Case Study
“Doncaster students get fit and healthy with new multi-application smart cards” Justin Hunt
Report WP10-01
Version 3.0
November 2003
© Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council for the National Smart Card Project
WP10-01 - Case Study Number 1 Doncaster - v3.0 release 29/04/2004
1. Case Study
Students at North Doncaster Technology College have been issued with new multi-application smartcards as part of an innovative educational initiative.
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council has launched the pilot project in partnership with the Department for Education and Skills.
Already 1400 smartcards are in circulation in the College and they are being used for buying school meals; printing and photocopying at the College, and as an electronic proof of age in Doncaster.
The college has been equipped with smartcard ‘revaluator’ machines which will accept notes and coins. Students can use these wall-based machines to quickly and easily top up their cards. Money is then stored securely on dedicated e-purses.
Alternatively parents can send in cheques with a lump sum payment and the college’s administration staff will put a credit on the system. As soon as the student inserts his or her card into a smartcard device in the college they will receive their new agreed credit from the central system. This is made possible by the Automatic Card Management Technology which enables remote smart card management over a network. The technology allows cards and e- purse updates without the need to recall cards and is designed to enable card administration tasks to be carried out in a simple and easy way.
Council officers and teachers say the introduction of the new multi application smart cards is encouraging students to stay on site rather than going off to shops to make purchases.
When students pay for a meal at the college their smartcard is dipped into a dedicated reader at the till like a traditional plastic debit card and the transaction is settled within seconds.
Head teacher Bill Blakemore welcomes the fact that the smart cards have reduced the amount of money being brought into the College by students. “Handling cash is bad news. The smart cards reduce the possibilities of schools losing money.” The smart cards have also helped to remove the stigma traditionally associated with receiving free school meals as the cards effectively disguise a student’s entitlements. “Previously at the college there was a system where students turned up at a separate desk and received a disc which I thought was quite Dickensian. The smart cards give dignity to the kids who through no fault of there own have financial difficulties. Thanks to the smart cards there is no possibility of any associated stigma,” Bill Blakemore explains.
The smart cards are popular with students too. “It saves you bringing in money all week. You don’t have any hassles,” says 13-year-old Laura Collie, who would like to see the cards used for more services. “I take mine to the cinema to prove my age.”
By using their smart cards for school meals, students can also earn reward points if they make healthy food choices. At the end of the term the students who generate the most healthy food eating points receive prizes.
Councillor Tony Sockett, Doncaster cabinet member for life long learning, says this will have long term beneficial effects for the health of Doncaster students. “It’s terribly important to encourage young people from a formative age to think seriously about the food they access.”
As well as helping to introduce cashless catering, the smart cards are being used for printing and photocopying so the College can control its paper resources more efficiently. The card management system incorporates sophisticated print release software which enables a complete audit of printing services so the College’s management can receive clear information about how the College’s facilities are being used. Students and staff can use credits on their cards to use these services.
The smart cards are also designed to make it easier for students to lose weight and get fit. The cards carry a ‘show and go’ champion sports pass logo which entitles students in Doncaster to up to 50% concessions on leisure centre activities.
The North Doncaster Technology College’s new multi application smart card runs on the national ‘Connexions card’ which has been created by the Department for Education and Skills.
Teachers say the on-going pilot is having a positive impact on the morale of students as they feel part of a modern national initiative. Students are receiving personalized benefits and are enjoying using cards which are similar in look and feel to the plastic debit and credit cards used regularly by adults.
The Mayor of Doncaster, Martin Winter, says: "Doncaster is leading the way by developing smart card solutions for schools. This project provides a regional model of best practice for others to follow and combines with Doncaster's role on the National Smartcard Project Board.
"I am determined, as Mayor of Doncaster, that we progress new ways of providing services to all our communities including pupils at our schools. In partnership with the DfES and the National Smart Card Project, this pilot is proving to be an exciting challenge and a welcome addition to e-government."
Links for additional information:
www.doncaster.gov.uk
www.connexionscard.com
www.nationalsmartcardproject.org.uk
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