France Today: 13 November 2026

Friday 13 November brings a school-blockade dispute that is reaching head teachers, storm damage in the south and a fresh report on poverty. Here is what matters for daily life in France.

City news

Paris 14th plans to close six schools

In Paris, the town hall of the 14th arrondissement has announced plans to close six nursery and primary schools, some as early as next school year. Parents and some education staff criticise a lack of consultation and warn of overcrowded classes, while the town hall calls the plan ambitious. Families with children in the district should watch for news on which schools are affected.

Source: France 3 Paris Île-de-France

Driverless shuttles are being tested around Paris

Around Paris, the RATP (the Paris public transport operator) and motorway companies are testing autonomous electric shuttles, from city streets to fast roads. The aim is to complement the transport already on offer rather than replace it.

Source: France 3 Paris Île-de-France

A ruin and a theatre school take over Bordeaux’s Capc

In Bordeaux, the Capc contemporary art museum hosts “Quoi qu’il en soit” from 12 November to 10 January. Director Fanny de Chaillé and artist Thomas Hirschhorn have created a monumental ruin, a relocated theatre school and a play performed daily, all open to the public. It is a free-flowing cultural outing for the next two months.

Source: Rue89 Bordeaux

Dry but colder Friday in Lyon

In Lyon, Friday should be dry and cool after a rainy Thursday, with highs of up to 9 degrees. Sunshine is expected to break through more clearly later in the day. Temperatures drop noticeably after an unusually mild start to the week.

Source: Lyon Capitale

Floors collapse in a building at risk in Marseille

In Marseille, the floors of the first and second storeys at 213 boulevard National, in the 3rd arrondissement, collapsed on Thursday 12 November. The building had been classed as at risk (en péril). A nearby restaurant owner said he first thought he had heard an explosion.

Source: Marsactu

Storm Charles floods roads on the Riviera

Around Nice and along the Côte d’Azur, storm Charles brought flooding, cut roads and visible damage to the Alpes-Maritimes and the Var on Thursday 12 November. It affected France and the South more widely. France 3 has published a photo report from its teams on the ground.

Source: France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

Strikes, protests and transport disruption

Paris head teachers call a rally over blockades

The SNPDEN-Unsa union is asking head teachers to gather outside their schools on Friday at 3pm. Two Paris school heads told franceinfo that blockades have made their situation untenable. Parents of lycée students should expect continued disruption.

Source: franceinfo

Lyon 2 students have had no classes for over a month

In Lyon, the benches at Lyon 2 university have been empty since the social mobilisation began. Students say they have had no lessons for more than a month and that it weighs on their morale. Anyone studying there should check with their faculty for updates.

Source: France 3 Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Béziers head teacher backs pupils but condemns violence

In Béziers, in the Hérault, the head of the lycée Jean Moulin supports Friday’s mobilisation of school heads against violence and threats. He also asks the State to listen to pupils’ demands. Head teachers are protesting on Friday 13 November.

Source: France 3 Occitanie

Walk from Marseille to Trappes against racism

After the racist attack in Trappes and La Verrière, a march is planned on foot from Marseille to Île-de-France between 23 November and 26 December. Its initiator says it follows the 1983 march for equality and against racism, known as the “marche des beurs”.

Source: France 3 Paris Île-de-France

Toulouse protesters report serious injuries

Since the lycée movement began, many young people have alleged police violence at blockades and demonstrations. In Toulouse, several describe injuries including lost fingers, a broken jaw and leg wounds, and are appealing for witnesses.

Source: France 3 Occitanie

Cost of living

Is the government right about a higher minimum wage?

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu defended limiting the smic (the French minimum wage) rise to 1.6% by saying a bigger increase would have destroyed many jobs. Franceinfo’s fact-check tests the claim that a smic of 1,700 euros would cost 230,000 jobs.

Source: franceinfo

The same smic fact-check, in franceinfo’s society feed

The same franceinfo piece also appears in its Société section. It examines the government’s argument, made by Sébastien Lecornu, that a larger smic rise than 1.6% would have destroyed jobs.

Source: franceinfo Société

Secours Catholique says all poverty indicators are red

The charity Secours Catholique has published its annual report on poverty in France, and says every indicator is in the red. Housing and the high cost of living are at the heart of the hardship.

Source: France 3 Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Energy, housing and fuel crises hit Pyrénées-Atlantiques households

In the Pyrénées-Atlantiques, around Pau, many households rely on help from Secours Catholique, made poorer by crises in energy, housing and fuel. The charity’s latest report warns of record poverty among households.

Source: France 3 Nouvelle-Aquitaine

Heat pumps may be within reach for modest households

Some lower-income households can now fund a heat pump by combining public aid with a social leasing scheme. It can reduce heating bills, but only for homes that are well enough insulated.

Source: franceinfo Économie

What it means for foreign residents

• Parents of lycée students should check school communications before Friday’s rally and any further blockades, and students at Lyon 2 should ask their faculty about teaching (franceinfo, France 3 Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes).
• Anyone travelling on the Riviera after storm Charles should check road conditions first, as some roads were cut (France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur).
• Tenants in older Marseille buildings may want to ask their landlord or local authority about any at-risk status (Marsactu).
• If heating costs are a worry, check whether your home’s insulation would qualify you for the heat pump aid and leasing scheme (franceinfo Économie).

France Today is a curated digest: we summarise and link, the reporting belongs to the publications named. Something wrong or missing? Tell us.