Written questions by Vaz.

What assessment she has made of the impact on UK publishers exports of free access in overseas markets to UK government funded educational resources from Oak National Academy.

The department is keeping the geo-restriction of Oak National Academy’s (Oak) resources under review. Oak does not promote or market its resources overseas.The department recently completed a new market impact assessment of Oak, which was published in September 2025, and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/oak-national-academy-independent-review-and-market-impact-assessment.

When she plans to respond to Question 76247, due for answer on 15 September 2025.

The response to Written Parliamentary Question 76247 was published on 16 October 2025.

What her policy is on free schools.

High and rising standards are at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and ensure every child has access to the best life chances whichever type of school they are in, including free schools.

Whether she has made a recent assessment of the prevalence of asbestos in school buildings in Walsall and Bloxwich constituency.

The department takes the safety of children and those who work with them incredibly seriously, which is why we expect all local authorities, governing bodies and academy trusts as responsible bodies to have robust plans in place to manage asbestos in school buildings effectively, in line with their legal duties, drawing on appropriate professional advice.The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), as the regulator for asbestos, undertook inspections of a number of schools across the UK between September 2022 and April 2023 to look at compliance under Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012. The inspections showed that most schools were complying with the legal duties and effective management systems are in place to manage and monitor the condition of asbestos-contained materials onsite.Additionally, the department is collecting data on the condition of school buildings in England as part of the Condition Data Collection 2 (CDC2) programme, in which we will visit all government-funded school buildings in England between 2021 and 2026. To date, we have visited 46 schools in the Walsall and Bloxwich constituency, and 33 schools have reported the presence of asbestos. CDC2 visits to the remaining schools in the constituency are scheduled to be completed by September 2025.The department follows the advice of the HSE as regulator that, as long as asbestos-containing materials are undamaged, and not in locations where they are vulnerable to damage, they should be left undisturbed and their condition monitored.The department has been clear, however, that when asbestos does pose a risk to safety and cannot be effectively managed in place, it should be removed. The decision to remove asbestos should be considered on a case-by-case basis and, annual condition funding provided by the department can be used for this purpose.As part of the 2025/26 budget, we have increased capital allocations to improve the condition of school buildings to £2.1 billion, £300 million more than this financial year. This is on top of the School Rebuilding Programme and targeted support for reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

Pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2024 to Question 17058 on Holiday Activities and Food Programme, whether she plans to make a statement on continued funding of the Holidays Activities and Food Programme before March 2025.

The department’s budgets for 2025/26 will be confirmed in due course, including the exact funding available for this type of support for children, young people and families during the holidays.

With reference to the 2008 National Year of Reading, if she will make it her policy to organise a Year of Reading in 2026.

Excellent foundations in reading and writing are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life.​We know that reading for pleasure is hugely important and brings a significant range of benefits. As well as strong links with attainment, wide recreational reading expands pupils’ knowledge about the world and about language, as well as their understanding of subject-specific academic and technical vocabulary. Pupils who read regularly also report heightened levels of social and emotional wellbeing. Reading allows readers to adopt new perspectives, develop empathy and become more socially conscious.In recognition of this, the department has implemented a range of measures to support reading for pleasure. The English Hubs programme supports the teaching of phonics, early language development and reading for pleasure, with a further £23 million committed for the 2024/25 academic year to support this work. Furthermore, the government’s reading framework provides guidance on improving the teaching of reading, to ensure that every child is not only able to read proficiently but also develops a genuine love of reading.