Ema

janet37

oh my god you got a person!!!!! since september i have just had the standard message we are dealing with this as fast as we can. Please tell me how to speak to a person.

pandaonmyshoulder

:mad: My daughter is still waiting.......................................... my twice weekly phone calls to EMA have now become daily and yet still no payments going into her account. College have phoned EMA, faxed them etc.. and still nothing. Have now contacted our local MP but guess what???? No reply to date from him either:mad:

EMA have stated (they never phone me back) "you have done everything we've asked you to do but we can't see from our system why your daughter hasn't been paid." I have never been so frustrated and when they keep putting them phone down on me stating they have calls waiting :mad:

They have told me the bank details have now been corrected on the system but still no payments, who is answerable for this mess???????

pennyocs

still waiting for them to phone me back, i phoned them today and guess what they said it would all be paid by the 20th of Dec yeah like they told us 3 weeks ago it would all be sorted in a couple of days.
im getting really annoyed now and am not sure what else can be done i think i will go and see my MP tomorrow see if she can do anything.
my son is being really patient about it but a couple of his friends from school have left the course because their parents are struggling to support them:-(

Magnolia

Who do we blame for the mess? - Liberata of course. Have patience with Capita - they have taken over a right can of worms and are digging their way through it. I work in Student Services and we have had some measure of success by approaching the LSC and letting them handle it. Some of our students applied in August and still are waiting - these kids - according to capita - are in a black hole somewhere! Its only when we phone them and tell them the students name that they can get their details on the system. They are in there but they just dont know who started college and who didnt.

For anyone who is struggling with finances go to your student services and ask if they can let you have a loan through Learner Support Fund. We are supporting several students who are still waiting for their payments. The money will have to be paid back but when the lump sum comes through there will be plenty spare - think it is upto £320 now since the start of term.

pandaonmyshoulder

After several phone calls to EMA last night I was told to phone back at 7am this morning as apparently supervisors answer the phonelines................. Spoke to 'em at 7am and indeed it was a Supervisor (or so he said) been told payments "should" be in my daughters bank by next week, we will wait and see:rolleyes:

As for Student Services, my daughter has received no help as the college has so many students with the same problems that they haven't got the funds...........so they say :rolleyes: I spoke to Student Services too but no joy, I think they are as frustrated as us to be honest.

Magnolia

Yes we are - promises just don't happen.

Sorry you got no help from the Learner Support Fund - it is probably a luxury that is only afforded in a smaller colleges. We only have about 400 on EMA with about 3 quarters of them already getting their payments if somewhat erratically.

janet37

I never manage to get an actual person, just a recorded message, is there a special no that you manage to get a person on if there is could you let me have it. our sons college just say it is nothing to do with them.

cw18

I sent the forms off for my son on 2nd September. After several phone calls, his contract finally arrived on 18th November. Due to a bereavement he wasn't in college to deal with the contract until 3rd December, when he signed it/handed it in.

He'd been told his college add them into the system pretty quickly compared to others, so he checked his bank account every day this week -- and it was all in there (backpay as well) on Thursday morning.

So things are moving - just not as fast as some people need it.

We've just about been able to survive 'advancing' him a tenner a week from early October (when what he'd saved over the Summer had all gone -- he paid for all his clothes and stationery himself too) which was enough for his bus fares and a snack meal a couple of days a week, but things were starting to get really tight and I'm not sure I'd have managed for much longer.

janet37

I Got a person I got a person!!!! well the saga continues they have told me that the college need to reautherise the payment, or that i must send in three month bankstatements to prove that he has not had the payments, will keep you updated is this a record for non payment??

Magnolia

Sorry to say Janet37 but we still have some students who applied in August waiting for their letter of entitlement! They have been told to re-apply and it will be backdated to the start of term - not a lot of help to them but at least they will get it.

Congratulations for getting a person!!! The college will be able to check if he has been autherised or not or if the system has de-authorised him :rolleyes: