A primary school in Londonderry has been forced to close its doors due to serious safety concerns over the condition of its roof, highlighting a deepening crisis in Northern Ireland's school estate.
Urgent Closure Following Roof Assessment
Nazareth House Primary School was temporarily closed on Wednesday, 3 December 2025, after an investigatory assessment raised alarms about the structural integrity of its roofing. The Education Authority (EA) confirmed the immediate closure, stating it is now "urgently prioritising remedial works" to allow the school to reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.
A spokesperson for the Authority said the situation was "unfortunately the latest example of children’s education being disrupted due to deterioration in the school estate." They emphasised that current budgetary restrictions mean only emergency maintenance can be carried out, a position described as "increasingly unsustainable."
A System-Wide Funding Crisis
This incident is not isolated. It comes just weeks after the Stormont Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee published a damning report on the state of schools across the region. The committee estimated the total bill for necessary repairs could be as high as £800 million.
In October, the committee called for "urgent, system-wide reform of the schools’ estate management and maintenance." Responding to those findings, Education Minister Paul Givan stated the system was facing a "capital funding crisis that must be addressed without delay."
Growing Backlog Risks More Disruption
The EA has issued a stark warning about the consequences of continued underfunding. "We are deeply concerned at the growing school maintenance and repair backlog across NI due to lack of funding for the education sector," the spokesperson stated.
They further cautioned that "without significantly increased levels of funding, school buildings will continue to decline, increasing the potential for further disruption to classes." This underscores a pressing need for a long-term financial solution to prevent more pupils from seeing their education interrupted by crumbling infrastructure.
The closure of Nazareth House Primary serves as a tangible and urgent reminder of the physical state of many educational facilities in Northern Ireland, with the safety of pupils and staff now directly impacted by years of underinvestment.
