On 28th March 2017, the new £1 coin will be introduced. Gone will be the round, bronze-coloured coin which replaced the green £1 note in 1983. In will come a dodecagon (12-sided) coin. Like the current £2 coin, it will be bi-metallic and have a silver-coloured middle and bronze-coloured edges.
Myself and doubtless others will recall a previous dodecagon coin, the brass threepenny bit (pronounced ‘thrupp-nee’). This ceased to be legal tender when decimalisation arrived in 1971.
The reason for the change to the £1 coin is apparently that the current round coin is too easy to forge. The new one will have so many security features that it is stated that ‘it will be the most forgery-proof in the world’.
Obviously, numerous everyday things that currently take £1 coins will need changing to accommodate the new coins, e.g. car parking machines, shopping trolleys, slot machines, lockers at leisure centres and gyms, to name just a few.
Also, don’t forget that paper £5 notes cease to be legal tender in May this year. Polymer £10 notes are due to be introduced this summer.
Barbara Breakwell