The British Pound Sterling
The British pound is the official currency used in the United Kingdom and it is a decimal system, with each pound being divided into 100 pence (often referred to as pennies, the singular being one penny).
Coins in circulation are:
1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 50p, £1, £2.
The notes are issued in denominations of £5,10,20 and 50.
Usually £50 notes are not in widespread circulation and in practice some smaller shops and stores will refuse to accept them, because there are a number of counterfeit £50 notes in circulation.
The pound is referred to as the British pound, but Scotland prints its own banknotes, issued by the Bank of Scotland and the Royal Bank of Scotland. English notes are printed by the Bank of England. In practice, the Scottish notes are legal tender in England, but the reality is that many shops and stores in England will refuse to accept them, due to the widespread circulation of counterfeit notes that has taken place over the last few years.
So, if you are planning to travel to Scotland and then England, it is a good idea to spend all your banknotes when you are there, or you can take them to a bank in either Scotland or England and have them exchanged, or paid into your bank account.
The denominations in Scottish notes are the same as English.
The pound is denoted by the symbol £. It is often called a 'quid' or even a 'squid' in the UK.
History of the Pound
The pound sterling is so called because in Saxon times, which was around 1,300 years ago, the sterling was the official currency used by the Saxons. At this point, 240 coins would be taken from one 'pound' of silver. So the name pound and sterling evolved together and have a long history in the English language. The common use was to talk about 'pounds of sterling' to indicate weights and the name has stuck!
The pound became more 'official' in 1158, when King Henry ll decided to introduce a new currency system. The penny was thus born, made out of silver and it carried on as the basis of the currency until as late as the 20th Century.
The symbol for the pound (£) is derived from the Latin acronym LSD, which is basically librae, solidid and denarii that denoted pounds, shillings and pence. This was the original basis for the pound sterling, which was a duodecimal system. The duodecimal system was complicated and used the division of 12 to divide money. So there were 20 shillings to the pound and each shilling was divided into 12 pennies.
However, due to the fact that this was such a tortuous system and it made trading with other countries that had decimal systems, Britain eventually realised that it would have to adopt the decimal system, if it were to be able to trade efficiently. No one really outside of Britain could get to grips with the currency system and it was basically extremely hard to understand. This led to all kinds of problems, particularly in international markets.
Thus in 1971, the British pound sterling as it is known came into being, with one 'new' pound being divided into 100 pennies or 'new pence' as they were called at the time.
The 'new' pence remained new until 1981 and then this word was removed from the coins and they were simply referred to as pence.
Acquiring British Pounds
British pounds can easily be acquired via the extensive and quite comprehensive ATM machine network that exists throughout the United Kingdom. However, if you withdraw money in Scotland, you are likely to be issued with Scottish notes, with perhaps only the odd English note thrown in. The Scottish notes look considerably different to the English ones, but they are legal tender.
Visitors from Europe who travel to Britain will find that an exchange fee is payable if you are withdrawing pounds.
Although some of the outlying islands in Britain, such as the Hebrides or Shetlands are quite remote, you will find that ATM machines also exist here, but they may be confined to being within shops (i.e. closed out of hours) or just located in the towns. There will also not be as many as you will find in the larger towns and cities.
Cashback facilities can also be used if you are paying for something using a credit or debit card. That is to say you can make a payment in British pounds, on your card and then the shop assistant may ask if you wish to have 'cashback'. This is basically a cash advance on the strength of your card and is an excellent way of getting cash, particularly if you are in a remote area, or you are not sure where the nearest ATM machine is.
You may need to pay a fee for this money, depending on your card: namely the type of card you have and the service provided by your card provider.
Spending British Pounds
For some time, the British pound has been very strong, which means that overseas visitors get a reduced number of pounds for their own currency. Consequently, the United Kingdom is viewed as a particularly expensive place to visit.
London, as the capital city is an expensive city, particularly for accommodation, eating and tourist attractions. Travel can also be expensive, but the underground does offer a very good way of getting around London for a very reasonable sum.
Taxis are particularly expensive in London and even though taxi drivers all know the city very well, congestion means that even short trips can take an age.
The main tourist attractions in London such as Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Tower of London etc are located pretty much in the centre of London, so you can see everything within a few days. During the summer months, London can get very crowded with tourists and many of the locals try to leave London for at least some of the summer. Prices may also be more expensive during school holidays: Christmas, Easter and around August.
Outside of London prices vary considerably. There is no one area that is 'very cheap' and some are simply expensive. The larger cities, such as Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Edinburgh and Glasgow are all fairly expensive in terms of hotels, but it can be possible to stay just outside of the main city and get accommodation for a much lower rate than in the cities.
Standard tourist areas, such as Stratford-upon-Avon and the Lake District are also quite expensive, so shop around prior to booking accommodation. If convenient, you can also try to have a 'late deal' where you can get a lower rate on the day, for a hotel room, that otherwise would not be used. If money is really tight, then try to go out of season, when costs are lower, but it may be cold and the full range of facilities may not be open.
Wales and Scotland are also relatively expensive for accommodation and eating out/drinking. In Scotland, particularly in the smaller towns, there may not be an abundance of restaurants or pubs that serve food. In England, the majority of pubs (public houses) will serve food and so there is ample choice. This is not so common in Scotland, with pubs serving drinks and very light snacks, but there is not so much of an emphasis on food as there is in England.
In Wales, food is also served in most pubs, particularly if they are close to tourist routes. In winter, much of Wales is not frequented by tourists, so be aware that some facilities may be closed from late October until early March.
Britain has reasonable standards of service, but some overseas visitors, particularly from North America, may not find the service as friendly or as good as it is back home.
Welsh and Scottish accents can be quite broad, as can Northern English accents, so this can take a little time to get used to.
Safeguarding your pounds
Britain is a relatively safe country. Obviously there are some areas where crime is more prevalent than in others, but generally it is quite safe. London, Manchester and Birmingham have their fair share of pickpockets (London can be particularly bad for this and tourists may be specifically targeted). Violent crime is actually quite low, although sometimes in the larger cities there are instances of people having their bags snatched or some other type of more violent crime.
Although recent media coverage has focussed on the increasing number of violent acts in London, involving knives, statistically it is still a relatively safe city and one that is no more dangerous than many other capital cities in the world.
Edinburgh, Glasgow and Cardiff (major cities in Scotland and Wales) are all relatively safe, with Glasgow much less intimidating than it was during the 1980's and early 1990's. Petty crime is not common, but you should not be complacent about ensuring that your valuables are kept safe.
Security
London and other cities in Britain have experienced terrorist attacks, but there has been no major outbreak in London since 2005. Hence the security risk is no greater than in any other country.
However, if that situation changes then advice is issued by the Home Office as to what category of risk the country is facing and how vigilant people should be.
Overview
Britain is a country of crowds in London and then the most amazingly beautiful countryside all over the rest of the country. It has a rich heritage and culture and is now very diverse in London and then still quite sleepy and gentle in the smaller villages and towns up and down the land.
It is also a country that has many sides to it, with its outlying islands, which are culturally very different to the rest of the United Kingdom and its various historic buildings and mansions, built when Britain was referred to as 'Great Britain'. Yet there are nightclubs, great music scenes and something for everyone to find interesting, no matter how diverse or eclectic those tastes are.
To see all that Britain has to offer, try to see more than just London and the cities. Explore the rich tapestry that is England's countryside and the rugged beauty of Scotland and Wales.
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Useful Links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pound_sterling