Tags: Aidan Pendlebury, college grants, Cork, delays, Ireland, politics

LABOUR Clonakilty councillor Aidan Pendlebury has called the ongoing delay in the processing of third level maintenance grants “unacceptable and dangerous”.

Cllr Pendlebury said, “This delay is leaving thousands of students financially crippled and under an unnecessary cloud of uncertainty.

“The grants system has never functioned efficiently, with lengthy waiting times and a complicated application process being the norm. However, this year has gone beyond a farce.

“Students are now being left in the situation where they cannot afford to pay rent, college fees or the basic necessities needed to live from day to day. I fear that this will lead to an increase in the drop out rate, which is the last thing the country needs.

“According to figures from the Union of Students in Ireland up to 50 students are dropping out of college every week – a figure that is the equivalent to an Institute of Technology loosing a class on a weekly basis.

“College grants need to be paid out without further delay to alleviate this current crisis and to prevent one that is going to be much larger in the near future. We cannot allow students to drop out of college only to join the dole queues.

“Speaking in the Dáil recently, the Minister for Education laid the blame for the delay in processing applications on the fact that there is a recruitment moratorium in the public sector. He offered absolutely no solutions to the problem.

“As a Labour representative, I am deeply concerned at the effect that this is having on working class families around our Country. In a climate where the minimum wage is under constant attack, the loss and/or delay in the maintenance grant will prove catastrophic to the future hopes and ambitions of many students and their families.

“What is needed is a complete review of the application and payment process. A streamlined application process needs to be put in place. Above all, the Government needs to enact the Student Support Bill, which they have shelved since 2008.

“With unemployment figures continually rising, perhaps it is also time for the Government to review its recruitment embargo and allow some state agencies, such as the VECs and Local Authorities, to employ extra staff to cope with the additional demands on their services. In the long run it will benefit the State.”

Cllr Pendlebury concluded by saying that, “There needs to be better communication between the applicant, the college and the awarding body.”