LTKA - School Correspondence Archive (against schools fingerprinting our children)

Ten letters and counting... The school still hasn't satisfactorily answered a single one of parents' questions. We are waiting.

School's second letter to parents, with our comments in italics Our second (unanswered) letter to the school

Letter 1 (May 24th 2006)   Letter 2 (June 7th 2006)   Letter 3 (June 8th 2006)   Letter 4 (June 14th 2006)
Letter 5 (June 8th 2006)   Letter 6 (June 10th 2006)   Letter 7 (June 16th 2006)   Letter 8 (June 18th 2006)
Letter 9 (June 29th 2006)    Letter 10 (July 11th 2006)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Just before Easter, 2006 ('Meet The Head')

About 30 parents hear the Head mention the new library scheme in passing (no more than 30 seconds out of a one hour meeting) in his termly "Meet the Head" session just before the holidays. It is mentioned so briefly and in such a low-key fashion that I do not even think it worth discussing the matter with my wife who isn't able to attend. It will later transpire that the Head Teacher is all too well aware that the scheme has faced at least one legal challenge, and he has in fact been very well briefed on the issues.

Friday May 26th 2006 ('We have decided' to fingerprint your children.)

Here's a copy of the school's original letter to parents announcing "we have decided" to thumbprint your children without your express consent. The letter is written in a far smaller font size than normal school letters, without the usual bold highlights, and disturbingly, without any kind of consent slip. Although dated two days previously, it is sent out on the last day before half term, giving parents only five school days to respond. The school has been working on the new library system for nearly a year.

Although the school now claims there has been extensive consultation on the issue and all parents are aware of the facts, if it hadn't been for the actions of a number of parents at the school this would have been all the consultation we would have had.

Wednesday June 7th 2006 ('Takin It To The Streets')

My wife and I are very worried about the way we feel the school are trying to introduce fingerprinting of primary school children 'by the back door'. At home time we stand outside the school gates and hand out copies of our letter to parents entering the school, causing a very read faced Head Teacher AND his Deputy to very nearly forget years of comprehensive anger management training!

Thursday June 8th 2006 ('Damned Lies and Statistics' - Benjamin Disraeli, quoted by Mark Twain)

Although he doesn't have time to meet us and discuss our concerns until after school the day before fingerprinting is due to begin, the Head does somehow find the time to write this letter to parents which the school sends out the next day. In it he falsely accuses us of making "a number of false claims" and tells parents they have nothing to worry about. It's just your child's fundamental right to privacy the school are potentially infringing, that's all. Even if they wanted to, the police can't fingerprint all our primary school children in school, but there's no law that specifically states the school can't, so it's got to be ok, right?

Friday June 9th 2006 (Red Alert)

Our first letter to the school and to the governors complaining strongly about mass thumbprinting without explicit parental consent. Throughout the debate, we have gone to great lengths to ensure that all the school's Governors are kept informed of developments, with copies of all correspondence, as a courtesy and because the Department for Education has gone on record to place responsibility for the thumbprinting scheme "Head Teachers and Governing Bodies, who have to ensure that they stay within the law."

Monday June 12th 2006 (Our main concerns)

What we feel is a very focused and relevant second letter highlighting the main issues of initial concern. Having hand delivered copies to the Head Teacher and each one of the School Governors, we then send further copies of the letter to a few relevant politicians including the city's MP David Howarth. Disappointingly, one of the school's governors writes to us and asks that we send him no further correspondence on the matter. We comply with his request. He doesn't even appear to have taken the trouble to read our two letters as he seems under the impression that we have, for reasons unknown, sent him the same letter twice on two different occasions.

Wednesday June 14th 2006 ('Signifying Nothing')

The third letter from the Head finally gets sent to parents on Wednesday after school. The issue is now so sensitive for the Head that he doesn't refer to thumbprints at all in his letter, preferring to say that pupils are "using their thumbs". The letter gives parents just TWO DAYS to opt out of the scheme. The school's annual meeting is due to take place the following Monday. Year Sixes have been on a week-long residential trip (which my daughter and her friends thoroughly enjoyed) so they dodn't receive the letter until three days AFTER the deadline has passed.

Saturday June 17th 2006

We are astonished to receive a letter from the Chair Of Governors at the School saying that he feels our series of meetings with the Head have addressed all the concerns in our main letter. We reply immediately, informing him that he is mistaken. Copies to the Head and all the other governors, as well as Cambridge's MP David Howarth.

Saturday June 29th 2006

While still awaiting a single satisfactory answer from the school, we send them another letter requesting certain information under the Freedom Of Information act. The school has a statutory fixed time limit of 20 working days within which they are obliged to reply. Perhaps now we'll get some answers at last...

Tuesday July 11th 2006

Day 37 of our campaign. Still no reply from our daughter's school. The head teacher claims they are very busy and will answer soon. Possibly after our daughter has left?? He does, however, find the time to reply immediately to a fairly brief and innocuous enquiry sent by a parent (not a member of our campaign), along the lines of "have you taken our child's fingerprints yet?"

Here is his reply. In it he doesn't mention the serious worry that hackers could use the system to steal a child's fingerprint, nor does he say who would be legally allowed to access pupils' data. In fact, the Head has so much time on his hands that he manages to send a couple more emails to the parent as well. In one he states that thumbprinting at St Matthews will start in September, without seeking parental consent.

February 2007 (update)

After further parents raised their concerns, the fingerprinting system has still not been implemented at St Matthew's. As far as we are aware, parents' letters have not received replies. It may be that the school is waiting until all concerned parents have left the school before pressing ahead. LTKA intend to ensure that the law is changed so this cannot ever happen.

"Education, Education, Education" Tony Blair "Consent, Consent, Consent" Parents

We are campaigning to have the widespread use of biometrics in schools debated in Parliament, and henceforth strictly regulated and closely monitored, with a statutory requirement for explicit parental consent wherever biometrics are used.

More about schools fingerprinting our children Please help us!

>> 10 Things You Should Know About Schools Fingerprinting Children <<