Enrolments 2020-2021
Policy on enrolment in the Brussels European Schools for the 2020/2021 school year:
a) Pupils shall be admitted to the nursery school at the beginning of the school year in September of the calendar year in which the child reaches four years of age (born in 2016).
b) Pupils shall be admitted to primary year 1 at the beginning of the school year in September of the calendar year in which the child reaches six years of age (born in 2014).
c) In principle, no child may be admitted to the school if he/she is two years (three years for secondary years 4-6) older than the normal age resulting from application of the above provisions to his/her particular case.
d) Pupils with special educational needs (SEN): the cases of these pupils shall be dealt with in accordance with the Regulations adopted by the Board of Governors concerning the provision of Educational Support in the European Schools (procedural document 2012-05-D-15). For more information, parents can contact the educational support coordinator:
Nursery and primary cycles: Mrs Katrien FERNANDEZ
Secondary cycle: Mrs Géraldine GATTO-ROISSARD
please refer to the table of equivalences in annex 2 of the General Rules.
A fundamental principle of the European Schools is the teaching of mother tongue/dominant language as first language (L1). This principle implies the pupil’s enrolment in the section of his/her mother tongue/dominant language where such a section exists.
This principle may be waived only where the child has been educated in a language other than his/her mother tongue/dominant language for a minimum of two years at primary or secondary level. The European Schools will presume in that case that the child will be capable of continuing his/her schooling in the language in question.
In schools where the section corresponding to a pupil’s mother tongue/dominant language does not exist, he/she will generally be enrolled in one of the vehicular language sections. He/She will attend the classes in his/her mother tongue/dominant language organised for so-called SWALS (Students Without A Language Section) as L1.
Parents will not be free to choose their child’s first language (L1), its determination being the responsibility of the school’s Director. L1 must correspond to the child’s mother tongue or dominant language, in the case of multilingual children, the dominant language being the one of which they have the best command.
Should there be any dispute about the pupil’s L1, it will be the Director’s responsibility to determine which language it is, on the basis of the information provided by the pupils’ legal representatives on the enrolment form and by requiring the pupil to take comparative language tests, organised and under the control of the school’s teachers. The tests will be organised whatever the pupil’s age and teaching level, i.e. including the nursery cycle.
Determination of L1 at the time of the child’s enrolment is definitive in principle.
A change of Language 1 may only be authorised by the Director for compelling pedagogical reasons, duly established by the Class Council and on the initiative of one of its members.
Should a new language section be created, children previously enrolled with SWALS status and who had the language of this new section as their Language 1 will automatically be admitted to the newly created language section without the need for them to be required to take comparative language tests.
In that case, a change of L1 may only be authorised by the Director for compelling pedagogical reasons, duly established by the Class Council and on the initiative of one of its members.
Information sessions (presentation of EEB2 + guided tour):
However, the school organizes each year two information sessions for the nursery and primary cycles as well as one information session for the secondary cycle. These sessions are intended for potential new parents who fulfill the conditions of admission in the Brussels European Schools. During these meetings, the Management presents the EEB2 and answers various questions. Afterwards there is a guided tour.
The dates and registration procedure are available on this website under “Enrolments - Information sessions”.
In addition, parents who would like more pedagogical information are invited to refer to the school’s website and/or to contact:
- Mr Javier Arnedo for the nursery and primary cycles: WOL-DEPUTY-DIRECTOR-NURSERY-AND-PRIMARY-CYCLE@eursc.eu.
- the coordinator for the secondary cycle:
- S1 - S4: Mr Antonio Fabio RUSSO, antonio.russo@eursc.eu
- S5 - S7: Mrs Elaine IRVINE, elaine.irvine@eursc.eu
1. Time periods for submission of applications - cf. Article 2.B. of the Policy on enrolment:
Applications for enrolment after the beginning of the school year will be submitted between 5 September 2019 at the earliest and 20 March 2020 at the latest.
For pedagogical reasons, any application submitted after 20 March 2020 will be inadmissible (Article 2.9.).
As from 5 September 2019, these enrolment applications will be allowed restrictively and on condition that at the time of their submission within the meaning of Articles 2.3. and 2.4., the following three cumulative conditions are fulfilled, except in cases of force majeure, duly substantiated at the time of submission of the application:
a) They involve categories I and II pupils for whom no other enrolment application for the 2019-2020 school year was submitted.
b) The pupil concerned was being educated outside Belgium when the application was submitted.
c) One of the pupil’s legal representatives will be taking up his/her post in Brussels with the European Institutions, Eurocontrol, NATO or the UN, or with the employer with whom the category II agreement has been concluded, three months at the earliest before the start of the child’s actual schooling. (Article 12.1.)
2. Only one enrolment or transfer application per pupil may be submitted throughout the enrolment procedure for the 2019/2020 school year.
3. A common form must be completed and signed by the legal representatives, invested with parental authority over the child, who are required to act jointly, applying for enrolment or transfer.
The forms can be downloaded from the intranets of the European Institutions (NOT from the Schools’ websites). They are also available from the enrolments’ secretariat of the schools/sites.
4. The enrolment or transfer application - duly completed and signed - with ALL the documents required must be handed in or sent by post (regular, registered or express letter) to the secretariat of the school/site corresponding to the first preference expressed on the form.
An applicant for a transfer will, moreover, hand in or send a copy of the form to the school/site attended previously.
A scanned version of the enrolment or transfer application will not be taken into consideration.
5. Concerning the European School Brussels II (EEB2), the enrolment or transfer applications with all the documents required should be returned to Mrs Isabelle OVERBERGH.
The enrolments’ secretariat is located in the Administration building - 1st floor - room 410.
Opening hours:
The office is open from Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 12.00, on appointment (isabelle.overbergh@eursc.eu).
For security reasons, parents who come to the EEB2 in order to personally present the documents are kindly requested to carry their identification document.
6. The date of submission of the application will be the one affixed by the school secretariat after having checked that the form has been properly completed and signed by the child’s legal representatives, and that all the original supporting documents have been duly produced and attached to the application.
- Mrs Isabelle OVERBERGH, tel. +32 2 774.22.58, isabelle.overbergh@eursc.eu
- Mrs Christiane BREEUR, tel. +32 2 774.22.79, christiane.breeur@eursc.eu