Tuition charges dropped for Highland SQA music students.

Highland music students in secondary school years 4, 5 and 6 studying for an SQA will no longer be charged instrumental music instruction by The Highland Council.

Members of The Highland Council have agreed to drop charges from August 2013.

Currently the Council charges the majority of pupils receiving instrumental music instruction including those studying on an SQA music course. There are also exemptions to ensure that students are not disadvantaged by the charging policy.

The charge for instrumental music instruction in the Council area is £252 each year. The current number of S4 to S6 pupils studying on an SQA music course and receiving instrumental music instruction is around 300. The total charge for pupils is approximately £75,600 per annum.

The impact of the proposed change to the charging scheme will be met from the learning and teaching budget within the Education, Culture and Sports Service revenue budget.