Archbishop Graubner will start the construction of a church speech therapy school in Klecany

Klecany - The Archbishop of Prague, Jan Graubner, along with General Vicar Jan Balík, will today commence the construction of a new speech therapy school for over 300 children in Klecany near Prague. Graubner will bless the foundation stone of the construction on-site, spokesperson Jiří Prinz from the Archdiocese of Prague announced to ČTK. The Catholic Church has long sought a specialized school; Graubner's predecessor, Cardinal Dominik Duka, planned the construction in 2021 to mark the 1000th anniversary of the death of Saint Ludmila. After delays and preparations, the project designed by m4 Architekti, which today costs 450 million crowns, will now be realized.

The school for children with serious speech disorders is set to be built on church land in Klecany, near the National Institute of Mental Health. The church's St. Ludmila Foundation is organizing a collection to fund the project. Graubner currently heads the foundation, which was established in 2021.

Five years ago, the archdiocese expected the costs to be 180 million crowns. After adjustments and at today’s prices, the construction will, according to Prinz, exceed 450 million crowns.

"Over half of the required funding has been obtained by selling the Clara Futura chateau in Dolní Břežany, which the archdiocese earmarked for the St. Ludmila Foundation intended for the support of church education," said the spokesperson. The chateau hotel complex Clara Futura in Dolní Břežany was sold by the archdiocese in 2023 for 308 million crowns.

It is not yet clear how much the collection for the school will raise. The archdiocese originally also counted on money from Czech and European funds.

The church operates a similarly focused school, Don Bosco, in Prague 8, whose capacity does not meet demand. The school has four different buildings in Prague Bohnice.

Klecany Mayor Daniel Dvořák (ODS) acknowledged to ČTK that some local residents near the planned school expressed concerns about increased traffic. "I hope that we will be able to connect the school to the Klecany bypass in the future," said Dvořák.

According to him, the construction investor has arranged transportation with a private owner of the road. Dvořák anticipates that children from the area will use public transport. This would help fill the buses that travel empty to Klecany in the morning and return empty to Prague in the afternoon. Additionally, a dormitory for some students will also be created at the specialized school.

The new school complex will also include a specialized speech therapy workplace, a garden with speech therapy elements, or a chapel of St. Ludmila. The school will serve 250 primary school students and 60 preschool children. It is hoped to open in the 2027/28 school year.