Northern Ireland schools told to put on extra layers as energy bills set to surge by £8m

Schools across Northern Ireland have been instructed to put on extra clothing rather than raise the thermostat as the Education Authority (EA) attempts to rein in spiralling energy costs. In a letter sent to head teachers, the body responsible for funding and managing local schools warned that gas and electricity bills are on course to increase by roughly £8m by March 2027, and urged staff and pupils to dress more warmly if classrooms feel cold.

The advice forms part of a wider package of measures designed to cut consumption wherever possible. Among the suggestions put to school leaders are reducing heating by one hour each day and switching off artificial lighting so that lessons can be taught using natural daylight instead. The EA has framed the changes as a necessary response to what it describes as a substantial impact on energy costs during the 2026/27 financial year, driven by recent geopolitical events.

The authority has not been vague about where the biggest increases will land. Total school gas bills are projected to climb by 60%, rising from £10.7m to £17m by March 2027. Electricity is expected to rise more modestly but still significantly in cash terms, with overall school electricity spending forecast to go up by 5%, from £23.8m to £25.1m over the same period.

According to the EA, the pressure on budgets is not an isolated education sector problem. The cost of living squeeze is already being felt in households throughout Northern Ireland, and schools are being exposed to the same volatile wholesale markets. The war between the US and Israel involving Iran has been identified as one of the factors behind the increase, illustrating how events thousands of miles away can translate directly into higher bills for a primary school in Craigavon or Dunmurry.

The scale of the challenge is what has prompted the authority to ask every school to review its energy usage and identify opportunities to reduce consumption. In practice, that means small behavioural changes repeated day after day across hundreds of buildings: lower thermostats, shorter heating schedules, and lights left off while there is enough sun coming through the windows.

However, principals who responded to the guidance have pointed out that cutting energy use is far simpler on paper than in a busy school building. Kirsty Logan-Hall, the principal of Tullygally Primary School in Craigavon, said her school was committed to promoting responsible energy consumption and regularly reinforced good practice with both staff and pupils.

Yet Logan-Hall stressed that the ability to achieve meaningful reductions is constrained by the physical estate itself. Tullygally operates from an older building that carries inherent energy efficiency challenges, and the site is unusually spread out to accommodate the school's specialist provision. That layout means heating, lighting and the use of multiple areas must be maintained throughout the school day to guarantee appropriate learning environments, accessibility and pupil welfare.

She also raised a point that is likely to resonate with other heads managing buildings with additional needs provision: there is only limited scope to trim consumption without harming the quality of provision, the working conditions of staff, or the wellbeing of pupils, including children with additional needs. For schools like hers, turning the heating down is not simply a matter of comfort — it is bound up with safeguarding and inclusion.

Over in Dunmurry, Claire Robinson, the principal of Holy Evangelists Primary School, offered a similarly blunt assessment, describing current energy costs as ferocious. Her message to anyone assuming heating can simply be dialled back was direct: we can't play around with the heating.

Robinson's school is relatively new and parts of it are warmed by underfloor heating, a system that is not easily adjusted in the way a traditional radiator might be. Classrooms, she explained, cannot be allowed to drop below a certain temperature, which means the heating has to stay on and cannot just be switched off in some areas while remaining on in others.

Even so, the school has been handed an energy efficiency rating of D, a reflection of the cost involved in running its heating system. The rating underlines a broader point: newer buildings do not automatically translate into cheaper or cleaner running costs, particularly when specialist heating installations are involved.

Taken together, the comments from the two principals reveal a tension at the heart of the EA's request. On one side sits a budget under real strain, with millions of pounds in additional charges threatening to divert money from teaching and support services. On the other sits the day-to-day reality of keeping large, sometimes ageing buildings warm, safe and suitable for learning.

For families in Northern Ireland, the situation will feel familiar. Rising household energy bills have already changed how many people heat their homes, and the advice now being handed to schools echoes the guidance issued to the public during previous winters: put on a jumper before reaching for the dial.

The EA's letter makes clear that it expects schools to act, but the response from the sector so far suggests compliance will be partial at best. Some settings will be able to make quick savings through simple changes to timetables and lighting. Others, particularly those in older or specialised buildings, will struggle to deliver cuts without compromising standards.

As the 2026/27 financial year approaches, schools will be watching closely to see whether the projected £8m increase materialises and whether any additional support is offered to offset it. In the meantime, the message from the Education Authority to staff and pupils appears unlikely to change: if the classroom feels cold, the answer is more layers, not more heating.