Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many meetings they have had with the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner in the last three years on the issue of the use of biometric technologies in schools.

The decision to use biometric technology rests entirely with individual schools and colleges. Schools and colleges are legally responsible, as per the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Protection of Freedoms Act and Data Protection Act for any data they gather and use.

However, in the department there is a team of three officials who work on a range of policy areas relating to health and safety in schools. They also have, as part of their work, responsibility for the provision of guidance for schools and colleges linked to these areas. This includes, amongst others, the non-statutory ‘protection of biometric information of children in schools and colleges’ guidance, which is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/692116/Protection_of_Biometric_Information.pdf.

The department published the current version of this guidance to support schools and colleges in 2018. It replaced the ‘protection of children’s biometric information in schools’ guidance from 2012. The department has also publicly committed to updating the 2018 version of the guidance to reflect changes in legislation, replacing the Data Protection Act 1998 with the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR.

The department has not had any meetings with private companies to discuss the use of biometric technologies in schools in the last five years. This is because schools and colleges have the autonomy to choose whether to use biometric technology and, if so, to select the most appropriate provider. However, the department does work closely with others from across government, including the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the Home Office and the Information Commissioner’s Office on this issue.

Whilst the office of the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner has no statutory regulatory function in the oversight of automated biometric technology used in schools, the department has met with the Commissioner’s Office officials recently to explain the purpose of the department’s guidance and will continue to engage with them as appropriate going forward.