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ACE of Brussels
Small Cambridge International school in Auderghem, around 80 students aged 3 to 19, classes capped at 16. Sister to ACE Ascend, the group's Cambridge online school, and best known locally for running structured on-site inclusion alongside its mainstream classes.
In brief
Small Cambridge International school in Auderghem, around 80 students aged 3 to 19, classes capped at 16. Sister to ACE Ascend, the group's Cambridge online school, and best known locally for running structured on-site inclusion alongside its mainstream classes.
Cambridge Primary, Lower Secondary, IGCSE and A Levels through the same building. The inclusion programme, branded ACE Rising, ACE Plus and ACE Connect, brings speech therapists and occupational therapists on site and runs at a two-adult to three-student ratio for the inclusion strands. Childcare is charged separately at twelve euros an hour on top of fees.
Parent voice splits hard along the inclusion line. Families whose children have settled here speak warmly about the transformation in confidence and about teachers who treat children as individuals. The opposing thread, equally consistent, is from families who feel the inclusion offer was sold harder than the school could deliver, and that Cambridge exam preparation in the senior years has been patchy. Visit, sit in on a lesson, and ask how IGCSE and A Level results have trended in recent years.
Reviews
Deliberately tiny: around 80 students across ages 3 to 19, classes capped at 16, Cambridge throughout with IGCSE and A Level taken when the student is ready rather than at a fixed year. The pitch parents respond to is the personal one. Teachers known by name, individual plans, kindness as a stated ethos. The other distinctive feature is the on-site inclusion track (ACE Rising, ACE Plus, ACE Connect) with speech and occupational therapy and a high adult-to-child ratio for the most supported children. That same inclusion programme is where the loudest complaint lives: one family describes promises made and not kept. Fees rise sharply for the inclusion tiers.
Positives
- Small and personal. Around 80 children total, 16 to a class. Parents talk about teachers who know each child, individual pacing, and a calm atmosphere where bullying barely registers.
- Flexible Cambridge pathway. IGCSE and A Level are sat when the student is ready rather than by year group. For families whose children are out of step with a standard timetable, this is the draw.
- On-site inclusion programme. ACE Rising, ACE Plus and ACE Connect bring speech therapists and occupational therapists into the building, with a 2-to-3 adult-to-child ratio for the most supported children. Few Brussels schools offer this in-house.
Considerations
- Inclusion delivery and SEN expectations. The sharpest complaint in circulation is from a family who felt the inclusion offer did not match what was advertised, with the child eventually excluded. A minority voice rather than a pattern, but it sits against the school's main selling point, so it warrants asking exactly what each named programme delivers, in writing, before signing.
- Facilities and exam rigour. A more recent critical review flags weak facilities and thin Cambridge exam preparation. Most other parent commentary is the opposite, but the building is a converted commune house in Auderghem rather than a purpose-built campus, and the senior cohort is small enough that subject choice and exam discipline depend heavily on the individual teacher.
- Fees for inclusion tiers. Mainstream fees run roughly EUR 28,000 to 35,000. The inclusion programmes (ACE Rising, ACE Plus) sit at EUR 50,000 to 52,000, well above the mainstream rate and above most Brussels alternatives. The therapy hours are built in, but the jump is steep.
Leadership
Mrs Jackie Daire
Mrs Jackie Daire has wanted to be a teacher since she was 7 years old. Now she is the Head of Schools at ACE of BRUSSELS, focusing on flexibility and adaptability in education. The school uses the Cambridge International Curriculum for students aged 3 to 19.