Time to cash in old tenners

OLD £10 notes must be spent by March next year when they stop being legal tender, the Bank of England has announced.

A use-by date of March 1, 2018, has been slapped on the paper money after the introduction of the plastic version in September. However, old notes can be exchanged at the Bank after that date.

The new £10 banknote, featuring a picture of author Jane Austen, is the first Bank of England note with a tactile feature to help blind and partially-sighted users.

Like the £5 note already in circulation featuring Sir Winston Churchill, the new £10 banknote is made from polymer.

About 55 per cent of £10 notes are polymer, currently.

Paper £5 notes, withdrawn in May, can be exchanged at the Bank of England in person or by post.

Old round pound coins went out of circulation last month and can no longer be spent. But banks will credit a customer’s account if they are taken into a branch, or they can be donated to charity.