He spoke following reports that three quarters of schools in Northern Ireland could face budget deficits this year without access to more funding.

The Strangford MLA has said: “It is of course a challenging budgetary position for all departments, but the Education Minister must commit to exploring what measures can be taken in order to appropriately resource our schools, and deliver the best possible education for our children and young people.

“Assessing and addressing the true cost of maintaining our divided education system, for example, is crucial, despite the minister having previously confirmed to me he has no plans to take this forward.

“These measures should also include looking at the sustainability of our whole school estate, asking ourselves if we have the right number of schools and critically, in the right place to meet communities’ needs. A blueprint for how to take this forward was clearly set out in the Independent Review of Education.

“In addition, if the minister wants to ensure schools are funded adequately and equitably, he must also prioritise reviewing the common funding formula without delay.

“These are only a few examples, but, underpinning it all, the Department of Education must commit to engaging more openly and effectively with school leaders in order to understand what they need in terms of resources, so we can deliver the first-class education our children deserve.”