'Scandalous' Irish language school funding spent elsewhere, vice chair says

Millions of pounds specifically earmarked for Irish language education has been spent on other schools.

The Department of Education (DE) confirmed that just £1m of a £6m fund went to an Irish-medium organisation, while the rest was spent on other school buildings.

The vice-chair of Stormont's education committee said it was "absolutely scandalous".

DE said it was committed to supporting the growth of Irish-medium education and added that it was up to "each government department to determine its own spending priorities".

The £6m was earmarked to be spent on "Irish-medium accommodation and facilities".

It was provided to DE in the December 2025 monitoring round by Finance Minister John O'Dowd, alongside other money for things like teachers' pay.

A monitoring round is when unspent money from various Stormont departments is reallocated.

According to O'Dowd's written statement to the assembly, the department had asked for £6m specifically for Irish-medium school buildings and facilities.

The money was intended for Iontaobhas na Gaelscolaíochta, an organisation which provides classrooms, buildings and support for Irish-medium schools.

The executive has not been able to agree a budget for 2026-27 and Education Minister Paul Givan has warned that education faces substantial cuts unless his department is given more funding.

The department confirmed that it had spent £5m on schools which are already being built.

In a statement to BBC News NI, a DE spokesperson said: "It is for each government department to determine its own spending priorities for capital investment and to ensure that available funding is directed towards projects that deliver the greatest benefit within the constraints of the public finances."

The department's statement said that while £1m had been provided to Iontaobhas na Gaelscolaíochta, DE had used the rest of the money "in support of active school construction projects that are already under contract and delivering direct benefits for children and young people".

"Funding was therefore allocated to project bank accounts for the department's highest-priority school builds, including Scoil an Droichid, Edendork Primary School and Strangford Integrated College," they continued.

Scoil an Droichid is an Irish-medium primary school awaiting the completion of a new school building on Belfast's Ormeau Road.

The statement said that funding for Iontaobhas na Gaelscolaíochta would not have been spent immediately "on school construction projects, rather the majority of the funding would have been held within a trust arrangement for potential future deployment".

The department's statement said it was "committed to supporting the growth and development of Irish-medium education within the resources available".

It also said that DE had invested more than £60m in Irish-medium school buildings over the last ten years, and that four new Irish-medium primary schools, estimated to cost over £13m, were at the planning stage.

Pilib Ó Ruanaí from Iontaobhas na Gaelscolaíochta said that there was "a pressing demand for Irish-medium education".

There has been a substantial rise over the past 25 years in the number of pupils in Irish language education.

"We have been put to the pin of our collar to try and meet the needs of the sector," Ó Ruanaí told BBC News NI.

He said the organisation had met regularly with DE officials about funding and support.

"We're upset, we're disappointed. But this is not over yet.

"Parents who want their children to attend Irish-medium schools feel they should be allowed to do that.

"They pay taxes, they're fully committed citizens of this jurisdiction.

"There's absolutely no reason why their children shouldn't be afforded the same treatment as children attending English-medium schools."

The Sinn Féin vice-chair of Stormont's Education Committee, Pat Sheehan, was highly critical of the department and Givan.

"£5m of that £6m has not gone to the Irish-medium accommodation fund.

"That's absolutely scandalous, this money was earmarked.

"It's needed by the Irish-medium accommodation fund and the minister has just decided that he's going to use it elsewhere in his department. That's wrong, it shouldn't have been done."

Sheehan also said that there was "a lot of distrust" within the Irish language community towards "the DUP in general, and the minister in particular".

"The minister has some form in regards to the Irish language," Sheehan said.

He cited as an example Givan's withdrawal of funding for the Líofa Irish language bursary scheme in 2016 when he was communities minister.

The late Martin McGuinness said the £50,000 cut was part of the reason for his subsequent resignation as deputy first minister.