Moving to Brussels - advice on pre-schools?

[SusanLouise]

Hello,
I am moving to Brussels in a few weeks and would appreciate any advice on French pre-schools. We have seen two nice houses - one near the ponds in Ixelles and one closer to Brugman (the other side of Avenue Louise). An important consieration for us is a pre-school/playgroup place for our two and a half year old daughter. I know it will be difficult to get a place in September but any advice on pre-schools near the ponds/Flagey? I also have an 8 month old so in time will look for something part time for him. Also any advice on the areas? I will be commuting to Schumann. Thanks!

I really don't like giving negative news, but the 2 areas you mention are possibly the 2 most difficult areas in Brussels popular with expats to get decent maternelle places (don't know about Flemish schools but very few in that area and imagine highly oversubscribed). Maternelle and primaires are very polarised in these areas as highly sought after or not popular at all a very much 2nd choice. You are too late by several months for enrolling for next September - some schools start enrolments a year in advance. Even for September 2013, you are in no way guaranteed school places at the sought after schools, even if you get somewhere to live a few hundred metres away.

Commuting to Schuman from those areas could be pretty slow - your choice is going to be buses and it wouldn't surprise me if you're looking at a 30 minute bus ride from the ponds in Ixelles and riding a bike might be quicker. The easiest commuting to Schuman is either to live in the immediate area, right in the city centre, or possibly the most popular option is to live along metro lines 1 or 5 or tram lines 39 and 44. It's 20 minutes by metro from the end of lines 1 and 5. If you are attracted to Ixelles by its period properties, well then a good alternative is certain areas of Woluwe St Lambert, where you also get better parking, more playgrounds, metro line 1, more quantity of sought after schools where you might still get a school place for September. I can see the attraction of the north of Ixelles as being quite vibrant, but rents are generally higher, parking more difficult, schools are a huge problem, not so many playgrounds, no metro or express trams.

IF you do however have a spare 6k per year, there is a private maternelle + primaire called Acacia in Etterbeek which is sort of in the direction of Schuman. If you have a spare 15k per year, you could consider some of the international schools such as BJAB, BISB or BEPS.

For your 8 month old, if it is only part time / occasional care, then you could use a halte-garderie which would cost typically 20 euro a day, or the mornings only places of an informal halte-garderie system run by Farandoline, place available in Etterbeek 4 mornings a week, typical cost about 10 euro for the morning.

If you are after a maternelle place later for your 8 month old, he could start in January 2014 and you would ideally start looking and enrolling him from this September 2012.

Hmmmm - good advice!, thanks. Maybe Ixelles isn't the right area. The international schools are an option but I really want them to learn French and be somewhere local. Need to think a bit more!

Evere, not so posh, still seemed to have school places for next year - and Schuman easily accessible via the 12 and 63 bus.

I know some of the other Belgian mumsnetters are going to think I'm nuts but have you considered cycling to work? I never used to cycle in London (thought it far too dangerous) but I find that in Bxl you can usually get from A to B via cycle paths or through parks. This then doesn't tie you down to having to be near a metro station. I work in Schuman and many colleagues live in Ixelles and cycle to work. I'm in Auderghem/Etterbeek and have the both of best worlds - about a 10 mins cycle to work and I'm on metro line 5 if it's raining/I'm being lazy.

Take a look at this school map.
batchgeo.com/map/1f1bf2b3b6e4ad41fe67c1a57d56a826
St André-St Phillipe
nos 10 and 23 Tenbosch
Catteau-Aurore
the best reputations on the north side of Ixelles, all likely to be full and refusing to accept further names on to waiting lists, most sought after areas of north Ixelles

no 5 des Etangs
no 4 Flagey - Coeur d'Ixelles
no 14 Petits Moineaux (Sans Souci)
don't have great reputations

Ma Campagne
St Boniface
reasonably popular and perhaps already full, despite their location in poorer areas

St Trinité
Cardinal Mercier
Jardin des Ecoliers
don't know anything about them, suspect not too many expats there, in pretty poor socio-economic districts

You might want to look further into school on the way to work, say ones in Etterbeek like La Farandole, Les Maronniers, Ste Anne, Jardins d'Elise, Colombe de la Paix.

SusanLouise, we have a spreadsheet of Belgian mumsnetters plus a closed (so private) Facebook page. Would you like to be on the spreadsheet and/or be on the page?

Hi all, I am also about to move the Merode/ Etterbeek area in Brussels and so would be interested in getting more info about schools. Would it be also possible for me to join the spreadsheet and join the Facebook page? Thanks in advance, Daphnee

Schools are all on the map posted earlier. Any schools you wish to know more about in particular?

DP, if you PM Longtime, or me, with your email address, we can get you added.