By Donna Kehoe, the Bank of England’s agent for the South West of England.
These days most of us are used to paying with ‘plastic’. And from next week that will be true even for some of the purchases we make with cash.
On Tuesday a new £5 note featuring the image of former Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill will enter circulation. It will make history as the first Bank of England note made out of polymer – a thin and flexible type of plastic – which means it will be cleaner, safer and stronger.
Ever since the Bank of England was established in 1694 to raise money for King William III’s war against France, banknotes written or printed on paper have become a feature of everyday life.
They’ve changed a fair bit in that time. For example, in the early 20th century notes were issued by the Bank of England’s network of regional branches including those in the South West in Bristol, Exeter and Plymouth. These are now closed but the Bank is still present in the South West with an agency in Exeter.
Since 1970, Bank of England notes have also featured historic figures including Isaac Newton, Florence Nightingale and William Shakespeare.
The new fiver celebrates the achievements of Sir Winston Churchill and features a portrait based on the iconic photograph of the wartime leader by Yousuf Karsh in 1941, along with a view of Westminster and the Elizabeth Tower – which houses Big Ben – from the South Bank looking across Westminster Bridge.
But, for all the tradition and iconography, in these days of credit and debit cards, contactless payments and digital currencies, you might be wondering why we’re still worrying about bank notes and how we can make them safer and more resilient.
Yet, perhaps surprisingly, even today there is more than £68bn worth of notes in circulation – higher than at any time in British history. And it’s a number that continues to rise. So we’re expecting banknotes to be around for some time yet.
That’s good news for notaphilists – as collectors of bank notes are known – and the economy here in the South West of England.
So what’s prompted the move to polymer? Crucially, the new note features a new generation of security features which will make it even harder to counterfeit.
These include a see-through window featuring the Queen’s portrait with a border that changes from purple to green; Big Ben shown in gold foil on the front of the note and silver on the back; and a hologram which contains the word ‘Five’ and changes to ‘Pounds’ when the note is tilted.
The new fiver is also cleaner because the plastic is resistant to dirt and moisture.
And it is expected to last at least 2.5 times longer – around five years – even after being folded into wallets and scrunched up in pockets.
Already the new fiver has attracted a lot of interest. Prior to the move to polymer, the Bank carried out a wide-ranging public consultation which found that 87% of people were in favour of the change.
And, since the note was unveiled in June, Bank of England staff have travelled to all regions of the UK showing it off to members of the public.
After the new fiver is issued, paper £5 notes will be gradually withdrawn from circulation as they are banked by retailers and businesses. But you can continue to spend paper £5 notes as usual until next May after which they will cease to be legal tender.
Following this, paper £5 notes will still be exchanged at the Bank of England.
The new polymer £10 note featuring Jane Austen will enter circulation next summer, followed by the J.M.W. Turner £20 note by 2020.
So not long to wait until torn, crumpled and soggy bank notes will be a thing of the past.
Donna Kehoe is the Bank of England’s agent for South West England. For more details on the new £5 note, visit www.thenewfiver.co.uk
