Flemish education inspectorate to monitor anti-bullying policy
The Flemish parliament’s education committee approved a draft decree reforming the education inspectorate on Thursday. Under the new rules, the inspectorate will be able to carry out unannounced inspections and verify whether schools have an anti-bullying policy in place. The aim is to ensure that schools meet minimum educational standards, while the inspectorate steps back from its previous advisory role on curricula.
Minister of education Zuhal Demir (N-VA) said the reform would strengthen oversight and improve the quality of education. “This will allow the inspectorate to have a greater impact on the quality of education,” she stated.
The majority parties N-VA, CD&V and Vooruit voted in favour of the decree, while the opposition parties Vlaams Belang, Open VLD, Groen, and PVDA abstained.
The reform intends to refocus the education inspectorate on its core task: assessing what happens in schools and classrooms. Several advisory duties, such as providing feedback on curricula, will be discontinued. According to Demir, the new system should also ensure that all schools are inspected within a six-year cycle, something that is not currently guaranteed. She stated that unannounced inspections would not become standard practice but must remain possible “if there are signs that indicate problems.”
Debate over inspection criteria
Some MPs expressed reservations about the lack of clear guidelines for triggering an unannounced visit. Kim Buyst (Groen) explained her decision to abstain, saying, “As long as there is no certainty about this, we find it difficult to give a resounding yes to this proposed decree.”
Koen Daniëls (N-VA), however, argued that the inspectorate should retain flexibility. “The inspectorate should have the freedom to decide for itself when an unannounced inspection is necessary,” he said.
Monitoring school safety
The updated framework will also make anti-bullying policies a focus of inspection, as part of broader student guidance measures. “If there are no clear agreements within school teams regarding anti-bullying policy, it can lead to students feeling unsafe,” Demir warned.
#FlandersNewsService | © BELGA PHOTO DIRK WAEM
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