Concern over state of schools with repairs bill that ‘could be up to £800m’

Concern has been voiced around the maintenance of schools across Northern Ireland with a repairs bill which “could be up to £800 million”.

The Stormont Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee has called for an “urgent, system-wide reform of the schools’ estate management and maintenance”.

The committee published a report on Wednesday following their inquiry into managing the schools estate.

It received evidence from officials from the Department of Education and Education Authority (EA), as well as written evidence from the Health and Safety Executive NI.

The report found that schools are in a state of disrepair and that the current situation is “unsafe”, with significant maintenance backlogs that could pose a health and safety risk and jeopardise educational outcomes for young people.

The committee made 11 recommendations as well as calling for urgent reform.

Committee chair Daniel McCrossan criticised the department and EA for relying on a “reactive, short-term approach” and “poor governance”.

“In the course of our inquiry, the committee heard that, 10 years on from the formation of EA, poor collaboration between it and the Department of Education has continued to undermine the effectiveness of estate management,” the SDLP representative said.

“During this time, these two organisations have operated without a clear plan and relied instead on a reactive, short-term approach.

“This is an alarming example of poor governance that has failed to deliver value for money, meet the needs of school users and has likely contributed to the deterioration of safety and quality across the estate.

“To compound problems further, there is a lack of reliable, up-to-date data. Without robust information systems, effective strategic planning is impossible, and performance cannot be measured or improved.”

Mr McCrossan said there is currently no preventative maintenance plan and also backlogs relating to statutory remedial works, which he said are estimated to cost around £29 million.

The committee’s recommendations include that by early 2026, the department develops and publishes a comprehensive estate management strategy, together with an associated annual delivery plan.

They also called for the department and EA to review the roles and responsibilities of all oversight mechanisms and put in place appropriate governance structures to ensure that estate performance is regularly monitored.

Additionally, the committee recommended clear plans are developed within 18 months by the department and EA to ensure current special educational needs (SEN) provision is fit for purpose in advance of a targeted capital investment plan to expand the SEN provision across the schools’ estate.

Mr McCrossan added: “A modern, safe and inclusive school estate is not a luxury – it is the fundamental right of every child in Northern Ireland.

“The department’s current approach to estate management is unsustainable, ineffective and economically wasteful.

“There must be a new, collaborative working relationship between the department, the EA and schools.

“Listening to schools and involving them earlier could lead to faster, more informed responses to problems.

“A new estate management strategy must be developed and implemented without delay.

“The school estate must be seen as a valued asset and a key enabler of educational success – not just a collection of buildings to be maintained.”

Responding, Education Minister Paul Givan said the system is facing a “capital funding crisis that must be addressed without delay”.

“I value the report’s contribution in exposing the scale of the challenge, particularly the chronic underinvestment in our schools’ estate over many years,” he said.

“The key issue here is not a lack of planning, but a lack of funding.

“Severe and unsustainable financial pressures have left my department unable to carry out routine maintenance or invest in long-term improvements.

“Instead, we’ve had to stretch resources to cover only the most urgent, health-and-safety-related repairs – a reactive approach that, as the report rightly highlights, cannot continue.

“Nowhere is the pressure more acute than in special educational needs provision.

“The cost of emergency SEN placements has soared from £9 million in 2019 to a projected £85 million this year, which is an 850% increase in just six years.

“That trajectory is simply not financially viable.”

Mr Givan added: “Despite these constraints, I remain committed to improving the condition of our school estate.

“In line with one of the PAC’s key recommendations, I have submitted a 10-year, £1.7 billion special educational needs investment plan to the Executive.

“This strategic proposal is designed to address long-term infrastructure needs and ensure that children with SEN are supported in appropriate, high-quality learning environments.

“I am calling for urgent, cross-party support to secure the investment needed to modernise and protect Northern Ireland’s schools.

“Without action, our school estate will continue to deteriorate, with real consequences for pupils, staff, and communities.”

A spokesperson for the EA said they welcome the report, which they said “clearly reflects the scale of the financial challenges faced by the education sector”.

“Recurring shortfalls in budgets mean that no funding is available for routine maintenance of the school estate – the only activity that can afford to be undertaken is that which seeks to avoid school closures and carry out repairs urgently needed on pupil safety grounds,” they said.

“This limited but unavoidable focus inevitably leads to deterioration in the condition of the estate.

“Despite these pressures, EA would assure pupils and parents that we are taking decisive action in relation to the £29 million statutory remedial backlog referenced in the report.

“A £19 million programme of remedial works has been prioritised for delivery in the current financial year, leaving a remaining shortfall of around £10 million, comprised primarily of medium to low-risk remedial works.

“The focus for the 2026-27 year will be to address the outstanding statutory backlog.”