Fingerprints in exchange for food? lighten up!
Morley High School in Leeds have been accused of breaching the Education Act 2002 for their stand on 'fingerprints for food' school meals. The Headteacher told BBC Radio 4's You and Yours programme that "We have given parents an opt out. The opt out is that you don't have to have anything to do with the system whatsoever and that you then have the responsibility as a mum, dad or carer to provide a very healthy alternative to your child."
The Education Act 2002 means schools have a legal duty to provide meals for those children who want them, and the DCFS confirmed that the approach by Morley School might amount to a breach!
Despite the recent guidance on the use of biometrics in schools, there is still considerable confusion, and the guidance left a lot of questions and interpretations unanswered, with the current line being that schools have the "freedom to run their own affairs". The bottom line is that you can't ask any person to give over biometric data without their permission unless you have a clear statutory power so to do (e.g. in the event of an arrestable offence, or national identity scheme), no matter how inconvenient this is.