Explanatory note

These Regulations amend the St Mary’s Music School (Aided Places) Regulations 1989 (the principal Regulations) to make aided places available to choristers, to uprate the qualifying income levels for the remission of fees and charges and making of grants under the aided places scheme, and in certain other respects.

Provision is made for aided places to be made available to pupils who attend the school wholly or mainly in connection with singing in St Mary’s Cathedral Choir. These choristers were not previously eligible. To qualify, choristers must be under 13 at the start of the school year in question (regulations 2 to 6).

The level of income at or below which fees are wholly remitted is increased from £7,059 to £7,736 for boarders and from £8,871 to £9,726 for day pupils, with corresponding increases in the extent of remission where the relevant income exceeds these sums (regulations 8 and 9). The qualifying income levels for school travel grants and clothing grants are also uprated (regulations 10 and 11).

The deduction for dependent children and relatives which is to be made from “relevant income” has been increased from £1,000 to £1,100 (regulation 7).

The list of tax reliefs in the Appendix to Schedule 1 to the principal Regulations is updated so as to include a further relief introduced by the Finance Act 1990 (regulation 12). This list specifies reliefs which are not to be deducted in determining a person’s income for purposes of the aided places scheme.