Susi refuses to say how many student grants have been approved

The body overseeing student grants refuses to say how many people have been approved, just weeks ahead of the first college term, despite promises to remove delays.

Student Universal Support Ireland (Susi) was the subject of severe criticism last year over delays processing grants for around 40,000 people who eventually qualified for payments or to have college fees paid.

A progress report Susi is publishing today shows that 52,289 of the 59,000 first-time applicants by the Aug 5 deadline have gone forward for a final decision to award or refuse a grant. This last stage takes three to four weeks, according to Susi’s own published process for dealing with claims, which it has been accepting since mid-May.