At St Peter and St Paul, Catholic Voluntary Academy we use a biometric recognition system linked to our cashless catering system.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are you using biometric recognition?
Biometric recognition converts physical characteristics into a unique digital signature that can be used to quickly and securely locate your child’s cashless catering account. This helps speed up service and eliminates the requirement to carry cash or an alternative method of access, such as a card that can be lost or stolen.
How does it work?
When the child places their finger on the scanner the software reads key features (unique patterns on a fingerprint) and compares this against the database of registered users. When it finds a match it automatically opens their cashless catering account allowing the operator to complete the sale of their academy meals.
Can these biometrics registrations be used by any other agency?
No, the software turns your child’s physical characteristics into an encrypted string of characters known as a template (no fingerprint image is ever stored). Even if someone were to be able to gain access to the data and break the encryption, this template does not contain enough information to reverse engineer into a usable fingerprint.
What happens when my child leaves the academy?
When a student leaves academy all data can be deleted very easily.
I don’t wish to give permission for my child to participate with biometric recognition, can my child still purchase academy meals?
Yes, an alternative method of authentication will be available. Students will be able to give their name to till operator to access their cashless catering account.
What if I change my mind?
If you initially opt-in for your child to use biometric recognition but later change your mind, contact the academy and we will remove the permission from the system which will automatically remove any biometric data associated with your child and provide your child with an alternative method of authentication.
