What happens if I do not use a credit or debit card?
Pupils can bring cash, which will then be uploaded into their account, however we would strongly recommend that the pupils do not bring cash to school but instead they bring a cheque made payable to ‘Enfield Grammar School’, which will be uploaded into their account.
Why cashless catering – what are the advantages?
This has come about for several reasons. First and foremost is the need to make our boys more aware in terms of Healthy Eating. All of the food served in school has to meet the Healthy Eating guidelines and, should they wish, parents are able to see what their children have chosen – either 'on line' or via printed reports.
Secondly, encouraging children to bring cash to school has frequently caused problems. Cash gets lost, is spent inappropriately and, unfortunately, pupils can be the target for bullies outside of school.
What about free school meals?
The system works exactly the same for all pupils whether they pay or have a free school meal. All pupils have their own account, The amount allocated for the free school meal will be entered into the system on a daily basis and will only be accessible at dinner break.
I've heard something about biometrics and fingerprinting – what does it mean?
Biometrics have been in the news for several reasons – mainly all the problems relating to the new passports. Cashless catering will use biometric information and this will be taken from a fingerprint BUT we are not talking about fingerprinting used by forensic scientists or the police! Biometric scanning does not store a picture of the fingerprint, just a jumbled computer code which is useless to anyone else. This system fully complies with the Data Protection Act and does not store any information which could be of use to any other agencies, such as the police.
If we pay for a set number of school meals, can it be spent in one day?
No, a daily spending limit will be set for all pupils and no food above that limit can be purchased. On request, an individual pupil limit of your choice can also be set, to include school dinner and break time snacks.
What if a pupil does not hold a sufficient cash balance one day to pay for a school dinner?
As at present, no pupil is refused a school dinner because they have not brought their dinner money to school. The school will allow for the pupil to loan money for one day. However, just as at present, the pupil will be expected to bring some money with them the next day to repay the loan and re-credit the system by using either the internet, the revaluation station or by cheque payment.
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