It’s Monday morning in Newcastle when a child arrives at school, places her finger on the scanner, and waits until a crackly electronic voice acknowledges her.

In Sydney, a wall-mounted CCTV camera records a 12-year-old boy entering a classroom and taking his seat. While this might sound like an Orwellian prophecy, it’s slowly becoming reality. Surveillance technologies such as CCTV cameras and biometrics are being used in schools across Australia. What’s the point? And what are the issues we need to be aware of?

Australia is tentatively following in the footsteps of the UK in implementing surveillance in its schools. In England, it is estimated that 85% of secondary schools have some form of CCTV system, and that a third systematically fingerprint pupils from the age of four. Schools in Australia haven’t reached the same level of near-ubiquity yet, but they are demonstrating a growing appetite.

The effectiveness of CCTV has never been proven and public support is often based on unsubstantiated political rhetoric that it ‘works’.

More than 50 schools in NSW have CCTV cameras in playgrounds and outside dining areas, with plans to install them in classrooms and corridors. Similarly, in Western Australia where the Department of Education confirmed its plans to roll out systems across the state’s schools, half of Perth’s secondary government schools have installed CCTV. Further momentum has been provided by the WA State School Teachers Union that tabled a motion to have at least five surveillance cameras installed in all schools.

The overarching reason cited for the use of CCTV is the prevention and detection of crime. However, it is important to remember that the effectiveness of CCTV has never been proven and public support is often based on unsubstantiated political rhetoric that it ‘works’. In the UK, arguably the CCTV capital of the world, a government funded evaluation failed to find evidence of efficacy. Just one out of 14 CCTV systems demonstrated a significant reduction in crime. More recent studies have revealed that for every 1000 cameras in London, just one crime per year is solved. A sobering thought when the government has already invested more than £500 million in the equipment.