SCHOOL lunches will be at teenagers’ fingertips when a secondary introduces a new hi-tech system of paying in the canteen.

Instead of paying for their lunch with cash, from November 6, Commonweal School students will swipe their middle fingers on a scanner.

The Old Town school is installing software, which captures a digital signature of a student’s middle fingertip. Cash will no longer be accepted at the tills.

Headteacher Keith Defter said moving to a cashless system will cut the queues at lunch.

“We have 1,100 students and can have queues of 150 waiting for the whole of breaktime,” he said.

“This will speed it up. It means students will have more time to eat their lunch. There is also less likelihood that students will lose money, which is important. Swipe cards can also get lost.”

Parents will be able to send in a cheque covering a fortnight of school meals, which will be uploaded on their children’s account.

Alternatively they can give their children cash, which can be paid in through a coin and note loader.

Mr Defter said eventually parents will be able to pay online and can check what their children are buying and make sure they are actually eating lunch. Pupils are due to register their fingertips on November 4.

The school is buying the £10,000 system – called VeriCool for Schools – out of a Government grant for school catering.

Mr Defter is keen to reassure students and parents that the system is secure.

“It is not technology for the sake of it,” he said. “It is about improving the system we are providing.

“The data taken from the fingerprint is 100 per cent safe. It is not scary but I appreciate some people feel unsure, as it is an unknown.

“Anyone is welcome to come in and see it in action.”

He said the data would be stored as a meaningless string of numbers and letters.

Other advantages include no one else being able to use another person’s identity to buy food as everyone has a unique fingertip.

Also, any stigma associated with getting free school meals will be removed, as everyone uses the fingertip scanner.

Mr Defter said: “Feedback from parents and students has been limited so far, as it is an unknown. But they welcome the fact it will make lunchtime more efficient.

“It is also an exciting technology, which is fun.”