Mr. Tom Prizeman:

Our projection of 30,000 grants being awarded by 21 December may be compared to the figure for January of last year, when 32,000 grants had been awarded throughout the country. Around 11,000 or 12,000 application packs did not come back last year, and we are finding the same this year. It is historical. Every year a certain percentage of applications do not come back. At present, there are between 13,000 and 15,000 applications that will probably never come back into the system and, historically, never have come back. The online system probably made it a little easier for students to apply. The process of online application might take 15 minutes. We will find that approximately 15,000 applicants will not come back into the process. After applying online, they receive their packs, they realise their incomes are over the limit and they do not take it any further. Historically, there is a percentage of applicants who never complete their applications.