'I lost sleep trying to get student loan approved'

Sameer Ahmed Khan from Spalding said it took weeks to get anywhere with his student loan application

A university student said he "couldn't sleep" trying to get his student loan application approved before he started his second year.

Sameer Ahmed Khan, who left Turkey and settled in Spalding after moving to the UK in 2019, was granted settlement status in July but said he spent weeks "going back and forth" with the Student Loans Company (SLC).

He feared he would not be able to progress with his business and management degree at ARU Peterborough in September.

SLC said Mr Khan's application would "now be processed" following his settlement status "being updated by the Home Office".

The Home Office has been approached for comment by the BBC.

Mr Khan, who was born in Dubai and is half Iranian-half Pakistani, received his first year loan with a biometric residence permit as he was on a five-year route-to-settlement visa.

The 19-year-old then applied for, and was granted, indefinite leave to remain in July by the Home Office which meant he was given settlement status to work, live and study in the UK without any time restrictions.

Sameer Ahmed Khan is studying business and management at ARU Peterborough

However, he was given a share code for SLC to view his settlement status, which came back as invalid three times, according to Mr Khan's mother, Sana Alvandi.

As a result, her son's application for a student loan was "repeatedly denied" by SLC, she said.

Mr Khan said the situation left him stressed and he was disappointed by how it had been handled.

"I just want my voice to be heard essentially," he said.

"There were days I couldn't cope, sometimes I couldn't sleep. If this was going to happen... I could end up losing my academic career over stupid things."

'Lose his future'

Ms Alvandi said it had felt like "knocking on a door and it not opening even though I had a key in my hand".

"My son was feeling like he was going to lose his future," she added.

SLC said it received status information regularly from the Home Office but had to wait for those details to be received before applications were processed.

A spokesperson said: "Following Mr Khan's status being updated by the Home Office, his student finance application will now be processed as per our regulations."

Professor Ross Renton, Principal of ARU Peterborough, said: "We are proud to welcome students from across the world, from every corner of the UK, as well as from right here in our local community.

"Each student brings a unique perspective and energy that enriches both our university and the city of Peterborough, and we're delighted to support them in fulfilling their ambitions."

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