Student Loans Delayed - Over 100,000 Students Affected

Students were due to start applying for cash assistance this week – ahead of the academic year starting in September 2010.

But the Student Loans Company insisted the service had been hit by a “delay” as officials considered the findings of a high-profile report into the fiasco. It is not yet known when the applications will reopen.

The announcement follows the publication an inquiry on Tuesday that found the company was guilty of "conspicuous failures" to deliver this year’s loans and grants on time. More than 100,000 students were left short of money for food, rent and books following a series of blunders, according to the review from Professor Deian Hopkin, former vice-chancellor of London South Bank University.

The inquiry found that the firm did not have enough people to answer telephone inquiries, meaning only five per cent of calls were answered at certain peak times...

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