Two Scottish sports venues are the first in Britain to introduce fingerprint recognition systems on their doors.
Council-run Carnegie Leisure Centre and Pitreavie Stadium, both in Dunfermline, Fife, have installed biometric security identity scanners to access their premises.
Staff will have their fingerprints scanned into a computer, which stores their information and will then recognise them when they arrive at work.
Biometrics is the method of identifying someone using their biological data such as fingerprints, iris patterns and facial shapes.
Managers at the sports centres say the system will be more secure than existing key or pin-coded procedures.
They say the new technology is needed because on doors are being left unlocked and security numbers for keypads have become known to too many people.
Fife Council's sport and leisure manager Wendy Watson said: 'One of our duty managers suggested biometrics because it eliminates anyone who is unauthorised to access the reception area.' The development and installation of the technology at the two centres was carried out by Glasgow-based UK Biometrics.
The firm has already installed similar security measures in children's nurseries in Aberdeen..
