St Paul's Cathedral Chorister Trust

The St Paul's Cathedral Chorister Trust, established in 1984, is a specialist charity dedicated to removing financial barriers to choristership at St Paul's Cathedral, providing means-tested bursaries, scholarships, and grants for the education, boarding, and musical training of talented boys and girls aged 8–13. Born from the recognition that high costs exclude many families, its mission centers on equal access to world-class choral opportunities, nurturing excellence, fairness, and inclusivity. Recently expanded to support girl choristers and infrastructure like boarding facilities, the Trust embodies a commitment to diversifying music education while sustaining the Cathedral's renowned choral tradition for worship and culture.

It exclusively funds chorister-related costs at St Paul's Cathedral School, including full or partial boarding fees (up to £12,000–£15,000 annually per child), music tuition, and periodic grants to the Cathedral or School for programme enhancements, facility upgrades (e.g., seven-figure investments in girls' accommodation), and inflation offsets. Beneficiaries are solely selected choristers' families in financial need and the Cathedral Choir/School directly.

Unsolicited applications are not accepted; eligibility is limited to families of children passing rigorous voice trials for Choir places, with automatic means-tested assessment guided by the School's finance team—no external charities, organizations, or non-London entities qualify. Awards operate on a rolling basis post-admission, with trustee meetings as needed and no public deadlines.

Distinctively hyper-focused on St Paul's choristers, the Trust rejects all unrelated causes, emphasizing long-term, targeted aid to ensure gifted children thrive regardless of means, fostering gender-equal choral participation without broader outreach or unrestricted funding.