Terms & Conditions

1. General terms

By requesting a trial lesson, starting ongoing lessons, paying an invoice, attending a lesson, or using services provided by The Glasgow School of Music, you agree to these Terms & Conditions.

Acceptance of these Terms & Conditions occurs upon payment, confirmation of an ongoing lesson place, attendance at a lesson, or use of GSofM services, whichever occurs first.

These Terms & Conditions supersede any previous versions, informal arrangements or verbal discussions unless otherwise confirmed in writing by The Glasgow School of Music.

References to “the school”, “GSofM”, “we”, “us” or “our” mean The Glasgow School of Music. References to “client” mean the person responsible for booking, payment and communication with the school.

2. Transition to the annual Teaching Block calendar

From Monday 10 August 2026, regular one-to-one lessons at The Glasgow School of Music operate through a published annual Teaching Block calendar.

Before this date, any existing invoice, payment arrangement, previous lesson block arrangement or written agreement remains subject to the terms in force at the time it was confirmed, unless The Glasgow School of Music confirms otherwise in writing.

From 10 August 2026, the annual Teaching Block model replaces the previous rolling block structure for regular weekly tuition, except where The Glasgow School of Music confirms a different arrangement in writing.

2A. Statutory cancellation rights

Nothing in these Terms & Conditions affects a client’s statutory rights.

Where a contract is made online, by email, by telephone or otherwise at a distance, the client may have statutory cancellation rights. Where applicable, The Glasgow School of Music will provide the required cancellation information.

If a client asks The Glasgow School of Music to begin providing lessons, a trial lesson, a course or another service during any statutory cancellation period, the client agrees that The Glasgow School of Music may charge for the services provided up to the point of cancellation.

Where a service has been fully performed with the client’s agreement during any statutory cancellation period, the client may lose the right to cancel that service once it has been fully performed, where permitted by law.

Important: This section makes clear that the school’s payment, cancellation and attendance policies operate alongside, and do not remove, any statutory rights that apply to the client.

3. Trial lessons

Trial lessons are paid lessons and are charged at the published standard lesson rate. No separate registration fee is charged. Trial lessons are designed to help us understand the student’s level, goals, suitability for the chosen subject, and potential route into ongoing tuition.

A trial lesson does not guarantee an ongoing weekly lesson place. Ongoing lesson availability depends on tutor timetable, subject, lesson length, student availability and scheduling suitability.

Trial lessons are arranged by appointment. The Glasgow School of Music reserves the right to recommend a different lesson length, tutor, subject route or schedule where this would better support the student.

Trial lesson fees are non-refundable once a lesson time has been confirmed and reserved, except where required by law or where The Glasgow School of Music cancels the lesson and no suitable alternative can be arranged.

4. Teaching Block structure

Regular one-to-one lessons run within the published annual Teaching Block calendar. The calendar sets out when lessons run, when the school is closed, when invoices are released, when payment is due and when unpaid accounts may be placed on hold.

Each student is invoiced according to the scheduled lessons that fall on their regular weekly lesson day within the relevant Teaching Block.

Teaching Block dates, closure dates and payment dates may be updated by The Glasgow School of Music where necessary for operational, legal, calendar or staffing reasons.

Bank holidays, public holidays, local authority school holidays, school in-service days, September weekends, October weeks, February mid-term breaks and May weekends do not automatically apply to The Glasgow School of Music. Lessons run as normal during published Teaching Blocks unless a date is specifically listed as a GSofM closure or The Glasgow School of Music separately confirms a closure in writing.

Lessons continue from Teaching Block to Teaching Block unless cancelled in accordance with these Terms & Conditions.

5. Reserved Lesson Place Policy

Ongoing lessons at The Glasgow School of Music operate on a time-reservation basis. This means the student’s weekly lesson time is reserved specifically for them and cannot usually be reassigned at short notice.

Lesson fees reserve:

• the student’s weekly lesson place
• the assigned tutor’s availability
• the teaching room or online lesson time
• administration and scheduling
• continuity within the Teaching Block

Because the annual calendar includes planned non-teaching periods, student absences during Teaching Blocks are not credited, refunded or rescheduled.

6. Invoicing, payment deadlines and lesson-place holds

For standard Teaching Blocks, invoices are normally issued before the relevant Teaching Block begins.

Payment must be received, or an approved written payment arrangement must be in place, by the stated payment deadline for the relevant Teaching Block.

The period between invoice issue and the payment deadline is the payment window. There is not a separate additional grace period after the stated payment deadline unless The Glasgow School of Music confirms this in writing.

If payment has not been received and no approved written payment arrangement is in place by the stated payment deadline, The Glasgow School of Music may place the student’s lesson place on hold from the first teaching day of the relevant Teaching Block. Lessons will not proceed while the account remains on hold unless The Glasgow School of Music confirms otherwise in writing.

Lessons missed while an account is unpaid or on hold are not credited, refunded or rescheduled where the lesson time has remained reserved for the student.

Where payment remains outstanding after the start of a Teaching Block, The Glasgow School of Music may continue to reserve the lesson place for a short period while the account is resolved. If payment remains outstanding, The Glasgow School of Music may release the lesson place to another student after written notice.

Group courses, short courses, workshops, agreed flexible lesson arrangements and optional summer lesson arrangements may have separate invoice release dates, payment deadlines and booking conditions.

Where a lesson place is released and successfully reallocated, The Glasgow School of Music will not seek to recover charges for future lessons that have been reallocated to another paying student. The client remains responsible for lessons already delivered, lessons missed while the place was reserved, approved administration charges, and any reasonable unrecovered loss arising from the non-payment or late cancellation.

To reinstate lessons, the outstanding balance must be paid unless an approved payment arrangement has been agreed in writing by The Glasgow School of Music.

Raising a query about an invoice does not suspend payment obligations unless The Glasgow School of Music confirms this in writing.

Instalment arrangements

Two-instalment arrangements may be available by request before the payment deadline. Instalment arrangements are not automatic and are subject to approval by The Glasgow School of Music.

Manually managed instalment arrangements may include a £10 Instalment Arrangement Administration Fee. If an agreed instalment is missed, lessons may be placed on hold until the account is brought up to date.

7. Student absences and missed lessons

We understand that families may occasionally need to miss lessons. However, student absences during Teaching Blocks are not credited, refunded or rescheduled. This applies because the tutor’s time, room space, school administration and weekly lesson place have been reserved for the student.

This includes, but is not limited to:

• student illness
• family holidays
• school events or school trips
• local authority school holidays, school in-service days or mid-term breaks where GSofM remains open
• forgotten lessons or no-shows
• travel disruption
• parent work commitments
• family events
• changes in personal schedule
• requests to pause mid-block

The previous planned absence allowance does not apply to regular Teaching Blocks from 10 August 2026 unless The Glasgow School of Music confirms otherwise in writing.

In exceptional circumstances, including serious illness, bereavement or disability-related circumstances, The Glasgow School of Music may consider a discretionary adjustment. This is not automatic and is considered case by case by the Director.

Informing a tutor of an absence does not change the account position. Account, absence, payment and credit matters must be handled through school administration.

8. School, tutor and substitute tutor cancellations

If The Glasgow School of Music or the assigned tutor cancels a lesson and no suitable cover, alternative lesson or replacement arrangement is provided, the lesson will be credited, rescheduled, refunded or carried forward as appropriate.

The timing, tutor and format of any replacement lesson are subject to availability.

The Glasgow School of Music reserves the right to provide a suitable substitute tutor where the regular tutor is unavailable. Where a suitable substitute tutor is provided, the lesson is considered fulfilled.

Where an online lesson or alternative format is offered as a suitable replacement, The Glasgow School of Music will confirm whether the lesson is treated as fulfilled, rescheduled, credited or carried forward.

9. Ongoing lessons, cancellation and account closure

Ongoing lessons do not end automatically at the conclusion of a Teaching Block. Lessons continue into the next Teaching Block unless cancelled in accordance with these Terms & Conditions.

Cancellation notice

To cancel ongoing lessons, clients must provide written notice to The Glasgow School of Music administration by email. Cancellation cannot be made by informing a tutor alone, stopping attendance, stopping payment, or assuming lessons end automatically at the end of a Teaching Block.

Where possible, cancellation should be submitted before the payment deadline for the next Teaching Block so the lesson place can be planned and released properly.

If valid written cancellation is received before the payment deadline for the next Teaching Block, no fee will normally be charged for that next Teaching Block, unless a different written arrangement has already been agreed.

Cancellation after a Teaching Block has been confirmed or started

Where a Teaching Block has already been confirmed, reserved or started, cancellation does not automatically remove the client’s payment responsibility for that block.

The Glasgow School of Music may charge or retain a reasonable amount to reflect lessons already delivered, lessons missed while the place remained reserved, tutor time and room time allocated, administration already carried out, and any reasonable unrecovered loss caused by the cancellation.

The amount payable may be up to the remaining Teaching Block balance where the lesson place has been reserved and cannot reasonably be reallocated at short notice.

This reflects the fact that the weekly space may have been held for the student and may not be possible to refill immediately.

If The Glasgow School of Music is able to reallocate the lesson place to another paying student, the client will not be charged for future lessons that have been successfully reallocated.

Account closure

An account is considered closed only once valid written cancellation has been received and acknowledged by The Glasgow School of Music, and any outstanding balance has been settled.

Exceptional circumstances may be reviewed by the Director at The Glasgow School of Music’s discretion. This does not create an automatic right to cancellation, credit or refund.

10. Summer closure and optional summer lessons

The standard weekly GSofM timetable closes during the published summer closure period.

During this period, regular weekly lesson places are paused and are not automatically delivered as part of the annual Teaching Block calendar.

Optional summer lessons, workshops, intensives or exam preparation sessions may be offered separately, subject to tutor availability and school approval.

Summer lessons are arranged separately, invoiced separately and are not part of the standard Teaching Block entitlement.

GSofM tutors should not arrange private summer lessons with GSofM students outside the school’s booking and invoicing process unless The Glasgow School of Music has authorised this in writing.

11. Refunds, credits and adjustments

Refunds, credits or adjustments are not automatically provided for student absences, missed lessons, changes of availability, holidays, forgotten lessons or requests to pause during a Teaching Block.

Where The Glasgow School of Music cancels a lesson and no suitable cover, alternative lesson, replacement lesson or carry-forward arrangement is provided, The Glasgow School of Music will arrange an appropriate credit, refund, replacement or carry-forward route.

Any discretionary refund, credit or adjustment must be approved by The Glasgow School of Music and confirmed in writing.

Administrative charges, including approved instalment administration fees, are not normally refundable once the administrative work has been carried out.

12. Group courses, short courses, workshops and bootcamps

Group courses, short courses, workshops, bootcamps and similar programmes may have separate dates, fees, minimum numbers, maximum numbers, payment deadlines and cancellation rules.

A place on a group course is confirmed only when payment has been received or when The Glasgow School of Music has approved a written payment arrangement.

Missed group sessions caused by student absence are not credited, refunded or rescheduled.

If The Glasgow School of Music cancels a group course or session and no suitable replacement, alternative or credit route is provided, an appropriate remedy will be arranged.

13. Conduct, safeguarding and professional boundaries

Students, parents, guardians, tutors and staff are expected to communicate respectfully and professionally.

The Glasgow School of Music may pause, refuse or end lessons where behaviour creates a safeguarding concern, disrupts lessons, places staff or students at risk, or makes the teaching relationship unsuitable.

Parents and guardians are responsible for ensuring students arrive and are collected on time unless a different written arrangement has been agreed.

School administration should be used for account, payment, scheduling, cancellation and policy matters. Tutors should not be asked to make informal arrangements that bypass school procedures.

14. Data protection and communication

The Glasgow School of Music processes client and student information for the purpose of administering lessons, bookings, payments, safeguarding, communication and school operations.

Clients are responsible for keeping contact details, emergency details and relevant student information up to date.

The school may contact clients by email, phone, SMS or student-management software where this is necessary for administration, payment, safeguarding or lesson management.

Personal information is handled in accordance with applicable data protection requirements.

15. Complaints, discretion and governing law

Any complaint or concern should be raised with The Glasgow School of Music administration in writing so that it can be reviewed properly.

The Glasgow School of Music may exercise discretion in exceptional cases. Any discretion exercised in one case does not create a general entitlement or precedent for another case.

If any part of these Terms & Conditions is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining terms continue to apply.

These Terms & Conditions are governed by the law of Scotland.