Find all the info you need to register for a course.

What are the aims of the course?  ... Who are your teachers? ... Where do they teach? ...and at what stage of my pregnancy should I attend a course? You can find this information on the introduction page of the Preparation for Birth & Parenting Courses.

The content and costs of refresher and first-time parents' courses vary, as does the number of hours involved in each course, and when to register and attend. Please follow the links to find out more.

Please choose the course that is allocated to your due date and at least one other that you are able to attend.

If the course for your due date is full, or you would miss more than 4 hours of it, there are some instructions on the course dates page to help you choose a course.

It's not possible to say which topics are covered on which sessions, as the agenda for each course is somewhat set by the participants on the first session. And for this same reason, it is not possible to do some sessions on one course, and other sessions on another course.

If it's just one parent-to-be who can't make some of the sessions, see the next question.

Tutors can give catch-up information for any sessions that you would miss, but this needs to be arranged before the first session of the course takes place.

If you are not sure which course to choose, or everything seems to be full, please still contact us using our online form or email us at prenatal@bctbelgium.org and select your course option, this can be a full course or a future course. Then please add your comment and/or the details of your availability in the availability issues box.

We do our best to ensure that everyone who wants a Birth & Parenting course, gets one.

If your partner will miss only a few hours on a course, don’t worry. Often partners cannot attend every session, so you are unlikely to be the only person in this situation. Sometimes mothers-to-be attend alone, and even fathers-to-be do so on occasions. If you wish, you can bring somebody else along with you for those sessions your partner cannot attend.

Once you are enrolled on a course, it is important to let the tutor know which sessions your partner cannot attend before the course starts: she might be able to alter the agenda so that you partner is present for any sessions that are particularly important to you both. However, her ability to do this will depend on the needs of the whole group.

If your partner will miss more than just a few hours of a course, it may be best to choose a different course. If you cannot find a course that matches your availability, please contact us at prenatal@bctbelgium.org for further advice.

You can also use our online form and select a course option, adding your comment and/or the details of your availability in the availability issues box.

Unfortunately no. Although the website is updated regularly with information on availability, we often have sudden rushes of demand and cannot update the website as frequently as required, especially during holidays and festive periods. Please note that all course administration is carried out by volunteers. However, in most cases we are able to accomodate you.

The BCT has a range of services available to BCT members throughout pregnancy and early life as a family.

Apart from our Pregnancy in Belgium evenings, which provide practical information on pregnancy and birth, we also have TENS machines for hire that can help with pain relief during labour and are not otherwise available in Belgium.

After the birth, we have a team of postnatal-support volunteers to help with anything from general emotional support, to bottle- and breast-feeding concerns, to dealing with very specific issues.

We also have a small library of relevant books …. and many weekly coffee/playgroups are held at our Clubhouse in Ixelles and at peoples' homes throughout Brussels. We also organise events throughout Brussels and surrounding areas to give you many opportunities to meet people in the same situation as yourselves.

To see more, please see our page on the benefits of membership.

Some private health-insurance schemes do refund the cost of our Preparation for Birth & Parenting courses.

Our teachers hold a prenatal-teaching qualification, but they are not medical professionals. For this reason, many Belgian mutuelles/ziekenfonds will not offer a reimbursement.

Please check with your mutuelle, health insurer and/or your employer’s Human Resources department as to whether the costs can be reimbursed.

It depends on how much of the course you will miss.

If both you and your partner will miss fewer than 4 hours, please contact your course teacher as soon as possible and she will outline your options. Her contact details can be found in various communications you will have received from us. Please ensure that you contact her before the first session of your course. Unfortunately it is very difficult to rearrange things at short notice and we cannot guarantee that we can make arrangements to help you with missed sessions.

If you will miss more than 4 hours of the course, please contact the booking clerk as soon as possible at prenatal@bctbelgium.org. It may be better for you to go on a different course, but this will depend on course availability.

Please contact us immediately at prenatal@bctbelgium.org if you are unable to attend the course as there is usually a waiting list for courses and we need to offer the place to those on the waiting list. We may also be able to offer you an alternative, if that is what you wish, if you inform us as soon as possible.

It depends on the exact circumstances and reason for the cancellation, as well as the timing of the cancellation. If you cancel more than a month before the course starts, you would normally receive a refund. Even where a refund is possible, cancellation may incur an administrative charge.