Consultation on five-year budget strategy for education published

Date published: 4 February 2026

Paul Givan said: 

“Northern Ireland’s education system has long been a source of pride, with one of the most highly qualified teaching workforces in the world.

“However, the reality is that the system is under severe and sustained strain. Years of chronic underfunding and limited structural reform in service delivery have combined to create a financial crisis in education.” 

The Department of Education’s 2025-2026 budget is £3.36 billion, more than £250 million short of what is needed. Based on projected budget allocations, the gap between funding available and spending forecasts widens dramatically to over £0.8 billion by 2026-27 and over £1.15 billion by 2028-29. 

The Minister continued: 

“I will continue to make the strongest possible case for sustained and increased investment in our education system, but the numbers tell a stark story.  In the absence of significantly increased funding, financial sustainability will require significant structural reform of the education system. Our starting point is clear: the classroom must come first.  My Department’s reform proposals have, therefore, been guided by the clear principle of protecting teaching and learning while we put education on a sustainable financial footing. Delivering this protection requires difficult choices.

“To be clear, we cannot close a billion‑pound gap, or even meaningfully reduce it through making marginal efficiencies. Nor can we contemplate large‑scale redundancies. Northern Ireland’s education system is now at a critical turning point. The proposed reform programme offers a credible and necessary roadmap to stabilise budgets, protect learning and build a sustainable, high‑quality system for the long term.”

Drawing on the Independent Review of Education, the Department has identified a number key areas where reforms could reduce costs over the next five years.

These include:

• Reforming home-to-school transport 
• Modernising school meals delivery 
• Reshaping the SEN support model in mainstream schools 
• Restructuring the schools estate, including reducing the number of schools 
• Introducing a new model of financial management for schools

Education Minister Paul Givan concluded: 

“The decisions required to deliver structural reform will not be easy and will require political consensus, but the proposed budget allocation makes them unavoidable. This reform programme is not about temporary fixes. It is about reshaping the system so it is stronger, more resilient and better equipped to deliver excellent outcomes for every child, now and for generations to come.”

The Public Consultation and the Five‑Year Education Budget Strategy can be accessed on the on the DE website at: https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/consultations/consultation-five-year-education-budget-strategy. The consultation will be open for 8 weeks until 3^rd April.

Further details are available in the Minister’s Written Ministerial Statement, published on the DE website: https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/publications/written-ministerial-statement-five-year-education-budget-strategy.