Decimalisation UK: A New Currency for Britain

Decimalisation UK was a major change that transformed the way Britain thought about money. In 1971, the UK decimalised its currency, replacing the old system of pounds, shillings, and pence with a decimal system of pounds and pence.

The old system was confusing and cumbersome, with 240 pence to the pound. The new system simplified things, making everyday transactions much easier.

The change was gradual, with decimalisation taking place over several years. The old system was phased out, and the new system was introduced in stages.

The Royal Bank of Scotland's preparations for decimalisation were a massive undertaking, described as 'the biggest single operation ever undertaken in the history of British banking'.

The bank's advanced computerisation programme helped significantly, saving an estimated 6,300 branch staff from two weeks of intensive overtime. To prepare the computers, the bank's Systems & Programming team spent 10 years' worth of staff time.

Staff had to be trained to understand the new currency and to be confident with it, with the British Bankers' Association issuing booklets and exercises to help. The Royal Bank of Scotland's branches alone received £1.75m of new coins in advance of D-Day, weighing a total of 625 tons.

NatWest faced even bigger challenges, having only existed as a single bank since 1970. The bank created a dedicated Decimal Currency Office to handle internal planning and external liaison for decimalisation, and planned what value of new coins to send to each branch.

NatWest faced a massive challenge in preparing for decimalisation. The bank had only existed as a single entity since 1968, after a merger of Westminster Bank, National Provincial Bank, and District Bank.

The bank created a dedicated Decimal Currency Office to handle internal planning and external liaison for decimalisation. This team was responsible for planning the value of new coins to send to each branch.

A total of 740 million coins, worth £9.5 million, had to be prepared and distributed to branches across the bank. The bank worked with 41 Decimal Currency Liaison Officers to address decimalisation-related challenges in their business areas.

NatWest staff attended a 2½ day training course at the bank's London Training Centre in October and November 1970. Over 3,500 members of staff from NatWest branches received training to prepare for the changeover.

The bank issued booklets and leaflets to customers in the run up to D-Day, and staff delivered over 3,000 decimalisation talks to public groups.

For most people, the milestones between the announcement of 1966 and D Day in 1971 were marked by changes to the coinage. The government had to physically produce the new coins by the Royal Mint, which was a significant task.

Indeed, even settling the dimensions of the decimal coins was not easy. The different denominations needed to be readily distinguishable by sight and touch from each other.

Not only did the coins need to be distinguishable, but they also had to avoid being confused with existing £sd coins. The goal was to reduce the size and weight of the coinage.

The designs of the new coins had to be carefully considered. A new portrait of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II by Arnold Machin had already been prepared and approved with decimal coinage in mind.

More than 80 artists took part in a public competition announced in November 1968. The competition received around 900 designs, and a series by Christopher Ironside was eventually approved.

The UK's decimalisation process was a carefully planned and executed effort.

In 1961, the British government set up the Committee of Inquiry on Decimal Currency, also known as the Halsbury Committee, to investigate the feasibility of adopting a decimal currency.

The committee reported in 1963, and its recommendations were adopted in 1966. Parliament formally gave the plan its support with the passage of the Decimal Currency Act in May 1969.

The Decimal Currency Board was established by the Act of 1967 to oversee the transition to decimal currency. Its strategy was to minimize changes until Decimal Day itself, which was set for 15 February 1971.

The Board's duties included providing information, guidance, and advice, as well as promoting arrangements for adapting or replacing equipment. It worked closely with various organizations, including the Royal Mint, the British Bankers' Association, and the Post Office.

The Board published a regular Newsletter and prepared millions of booklets to help people understand the changes. It also devised conversion tables to ensure fairness for both buyers and sellers.

The Board's approach was to first focus on business management, then switch its attention to retailers, and finally target the general public with an intensive publicity campaign.

The pre-decimal currency system was a complex one, consisting of a pound of 20 shillings or 240 pence. This system was in place for a long time, but it was eventually replaced by the decimal system.

A pre-decimal pound was made up of 20 shillings, and each shilling was worth 12 pennies. The shilling was replaced by the five new pence coin, which is 1/20 of a decimal pound.

The penny was the basic unit of currency, and there were 240 pennies in a pre-decimal pound. The last penny for circulation was dated 1967, and it had a lot more value than a modern 'New' Penny.

The penny was the basic unit of currency with a lot more value than a modern 'New' Penny. It took 240 Pennies to make a pre-decimal pound (£).

You might be surprised to know that a penny was worth a lot more back in the day. The last penny for circulation was dated 1967.

If you've ever tried to imagine what it would be like to have 240 pennies in your pocket, you're not alone. It's a lot of coins!

The shilling, also known as 1/-, was a valuable coin in the pre-decimal currency system.

A shilling was worth twelve pennies, making it a significant amount of money at the time. It's hard to imagine, but back then, a shilling could buy you a lot of things, especially if you were a child.

The pre-decimal pound consisted of 20 shillings, giving you an idea of just how valuable a single shilling was. To put it in perspective, if you had 20 shillings, you'd have a whole pound!

The last shilling for circulation was dated 1967, marking the end of an era for this coin. Although they were eventually replaced by the five new pence coin, shillings were still used as Five pence pieces until the Five new pence coin was made smaller in 1990.

Before decimalisation in 1971, the UK sterling currency was divided into pounds, shillings and pence, which made money calculations complicated.

The old system had 240 pence in one pound, with 12 pence to the shilling and 20 shillings to the pound, leading to a low-value penny that was limited in its usefulness.

Inflation had a cumulative effect, making it difficult to use the penny as a unit of currency.

Countries like Canada and the United States had already adopted decimal currencies, making the UK's decision to decimalise seem like a long-overdue step.

By August 1970, preparations for D Day were well on course.

The Decimal Currency Board was confident that conversion of business machines and computers was largely complete or the subject of firm planning.

Surveys of retailers showed that the vast majority had taken some steps to prepare for D Day.

Even among the general public, there was a healthy and increasing awareness of the change and no real hostility to the notion of decimalisation.

Hundreds of millions of new coins had been produced by the Royal Mint.

The stockpile of decimal bronze coins was virtually finished, having been struck at a new Royal Mint at Llantrisant in South Wales.

The problem now was ensuring that these coins were in the right places at the right times and in the right numbers.

The Decimal Currency Board distributed twenty million booklets to households across the country, providing basic information and practical advice.

The booklet distribution was somewhat hampered by a postal strike.

Banks closed their doors on the Wednesday before D Day to clear cheques and balance accounts.

The Stock Exchange also closed on that day, and Post Offices ceased business on the Friday.

British Railways and London Transport anticipated D Day on the Sunday before, and it's likely that the public woke up to a decimal Britain on Monday morning.

In response to decimalisation, some people in Ireland expressed their dissatisfaction with the new coinage. They found creative ways to express their opinions, such as stamping coins with phrases like "DUD".

One example of this is the one shilling coin stamped with "DUD". This coin was a clear indication that some people did not think the new decimal coinage was an improvement.

The penny coin was also stamped with "WORTHLESS", showing that some individuals did not think the new coin was valuable. This reaction highlights the difficulties people faced in adapting to the change.

Some coins were stamped with incorrect values, like the 10p pence coin stamped with "2 SHILLING". This was a clear mistake and shows the confusion people experienced with the new coinage.

The new decimal coinage introduced in Ireland had face values of 1/2p, 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, and 50p.

The decimal halfpenny, introduced in 1971, remained in circulation until 1984, when its value had been greatly reduced by inflation.

As someone who's familiar with the UK's currency, I recall noticing the change in coin values over the years. The decimal halfpenny was demonetised on 31 December 1984.

A key change in the 1990s was the reduction in size of the 5p and 10p coins, with the large versions of both being demonetised. This change was followed by the reduction in size of the 50p piece in 1997.

The 1p and 2p coins underwent a compositional change from bronze to plated steel in 1992, but both coins remain valid back to 1971.

Here's a quick rundown of the changes to the UK's coinage:

The introduction of a new 20p coin in 1982 marked a significant change in the UK's coinage, with the word "new" being removed from the inscriptions on coins.

The aftermath of decimalisation in the UK was a time of significant change for businesses and consumers alike.

Many shops and businesses had to update their pricing systems to accommodate the new decimal system, which was a major undertaking.

The changeover to decimalisation occurred on February 15, 1971, and was a complex process that involved replacing existing pricing mechanisms with new ones.

It's estimated that over 1.5 million price labels had to be replaced, which was a massive task considering the limited technology available at the time.

The impact of decimalisation on everyday life was significant, with many people having to adjust to new prices and quantities.

The new system also led to a reduction in the number of coins in circulation, with the old pence coins being phased out over time.

As a result, many people found themselves with a large quantity of old coins they no longer needed, which could be exchanged for new decimal coins.