Hans Price Academy is introducing the new biometric cashless catering facility by the start of next term for its 735 students.
Letters are being sent home to parents this week to inform them of the new initiative and ask for their views.
The new technology, which has already been installed in the canteen, is being introduced so students do not have to bring cash to class to pay for their dinners.
It will also help ensure that money allocated to students by parents for lunches is spent on food and not on other items. The academy is part of the Cabot Learning Federation which also has John Cabot Academy, Bristol Brunel Academy and Kings Oak Academy and Bristol Metropolitan Academy under its umbrella.
Hans Price Academy is the first in the group to introduce the technology but it is not known whether the scheme will be adopted by the federation’s other academies.
Students will have an online account which will allow parents to top up their accounts using credit or debit cards.
When students buy food or drink they will be identified by a biometric fingerprint.
A print of the index finger is taken and it is then translated to an alpha numeric number and the image is then discarded. The number generated will be used to charge accounts.
The fingerprint captured is different to system used by the police and instead the system identifies certain points on the finger and turns them into encrypted numbers.
When students make a purchase they simply place their finger on a scanner at the till and the server will show the students name, class and current balance. It is hoped the new high tech system will also reduce the amount of time students spend queuing for their lunch.
Hans Price Academy is not the first academy in North Somerset to use the hi tech system.
Gordano School in Portishead, which converted to an academy in July 2011, also has the bio metric fingerprint cashless system, which it introduced at the end of March.
Those who don’t want to have a print taken are offered a payment card where parents can either deposit money on line or children can top it up with cash in school.
Academy principal, Armando Di-Finizio, said, “I would like to assure parents that none of the information taken from fingerprinting will be shared with any outside agencies or authorities.
“We have introduced this system primarily for safety and customer service and this information will be treated with maximum confidentiality.”
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Quelle/Source: This is Somerset, 04.06.2012
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