London, Nov 24:  A British school uniform company has devised a novel way to track pupils –radio chips sewn into the school uniforms.

The manufacturer of the chips Danrbro Ltd, a school uniform company, is marketing the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) surveillance system throughout England, after trying it out on 19 pupils at Hungerhill School in Doncaster this year.

The chip is embroidered into the students’ school uniforms using conductive 'smart threads,’ following which a teacher can scan the chips to view the pupil's identity, photo, whether they misbehaved in lessons and their school attendance record.

Hungerhill headteacher Graham Wakeling said the pilot was ‘not intrusive to the pupil in the slightest’ because tracking would not go beyond the school's gates.

Darnbro said that their product can ‘trace a pupil's every step during the school day’ and that the system can be set up to limit access to doors, such as shutting the main doors of a school to pupils during class time.

Andy Stewart, the creator of the chip said that the system would cost about 2000 pounds for a small primary school and up to 14,000 pounds for an average-sized secondary.

However, the chip has drawn condemnation from civil liberties groups.

David Clouter, from LeaveThemKidsAlone, a campaign group, was disgusted by the idea.

"To put this in a school badge is complete and utter surveillance of the children. Tagging is what we do to criminals we let out of prison early," the Daily Mail quoted Clouter, as saying.
 
But, the Department for Children, Schools and Families supported the use of electronic registration to improve safety and security and reduce truancy. (ANI)