40% of schools in England actively use biometric technology, report says

Over 1.28 million students in secondary schools and academies have had their fingerprints taken by their school, figures obtained from the new Big Brother Watch report “Biometrics in Schools” have revealed.

The research was carried out in more that 3,000 schools across England, and results suggest that at the start of the academic year 2012-13, an estimated 40% of schools in England are using biometric technology.

The use of biometrics in schools can prove to be extremely cost-effective, as a spokesman at the Association of School and College Leaders – which represents secondary school heads – said: “It is significantly easier for schools to use this system in a number of ways – for example for taking things out of libraries and at meal-times. Most kids don’t lose their fingers whereas losing cards is far more likely. This cuts down on the need for youngsters to carry cards. Children can also have their cards stolen or be bullied for them.”

However, the widespread use of biometric technology in schools might lead to various privacy-related concerns, and this is specifically the reason why laws governing the enrolling of biometrics in schools were enshrined in the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.

Tensor plc is an UK market leader in the field of time and attendance and access control solutions. We supply an extensive range of products that actively employ biometric authentication, including fingerprint readers, hand scanner terminals and eye recognition solutions.

The biometric readers in Tensor’s T34xx series feature an elegant case and are easy to use. They target specifically those users who want the absolute peace-of-mind, certainty and the assurance that only the right people can gain access to your sensitive or dangerous areas.

If you’d like to find out more about the range of biometric readers supplied by Tensor, not to mention the range of access control and Time and Attendance solutions they can be integrated into, just contact us or Book a Demo, our representatives will be more than happy to answer all of your questions and queries.