional development academy offering over 25 professional networks, in-company training programs (including director and school trainer courses), coaching and guidance for new teachers, educational cafés, and the Starterspool program for beginning educators employed by SPO Utrecht.
• SPO Utrecht Job Portal (Werken bij SPO Utrecht) Online job portal and application system enabling candidates to browse vacancies, set up job alerts, and submit open applications with CV and motivation for teaching and support positions across SPO Utrecht's 37 schools.
• Starterspool A pool of starting teachers supported by a bovenschoolse (cross-school) trainer offering intensive three-year coaching programs, observation sessions, and intervision meetings for new educators across SPO Utrecht schools.
• Flexpool A flexible staffing pool providing substitute teachers across SPO Utrecht schools, enabling staff to work at different locations and schools to cover staffing needs.
• Diversiteitshub An internal diversity and inclusion initiative organized through the SPO Utrecht network, coordinating participation in events such as Pride Utrecht and reviewing citizenship education and HR policies.

Quantifiable outcome

• 37 schools serving approximately 10,000 students across Utrecht, Vleuten, and De Meern
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• SOZKO (Stichting Overvecht Zuid voor het Katholiek Onderwijs)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 May 2026SPO Utrecht is investigating a potential transfer of three schools from SOZKO (Stichting Overvecht Zuid voor het Katholiek Onderwijs) to SPO Utrecht. If completed, this would expand SPO Utrecht from 37 to 40 schools. The transfer is currently under parent consultation (ouderraadpleging) with a decision pending. SOZKO is a relatively small organization seeking continuity by joining a larger board.
• Utrecht LeertminorOthersSPO Utrecht collaborates with Utrecht Leert to provide in-company training and educational programs for its employees, including director training, school trainer programs, and internal coordinator development. The partnership focuses on custom training solutions tailored to SPO Utrecht's organizational needs.
• International School UtrechtminorOthersTwo members of the SPO Utrecht Supervisory Board (Raad van Toezicht) are represented in the Commission of Supervision of International School Utrecht, creating an inter-organizational governance connection.
• Gemeente Utrecht (Municipality of Utrecht)minorOthersSPO Utrecht collaborates with the municipality of Utrecht for school enrollment (via naardebasisschool.utrecht.nl) and the appointment of Supervisory Board members. The municipality appoints the 7 members of the Raad van Toezicht for 4-year terms.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Stichting BOOR (Openbaar Onderwijs Rotterdam): Public primary education board serving Rotterdam, structurally analogous to SPO Utrecht: large multi-school openbaar network, central stafbureau, municipal coordination, and public funding model. Closest scale-equivalent peer in another major Dutch city.
• PCOU Willibrord: Protestant-Christian primary education board serving the Utrecht region with a multi-school network and similar central-office-plus-school-board governance structure. Competes with SPO Utrecht for the same primary-age cohort under the same Dutch bekostiging framework.
• Stichting Openbaar Onderwijs Den Haag: Public primary school board operating schools across The Hague under the same Dutch openbaar onderwijs framework as SPO Utrecht. Comparable in operating model (geographically distributed openbare basisscholen, central policy, municipal oversight), though in a different municipality.
• KSU (Katholieke Scholen Utrecht): Large Catholic primary school board operating multiple schools across Utrecht. Direct competitor to SPO Utrecht in the same municipal enrollment system, with analogous central stafbureau governance and shared dependence on Dutch government per-student funding.
• SOZKO (Stichting Overvecht Zuid voor het Katholiek Onderwijs): Small Catholic primary school board in Utrecht whose three schools are currently under investigation for transfer to SPO Utrecht. Operates the same openbaar/katholiek basisonderwijs model in overlapping Utrecht neighborhoods, serving directly comparable 4-12 student cohorts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stichting-openbaar-primair-onderwijs-utrecht

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Stichting Openbaar Primair Onderwijs Utrecht