French-speaking schools will receive €29 per primary pupil to fund free school supplies, even though parents spent on average €102 on basic materials for the 2025 school year, according to a survey published on Tuesday by Ligue des familles, a group representing the interests of families in Wallonia and Brussels.
The survey, conducted among 1,146 families, raises questions about how schools will cover the €73 shortfall.
Until last year, primary schools received €77 per child for year groups covered by the free-supplies scheme, namely first, second and third year primary classes.
This school year, that amount falls to €29.42, before dropping again to €24.52 in later years. In nursery education, funding will also decrease, from €62.58 to €20.46 after an initial reduction to €24.52.
The Ligue des familles says there appears to be little room for savings. More than 90% of families already reuse supplies from one year to the next.
When families do buy replacements, it is mainly because items are worn out or used up, which accounts for 80% of cases. In 44% of cases, they buy new materials because the school requires items the child does not yet have.
Only 10% of new purchases are made because of a preference expressed by parents or children.
Madeleine Guyot, the Ligue des familles’ managing director, warned that schools may have to cut spending in other important areas unless they pass on higher costs to parents through other charges.
In secondary education, where free school supplies do not apply, costs remain even higher. Families spend an average of €151 on basic materials, €150 on textbooks and €79 on photocopies per pupil. The charge for photocopies exceeds the legal ceiling of €75.
Schools require 29% of secondary pupils to have a personal computer, while in practice 44% need one. The average cost of computer equipment is €333.
The Ligue des familles is calling on the government to resume systematic inspections in nursery and primary schools, adjust per-pupil funding if it proves insufficient, and plan to extend free school supplies to secondary education.
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