LSMedia or Liverpool student media at liverpoolstudentmedia.com is a brand new website launched by the University of Liverpool's students to promote and support talented Liverpool student's creative written, visual or radio content.

Two directors of the Student Loans Company have resigned after a troubling year where failings caused tens of thousands of students to suffer from delays in payment of their student loans. Following the publication of Prof Sir Deian Hopkins' report investigating the delays in payment students across the UK faced, last month saw the resignation of heads of ICT and Customer Services of the Student Loans Company. With a record breaking 1,016,000 applications made by mid December 2009, Hopkins' inquiry concluded that the delays- ranging from a week to several months which thousands are still facing- were caused by problems within the SLC's ICT and communication services. The resignation of both directors reflects the disruption caused in the 2009/10 cycle of applications where last summer, failures in equipment used to scan students' financial information meant applications had to be manually assessed. The SLC failed in forewarning students about the likelihood of delays both in processing their applications and making payments. Initially withholding essential information to the media, universities and students themselves, the SLC's customer service proved equally insufficient where reportedly 95% of calls made to enquire about applications went unanswered. Both resignations therefore reflect the company's promise to focus on 'strengthening and restructuring the senior management team' following Hopkins' recommendations.

For students themselves the start of the academic year was a worrying time, particularly for those living away from home where the financial toll weighed worse than ever. Where some were unsure whether their payments would be made on schedule, others learnt that their applications had yet to be fully processed. Whilst universities stepped up and offered various hardship loans and grants to those greatest in need, the delays of student loans which many are solely dependent on was greatly troubling and resulted in several apologies being made by the SLC. Such delays were bitterly felt particularly in recession times and heightened pressures to seek part-time work in order to meet basic living costs and where lacking, being forced to rely on family help was the harsh reality for many. Thus, months on from the start of the academic year, with thousands still awaiting their first loan instalments, efforts taken to ensure applications continue to be dealt with as quickly and efficiently as possible are of upmost concern for the SLC. The resignation of both directors is a reminder of the need to prevent next year's cycle of applications from facing similar delays. The fact remains however that despite optimistic promises of the SLC, it will be the service students receive in the next few weeks in receiving their second instalment of student loans and that of next September which will ultimately show how far they have come.

Elisha Jadav