Just over £7.5 million has been spent on maintenance and repairs in schools in the Derry City Council area in the last five years.

The figures were revealed following a question to the Minister of Education, John O’Dowd, at Stormont.

DUP MLA Tom Buchanan asked the Western Education and Library Board (WELB) how much money had been spent on maintenance and repairs over the last five years.

The overall figure for schools in the Derry City Council area is £7,569,411.

The figures, from years 2009/2010 to 2013/2014, include 61 Controlled, Voluntary Maintained and Irish Medium Schools in the Derry City Council area.

The overall figure for spending on maintenance in the WELB area was £25, 264,583, meaning the Derry City Council area received approximately 30% of the total figure.

Lisneal College received the most funding overall, with £470,216, almost £200,000 more than the next highest of the secondary schools, Immaculate Conception College (ICC).

The ICC, the only Catholic post-primary school in the Waterside area of Derry, received £289,204 but will close its doors in 2015.

The school which received the least funding was Faughan Valley High School which spent just £4,495 in the last financial year.

Belmont Nursery school received £55,088, the highest of the nurseries in the Derry City area.

Lisnagelvin Nursery School received the least at £23,321.

Lenamore Primary School was the primary school which received the most at £336,506.

Gaelscoil Na Daroige received the lowest of all the primary schools with £27,155.

St Peter’s Secondary School in Creggan, which was closed and bulldozed earlier this year, received a total of £138,079, with £18,923 received in the 2013/2014 financial year.

Ebrington Primary School got a total of £243,132, with £107,771 received for its current school and £135,361 spent on its new school.

The figures did not include Volunteer Grammar Schools, including Foyle College, Thornhill College and St Columb’s College in Derry, and Grant Maintained Integrated Schools as the information is not held by the Department of Education.

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