Pupils' data protected by consent rule

Schools in England will be banned from collecting pupils' biometric data without consent, the Department for Education (DfE) has said.

From September schools will have to obtain parental permission before taking fingerprints. The ban will also cover iris and retina scanning, and face recognition.

Around 30 per cent of secondary schools and five per cent of primary schools use fingerprinting or face-scanning systems for reasons including recording of attendance.