TEENAGERS are paying for lunch with their fingertips at a secondary school.

Commonweal School students are swiping their middle fingers on a scanner instead of paying cash in the school canteen as part of a new system. The school has installed the £10,000 software, which went live for the second day yesterday, to reduce queues. The software captures a digital signature of a student’s middle fingertip, but is not a fingerprint.

School business manager Victoria Johnson said: “Students don’t want to spend 20 minutes standing in a queue at lunchtime. They have said the queues are significantly shorter now than in the past thanks to the new system. Generally parents are very supportive – they understand it is safe and secure. One or two have not wanted their children to use it and we have not scanned their fingertips.”

Most of the 1,100 pupils at the Old Town secondary school registered their fingertip details last Wednesday. The fingertip scan is converted to a mathematical equation, which is unreadable to others.

Students can now upload their account with cash at kiosks around the school or by cheque. They can no longer pay cash in the canteen.

Eventually, the school plans to allow parents to upload their children’s account online. One of the benefits is parents can make sure their children are eating food at school rather than buying crisps and sweets in shops outside said Mrs Johnson.

She said: “It might seem like a large investment but we used a government grant for this. It could increase the amount of students eating healthy food in school rather than spending money elsewhere. Students have been involved in picking the catering company and we discussed the new system with them.

“The students really embrace change especially anything new and different. They are always proud of the school when we do something seen as ahead of everyone else. The word ‘cool’ has been bandied around quite a lot.”

Mrs Johnson said the Vericool for Schools system means children who get free school meals do not stand out, as they just scan their fingertip like everyone else. She said it also removes the danger of students losing cash or swipe cards.

She said: “Cards can be lost or damaged but you always have your finger and it is unique to a person.”

When students swipe their fingertip at the canteen till, their photograph appears on a screen and a worker confirms identity.

Catering manager Sue Stratford said: ”The system is a lot quicker because children are not fumbling around for cash.”