maintenance grants

SOME students may still not receive their maintenance grants before Christmas despite the approval of additional temporary staff to process their applications, Education Minister Ruairi Quinn has admitted.

Of the more than 34,000 grants expected to be paid out to students, just 4,420 students have so far been paid. The minister told the Dail that, of the 66,000 applications, 22,000 were now complete with around 12,000 either awarded or “provisionally” awarded and another 10,000 refused.

But he told Fianna Fail‘s education spokesman, Charlie McConalogue that some students may not receive their grant until January. This was due to bank detail requirements and verification of attendance together with banking restrictions over the holiday period.