diff --git a/pipeline/dags/school_data_pipeline.py b/pipeline/dags/school_data_pipeline.py
index a8b5a2a..2b27af7 100644
--- a/pipeline/dags/school_data_pipeline.py
+++ b/pipeline/dags/school_data_pipeline.py
@@ -106,9 +106,12 @@ print(f'Validation passed: {{count}} GIAS rows')
         """,
     )
 
+    # Marts fed by annual EES staging models are rebuilt by the EES DAG, even
+    # when they join dim_school. Selecting them here fails in any database
+    # where that DAG hasn't run (pipeline/tests/test_dag_selectors.py).
     dbt_build = BashOperator(
         task_id="dbt_build",
-        bash_command=f"cd {PIPELINE_DIR}/transform && {DBT_BIN} build --profiles-dir . --target production --select stg_gias_establishments+ stg_gias_links+ gias_code_names+ --exclude int_ks2_with_lineage+ int_ks4_with_lineage+",
+        bash_command=f"cd {PIPELINE_DIR}/transform && {DBT_BIN} build --profiles-dir . --target production --select stg_gias_establishments+ stg_gias_links+ gias_code_names+ --exclude int_ks2_with_lineage+ int_ks4_with_lineage+ stg_ees_ks4_destinations+ stg_ees_ks5_destinations+",
     )
 
     sync_typesense = BashOperator(
@@ -143,7 +146,7 @@ with DAG(
 
     dbt_build_ofsted = BashOperator(
         task_id="dbt_build",
-        bash_command=f"cd {PIPELINE_DIR}/transform && {DBT_BIN} build --profiles-dir . --target production --select stg_ofsted_inspections+ int_ofsted_latest+ fact_ofsted_inspection+ dim_school+",
+        bash_command=f"cd {PIPELINE_DIR}/transform && {DBT_BIN} build --profiles-dir . --target production --select stg_ofsted_inspections+ int_ofsted_latest+ fact_ofsted_inspection+ dim_school+ --exclude stg_ees_ks4_destinations+ stg_ees_ks5_destinations+",
     )
 
     sync_typesense_ofsted = BashOperator(
diff --git a/pipeline/tests/test_dag_selectors.py b/pipeline/tests/test_dag_selectors.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c41a55e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pipeline/tests/test_dag_selectors.py
@@ -0,0 +1,98 @@
+"""Every scheduled dbt build must only build models whose parents exist.
+
+The daily GIAS build selects `stg_gias_establishments+`, so any mart that joins
+dim_school joins the daily build too. When such a mart also reads a staging
+model that only the manually triggered EES DAG builds, the daily build fails in
+any database where that DAG has not run since. Sync and cache invalidation then
+never run either. The destinations marts did this from late August 2026.
+
+The graph is read from the model SQL, because CI has no dbt.
+"""
+import re
+from collections import defaultdict
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import pytest
+
+PIPELINE = Path(__file__).resolve().parents[1]
+MODELS = PIPELINE / 'transform' / 'models'
+DAG_FILE = PIPELINE / 'dags' / 'school_data_pipeline.py'
+
+REF = re.compile(r"ref\(\s*'([a-z0-9_]+)'\s*\)")
+DBT_BUILD = re.compile(r'dbt_build\w*\s*=\s*BashOperator\(.*?build --profiles-dir \. --target production ([^"]+)"', re.S)
+DAG_ID = re.compile(r'dag_id="([a-z0-9_]+)"')
+
+DAILY = 'school_data_daily'
+
+# dim_school reads int_ofsted_latest only when the relation exists
+# (adapter.get_relation), so a missing table is not a failure.
+OPTIONAL_PARENTS = {'int_ofsted_latest'}
+
+
+def model_parents():
+    """{model: models it refs}. Seeds are left out: they are loaded once and always exist."""
+    sql = {p.stem: p.read_text() for p in MODELS.rglob('*.sql')}
+    return {name: set(REF.findall(text)) & set(sql) for name, text in sql.items()}
+
+
+def downstream(node, children):
+    seen, stack = {node}, [node]
+    while stack:
+        for child in children[stack.pop()]:
+            if child not in seen:
+                seen.add(child)
+                stack.append(child)
+    return seen
+
+
+def expand(tokens, children):
+    out = set()
+    for token in tokens:
+        out |= downstream(token[:-1], children) if token.endswith('+') else {token}
+    return out
+
+
+def scheduled_builds():
+    """{dag_id: dbt selection arguments} for every dbt build in the DAG file."""
+    text = DAG_FILE.read_text()
+    starts = [(m.start(), m.group(1)) for m in DAG_ID.finditer(text)]
+    builds = {}
+    for i, (start, dag_id) in enumerate(starts):
+        end = starts[i + 1][0] if i + 1 < len(starts) else len(text)
+        found = DBT_BUILD.search(text, start, end)
+        if found:
+            builds[dag_id] = found.group(1)
+    return builds
+
+
+def selected_models(args, parents):
+    children = defaultdict(set)
+    for model, ps in parents.items():
+        for p in ps:
+            children[p].add(model)
+    select = re.search(r'--select (.+?)(?= --exclude|$)', args).group(1).split()
+    excluded = re.search(r'--exclude (.+)$', args)
+    exclude = excluded.group(1).split() if excluded else []
+    return (expand(select, children) - expand(exclude, children)) & set(parents)
+
+
+PARENTS = model_parents()
+BUILDS = scheduled_builds()
+DAILY_MODELS = selected_models(BUILDS[DAILY], PARENTS)
+
+
+def test_every_dag_with_a_dbt_build_is_parsed():
+    assert set(BUILDS) == {
+        'school_data_daily', 'school_data_monthly_ofsted', 'school_data_annual_ees',
+        'school_data_annual_idaci', 'school_data_annual_distance',
+    }
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize('dag_id', sorted(BUILDS))
+def test_selected_models_only_read_models_that_exist(dag_id):
+    selected = selected_models(BUILDS[dag_id], PARENTS)
+    # The daily build is the base layer: other DAGs may rely on what it builds.
+    available = selected | OPTIONAL_PARENTS | (DAILY_MODELS if dag_id != DAILY else set())
+    missing = {model: sorted(PARENTS[model] - available) for model in sorted(selected)
+               if PARENTS[model] - available}
+    assert missing == {}, f'{dag_id} builds models whose parents it never builds: {missing}'