James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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523. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will provide an update on the Student Universal Support Ireland application grant in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Longford. [5870/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage the assistance of their public representatives in making enquiries about their grant applications.

This service compliments the established channels provided by SUSI which include online application tracking, a dedicated website, a telephone helpdesk, email and social media, including Facebook and Twitter.

Enquiries may be emailed direct to SUSI at . SUSI are responding to email queries within a matter of days.

I understand from information provided by the Deputy than the financial circumstances of the student referred to changed in 2014. As the Deputy may be aware, Article 32 of the Student Grant Scheme allows for the review of eligibility during the academic year if there is a permanent change in circumstance, relating to a number of events including a drop in reckonable income which is likely to obtain for the duration of the approved course or for the foreseeable future. The link in relation to requesting a review of a student application is .

If an individual applicant considers that she/he has been unjustly refused a student grant, or that the rate of grant awarded is not the correct one she/he may appeal, in the first instance to SUSI.

Where an individual applicant has had an appeal turned down in writing by SUSI and remains of the view that the scheme has not been interpreted correctly in his/her case, an appeal form outlining the position may be submitted to the Independent Student Grants Appeals Board