'Substantial investment needed' says Education Authority as at least nine schools shut due to no heating as new ice warning set for tonight
“Substantial investment” is required in school buildings the Education Authority has said, when asked why at least nine schools closed their doors this week due to having no heating.
As snowy and icy weather gripped the Province just over 200 schools shut their doors on both Monday and Tuesday (amounting to roughly just under a fifth of the school estate).
The website NIDirect gave a list each day of those which had closed due to “adverse weather”, with at least nine closures listed as being specifically due to “no heating”.
Two schools remained shut on Wednesday too due to no heating: Royal School Armagh, and Magherafelt Primary School.
None are shut today.
Asked why so many schools’ heating systems had failed, the Department of Education referred the News Letter to the Education Authority (EA).
It said that its maintenance service had been working to “urgently address” the issue, adding: “There are more than 1,000 schools across the NI school estate.
“Heating system repairs can require significant work – for example, if there has been a burst pipe in the system due to cold weather.
“It is widely accepted that substantial investment in the school estate is required.”
The full list of all the schools whose heating failed is no longer online (though Hillcroft Special School in Newtownabbey and St Teresa's Primary in Lurgan were amongst them).
Meanwhile wintry weather is set to return to the Province on Friday with a yellow warning for ice lasting from midnight until 11am.
The Met Office says this signifies “some injuries from slips and falls on icy surfaces”, and “probably some icy patches on some untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths”.
Storm Goretti – named by the French meteorological service – is due to sweep in from the Atlantic late today and early on Friday.
It will mainly impact northern France, but will also pass over the southern regions of the British Isles, bringing strong winds of up to 90mph as well as more snow (up to 30cm in the English Midlands).
For Northern Ireland, the Met Office says that a new weather system will bring a band of snow pushing north-east across the Province late on Sunday, clearing from the south-west early on Monday.