These regulations specify the public examinations which are prescribed public examinations for the purposes of sections 106 and 117 of the Education Reform Act 1988.

No charge may be made in schools maintained by local education authorities, or in grant-maintained schools, for education provided outside school hours to prepare pupils at such schools for prescribed public examinations, or in respect of the entry of pupils for such examinations where the pupils have been prepared for the examination at the school. (Charges for education provided during school hours are prohibited by section 106(2) of the Act, and this prohibition applies to education provided during school hours in respect of prescribed public examinations.)

Section 117 requires a governing body of a maintained or a grant-maintained school to enter pupils for each prescribed public examination for which they are being prepared at the school, except in cases where there are educational reasons for not doing so or a pupil’s parent requests otherwise.