A daycare facility in the UK uses fingerprint recognition to improve security.
As tension over school security issues increase, I can’t help but think about the security issues many daycare facilities face and how they are planning to respond. My sister and I were scouting for new daycare facilities for my niece and I was shocked at how easily one can come and go and browse without being questioned.
At one facility my sister and I toured an entire day care facility on our own. The gates had no locks, the front door was open and no one was at the desk. We were there almost ten minutes in one empty classroom reading about their schedule and the activities they would be doing that month before someone asked us if they could help us. Disturbing.
Recently I came across an article in the Chester Chronicle titled “Nursery’s Digitally Enhanced Security”. Guilden Sutton Day Nursery in the United Kingdom is using fingerprinting technology to enhance safety at their daycare facility in order to prevent persons without daycare affiliation from entering. A biometric system allows parents to have their fingerprints scanned at the door and once they are recognized they allowed to enter.
Barriers to implementing fingerprint identification systems are accuracy, cost, and privacy. As I was discussing this with a few parents, most expressed concern about having their fingerprints scanned.
What makes this system less controversial is that the fingerprints are not photographed; rather the system identifies and recognizes “up to 70 unique points on each person's fingerprint and converts them into numbers”. So far the parents at this UK daycare center have responded well to the system. But is it affordable and is it reliable?
Security is always a concern for parents as they search for the appropriate daycare for their children. While nothing is foolproof, this extra level of security is more than most daycare facilities. The important thing is that when selecting daycare facilities, be sure to ask about their security measures.
For more tips on questions to ask daycare providers, read my article How to Interview Daycare Providers
