St Mary’s Family Discount Policy

Introduction

The St Mary’s University Family Discount offers students who have a close relative connected to St Mary’s a 10% tuition fee reduction for every year of their course. It may not be combined with another reduction in fees, such as the University’s Alumni Discount or scholarships for international students. The discount applies to new applicants enrolling on an eligible degree course at St Mary’s who have a:

• Close relative enrolled at the University (a ‘current student’)
• Close relative who is a ‘graduate/alumni’ of the University
• Close relative who is a current member of staff at the University, on at least a .4 FTE contract (‘current staff member’)
• Close relative who is enrolling in the same intake as the applicant.

‘Close relative’ is defined as parent, child, sibling or spouse. From this point forward in this policy, the term ‘relative’ will be used in this sense.

‘Eligible degree course’ is defined as an undergraduate programme leading to the award of BA/BSc; a taught programme leading to the award of PGCE (excluding school-led PGCE programmes); a taught postgraduate programme leading to the award of MA/MSc/MRes; a research programme leading to the award of MPhil/PhD; or a programme leading to the award of a Professional Doctorate. Short courses are not eligible for the discount. Other ineligible courses are detailed in the conditions outlined below.

1. Details of the awards

These awards entail a 10% discount off the tuition fees for each year of the course for any applicant applying for a course at St Mary’s, who has an evidenced, direct family connection to a current student, a graduate/alumni of the University, a current member of staff, or another applicant enrolling in the same entry year as the applicant.

The St Mary’s University Family Discount will be awarded to all eligible applicants. An applicant is eligible to receive the discount more than once if they progress to another level of study (e.g., they may receive it for an undergraduate and a postgraduate degree). They will only receive it once per level of study (e.g., if they receive it for one undergraduate degree, they will not receive it for a second undergraduate degree).

How to apply: Applicants must submit their application and evidence by the deadlines.

Applications submitted after these deadlines will unfortunately not be considered.

As part of the application process, applicants will need to provide details of their close relative and evidence proving their connection. The University will verify the relative’s status following the application and confirm if the 10% discount will be applied to the applicant’s record.

If the applicant fails to provide evidence of the family connection by the deadline, or if the status of the relative cannot be determined, the applicant will not be awarded the discount. This is not subject to appeal.

2. Criteria for eligibility

2.1 The discount will be awarded to applicants who are enrolling on an eligible programme and who meet all of the criteria outlined in this policy.

2.2 Those ineligible for this discount include:

• Applicants receiving a scholarship or bursary from St Mary’s University where dual awards are not permitted. This includes all scholarships and bursaries for both students with home and overseas fee status except the St Mary’s Cares Bursary. Details of other awards are available on the University’s .
• Applicants for online courses specified in the conditions below.
• Applicants for school-led PGCE programmes.
• Current students who registered with the University in a previous academic year.

2.3 An applicant will receive only one family discount, regardless of the number of ‘close relatives’ they have connected to the University.

2.4 Applicants must apply for the discount and upload the evidence required to support their application by the deadline applicable to their course and intake. No award will be given if an incomplete or late application is submitted.

2.5 Family is defined as:

• Spouse: Husbands, wives, civil partners and cohabitating partners of a ‘current student’, ‘graduate/alumni’ or ‘current staff member’.
• Children: Son, daughter, stepchild, adopted child of a ‘current student’, ‘graduate/alumni’ or ‘current staff member’. This includes someone who has been the subject of a court order establishing parental responsibility or legal guardianship when the person assuming this responsibility is a ‘current student’, ‘graduate/alumni’ or ‘current staff member’.
• Siblings: Brothers or sisters, adopted brothers or sisters, or step-brothers or sisters of a ‘current student’, ‘graduate/alumni’ or ‘current staff member’. If an applicant and the ‘current student’, ‘graduate/alumni’ or ‘current staff member’ have both been the subject of a court order establishing parental responsibility or legal guardianship where the same person has assumed this responsibility for both of them, they will be considered siblings for the purposes of this discount.
• Parent: Parents, adoptive parents and step-parents of a ‘current student’, ‘graduate/alumni’ or ‘current staff member’, including those who have assumed parental responsibility or legal guardianship for someone in this category through a court order.

2.6 St Mary’s students, alumni and staff are defined as:

• Current student: A student who is fully enrolled and in good standing at St Mary’s University. To qualify as a current student, a student may not be on a leave of absence, temporarily withdrawn or suspended.
• Graduate/alumni: A former student of St Mary’s University who graduated from a degree course with a BA/BSc, PGCE, MA/MSc or MPhil/PhD. Graduates who studied on a short course or another course without formal degree status, such as a Certificate of Higher Education, Diploma of Higher Education, PG Certificate or PG Diploma are ineligible, as are those in receipt of an honorary degree from the University.
• Current staff member: A St Mary’s member of staff currently working for the University on a permanent or fixed-term contract equal to at least .4 FTE. Casual members of staff not on permanent or fixed-term employment contracts and those on consultancy contracts are not eligible. The member of staff must be on an eligible St Mary’s contract at the time of the applicant’s registration for each year of study. In the event that a staff member’s employment with St Mary’s ends, any students receiving a family discount associated with that employment will cease to be eligible for the discount when the student progresses to their next year of study.

3. Evidence required to prove eligibility

Spouse, Civil Partner or Cohabitating Partners

Evidence required

• Marriage certificate
• Civil partnership certificate
• Evidence of co-habitation at the time of the applicant’s application. This is to include at least two forms of the following:
• Bank statement from a joint bank account, dated no more than six months before the applicant’s proposed first date of enrolment
• A joint Council Tax statement dated no more than 12 months before the applicant’s proposed first date of enrolment
• A joint mortgage statement for the applicant’s current address
• A joint lease for the applicant’s current address Other evidence of cohabitation may be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Parent (including step-parents, adopted parents and those with court-ordered legal guardianship or parental responsibility for an applicant)

• A birth certificate naming the eligible relative as the parent of the applicant
• In the case of step-parents, a birth certificate naming the spouse or cohabitating partner of the eligible relative as the parent of the applicant. This must be accompanied by evidence of a spousal relationship, civil partnership or cohabitation as outlined in ‘spouse’ above.
• An adoption certificate naming the eligible relative as the adopted parent of the applicant.
• In the case of legal guardianship, a court order establishing the eligible relative’s parental responsibility or legal guardianship for the applicant. Other evidence may be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Sibling (including step-siblings, adopted siblings and those subject to a court-ordered guardianship arrangement)

• Birth or adoption certificates of both siblings, demonstrating that the applicant and the eligible relative have at least one parent in common.
• In the case of step-siblings, birth or adoption certificates of both siblings as well as evidence of the marriage, civil partnership or cohabitation of their parents as outlined in ‘spouse’ above.
• In the case of those claiming eligibility due to legal guardianship, court orders showing that both the applicant and the eligible relative had the same person appointed as their legal guardian or person with parental responsibility. Other evidence may be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Siblings who are new applicants enrolling in the same intake may claim eligibility for the family discount through each other. For example, twins who are both enrolling for the first time in September 2025 would both receive a 10% family discount, as long as they provide the required evidence.

Child (including step-children, adopted children and those subject to a court-ordered guardianship arrangement)

• A birth certificate naming the applicant as the parent of the eligible relative
• In the case of step-children, a birth certificate naming the spouse or cohabitating partner of the applicant as the parent of the eligible relative. This must be accompanied by the evidence of a spousal relationship, civil partnership or cohabitation as outlined in ‘spouse’ above.
• An adoption certificate naming the applicant as the adopted parent of the eligible relative.
• In the case of legal guardians, a court order establishing the applicant’s parental responsibility or legal guardianship for the eligible relative. Other evidence may be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

4. Allocation of awards

4.1 The family discount will apply only to applicants who have enrolled at the University on an eligible course. It will apply during each year of study of that course, subject to the progression criteria specified in the University’s academic regulations, as long as the applicant remains a student in good standing on that course.

4.2 Eligibility criteria are reviewed annually and are subject to change.

4.3 Verification of eligibility is determined by St Mary’s University on the basis of the evidence provided by the applicant and its review of the eligible relative’s status. All decisions are final. The University will not accept any appeals in respect of the decisions made.

4.4 The family discount will automatically be applied to the applicant’s record upon approval of satisfactory evidence provided.

4.5 Applicants claiming the discount on the basis of their relationship with a current member of staff will only remain eligible in subsequent years of enrolment on their course while their relative continues to be employed on an eligible contract.

4.6 The evidence required for the applicant to prove their relationship to their eligible relative must be provided with the application. If the application and supplementary evidence are not submitted by the stated deadlines, the family discount will not be applied.

4.7 The family discount will be applied at the time of the applicant’s enrolment for each year of study on the course for which their application for the discount was successful.

4.8 Applicants cannot hold the family discount and another St Mary’s bursary or scholarship concurrently, with the exception of the St Mary’s Cares Bursary.

5. Conditions

5.1 The family discount will only apply to courses for which tuition fees are payable to St Mary’s University. Courses taught through partners (e.g., the BA Primary Education programme at Wrexham University) are ineligible.

5.2 The family discount will not apply to the following online courses: MSc Computer Science (Online) (all degree titles); MSc Human Resource Management (Online); International Qualified Teacher Status (iQTS); MSc Management and Leadership (Online); MSc Management with Business Analytics (Online); MSc Marketing Management (Online); MBA (Online) (all degree titles); MSc Psychology (Online); MSc Psychology of Mental Health and Wellbeing (Online); MSc Psychology with Counselling (Online); MSc Supply Chain Management (Online).

5.3 Applicants who receive the family discount following the approval of suitable evidence will have a reduction of 10% applied to their annual tuition fee for every year of their course, subject to successful progression from one year of study to the next.

5.4 The family discount also applies to placement years where this is a mandatory part of an applicant’s course, for example, a four-year undergraduate degree with a third year on placement.

5.5 The reduction is applied only to the applicant’s tuition fees and all aspects of the St Mary’s will still apply.

5.6 International students requiring a Student Visa must meet all financial criteria for sponsorship and CAS issuance without including the family discount, as it will not be applied to their records in time to be included in CAS calculations.

5.7 In the case of an applicant being sponsored by a government entity, employer, corporation or other benefactor, the discount will be applied to the tuition fee as set out above.

5.8 Any supporting documents submitted for the discount that are not in English must be accompanied by a certified English language translation.

5.9 Applicants must apply for the family discount in the year in which they plan to enrol. For example, students who defer their offer at St Mary’s must reapply for the family discount in their year of enrolment.

5.10 There is no cash alternative available to the tuition fee discount.

6. Circumstances leading to withdrawal of the discount

6.1 The University reserves the right to withdraw the discount from anyone misleading the University about any aspect of their eligibility. The University will seek repayment of any monies already discounted by appropriate means.

6.2 An applicant’s eligibility for the discount will not be affected by changing to a different mode of study.

6.3 If a student receives the family discount and subsequently withdraws from the course, undertakes an approved leave of absence or has their enrolment suspended, their tuition fees will be reduced in line with the . The family discount will be applied to the reduced tuition fee. Eligibility for the discount will be suspended during any period of enrolment suspension and will resume should the student’s studies recommence.

6.4 The duration of the discount shall not exceed the maximum duration of the award for which the applicant enrols. For example, an applicant on a full-time course that normally lasts three years will only be eligible for three years of discount. A lengthening of the enrolment period resulting from periods of temporary withdrawal or academic failures will not be supported with an extended discount.

6.5 A recipient of the family discount who withdraws from their programme of study prior to completion will not normally be requested to repay the discount received prior to withdrawal.

6.6 A recipient of a family discount based on a close relative being employed by St Mary’s will lose eligibility if the member of staff’s employment with the University ends. The recipient will continue to receive the discount for the academic year in which the employment ended, but will not retain eligibility in subsequent years. The member of staff must be on an eligible St Mary’s contract at the time of the recipient’s registration for each year of study.

7. Variation

7.1 The University reserves the right to vary or withdraw the discount at its sole discretion.