Suche
Mein Konto
Record registrations: Cologne is urgently planning new special school locations!
In Cologne-Vogelsang, increasing student numbers and pollution levels are leading to school closures and plans for new special school locations.
Record registrations: Cologne is urgently planning new special school locations!
In Cologne-Vogelsang, the special school for intellectual development on Kolkrabenweg is facing a challenge. A call for help from the school board draws attention to the tense situation, as registrations have increased dramatically and there are already 70 places above the available quota. In order to alleviate the lack of space, some of the students are taught at a school in Weiden, which makes the distribution of students across multiple locations even more complicated. Mayor Henriette Reker recently visited the special school to get an idea of the situation. “The challenge remains to distribute the students sensibly across the different locations,” said Reker during her visit. However, additional school places are planned for the coming school year in order to cope with the backlog of registrations, as the Rundschau reports.
Damaged premises and temporary closure
Another reason for concern is the temporary closure of the special school and the elementary school on Kolkrabenweg from September 16, 2024. Increased pollutant levels found during air tests are making large parts of the school building unusable. An unpleasant smell and complaints from employees led to the city of Cologne reacting and closing the schools until further notice. A specialist institute found elevated levels of the hydrocarbon compound naphthalene, which can be attributed to the use of parquet adhesive containing pollutants that has been installed for several decades. The Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger emphasizes that the health authorities did not see any immediate health risk for the students, but caution was decided because the values in some rooms exceeded the limit values.
The health department emphasized that there was no acute health risk to the students and that they were never in danger. Despite this reassurance, affected parents and teachers have still expressed concerns. Complaints such as headaches and difficulty concentrating were noted when staying in polluted rooms. The city plans to develop a solution as quickly as possible to restore the usability of the affected rooms in order to be able to resume classes as usual, as WDR reports.
Future prospects and necessary renovations
The situation poses additional challenges for the city of Cologne. The administration is considering setting up a new special school to create the urgently needed places. The spatial deficiencies at the existing Redwitzstrasse special school are also crucial for this, where the lack of specialist and differentiation rooms as well as sanitary facilities is pointed out. The chairman of the parents' association, Stefanie Lippelt, has urgently asked the city for support in order to improve the structural condition of the school rooms.
In addition, the aim is to complete the new Kunterbunt elementary school in the Görlinger Center by the start of the 2028/29 school year, which brings additional hope that the situation will ease. The city has also considered the possibility of converting an existing school into a special needs school, which could reduce the pressure on the affected parents and students. It remains to be hoped that the announced measures will soon ensure pleasant school operations at all locations again.