Not eligible for student finance

I have been told my student finance England that I am not eligible for student due to me not meeting “Long residency” criteria. They say that I have to provide evidence from 2015 onwards but I entered UK in 2016. So Student Finance England have said that I will have to defer 2 years and reapply to meet the long residency criteria. 2 Questions.
1) Has anyone else have come across the issue and if yes then how did they manage to deal with it?
2) What are the other options in getting in to university earlier than 2 years like this year as I have finished a levels this year and was going to start university in September 2024 but due to student finance I can’t?

I've not heard of "long residency" criteria of 9 years. Typically, it's 3 years, but can be shorter is you have certain residency status/meet certain exemption criteria, or longer if you were in the UK primarily as a student. Since you said you just finished A-levels, I assume you're going into undergrad? Have you checked this page out already and found which criteria suits your residency status? https://www.gov.uk/student-finance/who-qualifies (scroll until you reach "Your nationality or residency status")

I don’t meet any of the residency criteria on that link but when I apply for student finance, I had to fill in a paperback form which had a residency criteria which I was meeting and I did provide them evidence for that criteria but they still say that I am not eligible for it.

I don’t meet any of the residency criteria on that link but when I apply for student finance, I had to fill in a paperback form which had a residency criteria which I was meeting and I did provide them evidence for that criteria but they still say that I am not eligible for it.