School installs £9,000 facial recognition cameras to stop students turning up late... and teachers could be next target


The Mail Online
Mon, 04 Oct 2010 15:36 CDT



The £9,000 Face Register system monitors more than 200 sixth-form students at the Sir Christopher Hatton School in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. 

Two cameras produce a 3D scan of pupils and identifies faces using minute measurements of eyes, noses and face shape. 

The software can even recognise students as they grow and their features change. 

It monitors and records students' attendance and enables the school to force anyone arriving late to make up the time at the end of the day.

The school was the first in Northamptonshire, and one of 12 across the country, to install the technology. 

Another 18 schools nationwide have expressed strong interest in the system, developed by Northampton company Aurora Computer Services. 

Kelli Foster, the school's sixth form head, said: 'The technology is just incredible. 

'Before, each pupil had to sign in and out of reception by filling in a form but now it takes under ten seconds to gather so much more information. 

'When they use the machines, they have to enter their PIN and when their faces have been matched up they select whether they are signing in or out and the reason why. 

'This information is then sent to our registration system which stores it as a record so we can track each time they come in and out of school and the common room. 





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