Hungry students begging charity for help

Students left penniless by the college grants fiasco are turning up hungry at St Vincent de Paul and welfare offices for food parcels.

A senior SVP officer said many were also homeless because they have not been able to put deposits on accommodation or pay rent.

“We know of students who are doing what they describe as couch-surfing,” said Brendan Dempsey, vice-president for the charity’s Cork region.