Written answers
Tuesday, 29 September 2015
Department of Education and Skills
Student Universal Support Ireland Administration
Paul Connaughton (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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543. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of students who have had their student universal support Ireland student grant changed from the non-adjacent rate to the adjacent rate this year, due to a recalculation of the distances from students' homes to colleges; the process underway to re-examine distances; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33206/15]
Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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There were 220 cases where an award changed from Non-Adjacent to Adjacent between the 2014/15 and 2015/16 academic years. In the majority of cases the reclassification occurred as a consequence of new information provided by the student.
The current qualifying distance for the higher non-adjacent rate of student grant, at 45km, takes into account a reasonable radius within which students may commute on a daily basis. There are no plans at present to revise the distance criteria.
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