GO! is organised by the public body called ‘GO! onderwijs van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap’, on behalf of the Flemish Community. Despite being financed by the government, it functions independently of the Flemish Ministry of Education. GO! is one of the three main educational networks in Flanders, the other two being the subsidised public network, run in our provinces and municipalities and the subsidised free network, principally organised by groups affiliated to the Catholic church.
GO! embodies the practical outcome of every parent’s constitutional right to choose a school within reasonable proximity to their homes.
According to the Belgian Constitution, every child has a right to education. In order to guarantee this, education is compulsory for a period of 12 years, starting on 1st September of the year in which a child reaches the age of 6 and ending in the year of his or her 18th birthday.
Our non-compulsory education includes nursery care for children from 3 months to two and a half years, pre-school kindergarten for children from two and a half years up to 6, part time art education starting at the age of 6 and finally education for adults from the ages of 18 to 99. Lifelong learning is one of our most important principles.
Another Belgian constitutional right is free access to education for the whole period of compulsory education. Consequently, primary and secondary schools are not allowed to charge an enrolment fee.