Antwerp (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Keerpuntschool Antwerp abruptly closed in September 2025. Parents, including Maris De Smedt, faced sudden disruptions. Alderman Nabilla Ait Daoud urged support via CLB and complaints to the Flemish Student Rights Commission.
As VRT News reported, parents and students at Keerpuntschool on the Stuivenberg site in Antwerp faced a sudden closure at the start of the new school year. On Sunday afternoon, Aug 31, 2025, the school board sent a message to families stating:
“Urgent and difficult news: Keerpunt Antwerp will not start.”
Students in the upper third year had already received a similar message a few days earlier. Families described the news as sudden and alarming. Maris De Smedt, whose daughter was due to begin her first year on Monday, Aug 1, 2025, said the message left her in disbelief.
“When I saw my daughter shrinking, I immediately started thinking about solutions.”
Parent Maris De Smedt
Why did Keerpuntschool Antwerp abruptly close in September 2025?
According to parents, the non-profit Freinetscholen Keerpunt, which owns the Antwerp school, offered to transfer students to other locations. These schools are outside the province. As of Tuesday, Sep 2, 2025, the organisation had not provided further comment.
The abrupt closure raised questions about planning and communication within the school network. Parents and students are now waiting for more information on what will happen next and how the start of the school year will be organised.
“I’ve asked other parents and I hear that the head of the school, as the principal was called, was fired at the end of last school year by the non-profit organisation Freinetscholen Keerpunt (with other schools in Ghent, Hasselt and Lokeren, ed.). The remaining teachers wouldn’t want to continue working without her,”
Parent Maris De Smedt said.
“We were not informed by the governing body,”
said Alderman for Education Nabilla Ait Daoud (N-VA).
“Everyone has been presented with a fait accompli, which is not good governance.”
To support families, the city is now using its “Register Antwerp” service and the CLB (Centre for Student Guidance) to help students find new schools. Alderman Ait Daoud noted that this is especially difficult given the sudden need to secure places in Freinet schools, which are limited in the region.
“This does not demonstrate good governance.”
Education councillor Nabilla Ait Daoud (N-VA)
Despite the challenges, some families have quickly found solutions. According to Alderman Ait Daoud, 6 students have already started at the Kunsthumaniora (Explo Art) in Antwerp South, located in the KUUB building. Maris De Smedt’s daughter is among them.
“When I saw my daughter shrinking after the bad news, I immediately looked for alternatives,”
De Smedt said.
She contacted the director of Kunsthumaniora directly, allowing her daughter to enrol that same Monday morning. This was possible because the school currently has no waiting list and still has available spaces for new students. Other parents, however, are still struggling to make quick decisions and secure a place for their children, facing the pressure of arranging a sudden change in schooling.
“I’ve now found a school in Sint-Katelijne-Waver that uses a similar educational approach to the Keerpuntschool, but the distance isn’t entirely straightforward,”
De Smedt said.
Education Councillor Nabilla Ait Daoud (N-VA) explained that families can file a complaint with the Flemish Commission on Student Rights (Vlaamse Commissie voor de Rechten van de Leerling) if they believe the handling of the school’s closure violated their children’s rights or disrupted their education.
On Sunday afternoon, Aug 31, 2025, the school board sent an email to families stating: their children cannot start the first year of school on Monday as planned. What should have been an exciting first day turned into confusion and worry. Many families learned about the closure through social media before the school board officially informed the city or the Antwerp Regional Education Board (LOP).
The city of Antwerp assured parents that support would be available the next day to help find new schools. Families were directed to check available places on the website https://meldjeaan.antwerpen.be and to visit schools directly to enrol or join waiting lists.
A helpdesk was set up from 9:00 AM via the toll-free number 0800 62 185, and parents could reply to the email to confirm they needed assistance. The city also reminded parents that they can contact the CLB (Child Support Centre) from the school their child graduated from in June 2025, for guidance. Authorities emphasised that they are working with schools and the LOP to find immediate solutions for all affected students.
The Freinetscholen Keerpunt network started in 1997 to offer Freinet-style education. It has schools in Ghent, Hasselt, Lokeren, and Antwerp. The network focuses on student freedom, teamwork, and learning by doing. In the past, it faced small staffing changes, but schools stayed open and students were not affected. The sudden closure of the Antwerp Stuivenberg site in September 2025 is the first big shutdown in the network’s history.
