A Stranger Says They’re Picking Up Your Child. Are They?
children in UK schools
mandatory identity verification for collectors
to verify with Certifyd
The reality of school pickups in the UK.
Identity verification for school pickups addresses a critical safeguarding gap: when someone other than the usual parent collects a child, the school must verify their identity and authorisation. Current systems — password words, phone calls to parents, checking ID cards — are imperfect and stressful. Certifyd uses device-bound authentication: the parent authorises a specific person, and that person verifies their identity through their registered device at pickup time. The school sees cryptographic confirmation that the collector is who the parent said they would be.
Every school in the UK manages the daily challenge of releasing children to authorised adults. When the usual parent can’t collect, they ask a grandparent, friend, neighbour, or childminder. The school’s safeguarding protocols require verifying that the substitute collector is authorised and is who they claim to be. In practice, this often relies on a ‘password word’ shared between the parent and the collector — a system that provides minimal actual security.
Teaching assistants and school staff face the daily anxiety of recognising hundreds of faces. When a substitute arrives — ‘I’m picking up Olivia for Sarah, she told me to come’ — the staff member must decide whether to release the child. A phone call to the parent helps, but parents are not always reachable. The password word system assumes the collector knows it, but passwords can be shared, overheard, or guessed.
Certifyd provides cryptographic certainty. The parent authorises a specific person through the app. At pickup, the authorised person verifies their identity through their device-bound passkey. The school receives real-time confirmation that the collector’s identity matches the parent’s authorisation — not just a password, not just a phone call, but device-bound cryptographic proof.
This is broken.
Here's why.
Password words provide minimal security — they can be shared, overheard, or guessed.
School staff must visually recognise hundreds of parents and authorised collectors daily.
Substitute collectors (grandparents, friends, childminders) arrive without formal identity verification.
Phone calls to parents for authorisation are unreliable — parents aren’t always reachable.
Simple verification.
Every time.
Parent authorises a specific person to collect their child through Certifyd
The authorised person arrives at school and verifies through their device-bound passkey
The school receives cryptographic confirmation: the collector’s identity matches the parent’s authorisation
A tamper-proof record is created: who collected, when, and under whose parental authority
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Common questions.
The parent designates an authorised collector through Certifyd, specifying the person’s verified identity and the date or period of authorisation. The collector must already have a Certifyd identity (device-bound passkey). At pickup time, the collector verifies at the school — the system confirms their identity matches the parent’s authorisation. Authorisations can be one-time or ongoing, and can be revoked instantly.
The authorised person would need to register on Certifyd (a one-time process taking a few minutes). This is a feature, not a limitation: it means every authorised collector has a verified, device-bound identity. Anyone who can’t or won’t register cannot be verified cryptographically, and the school should use alternative verification methods for that specific pickup.
No. Certifyd adds a verification layer on top of existing safeguarding procedures. Schools should continue to maintain authorised collector lists, use their professional judgement, and follow DfE safeguarding guidance. Certifyd provides an additional, cryptographic confirmation that the person collecting is who the parent authorised. It enhances existing procedures rather than replacing them.
Yes. Childminders and nannies can register on Certifyd and be designated as authorised collectors by parents. At each pickup, they verify through their device-bound passkey. The school sees their verified identity and the parental authorisation. This is particularly valuable for childminders who collect children from multiple families — each family’s authorisation is managed independently.
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Bring verified identity to school pickups
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Read: Two-Way Verification Explained