THE Bank of England has unveiled its first polymer bank note, printed on material manufactured at Wigton in Cumbria.

The £5 note, featuring Sir Winston Churchill, will enter circulation in September.

It will be printed on Innovia Security's Guardian material, a flexible plastic film, made and coated at Wigton and then printed by De La Rue in Essex. 

Polymer notes are more durable and more secure than paper notes.

The new £5 was unveiled by Bank of England Governor Mark Carney at Blenheim Palace, Sir Winston's birthplace.

He said: “The new fiver, the first of the Bank’s polymer notes, is cleaner, safer and stronger.

"It incorporates advanced security features making the notes even harder to counterfeit.

"The polymer is also harder wearing, as well as resistant to dirt and moisture, so we expect it to last for at least 2.5 times longer.”

Innovia has invested £40m at Wigton to gear up for the Bank of England contract, including construction of an opacification plant to coat the polymer prior to printing.

Mark Robertshaw, chief executive of Innovia Group, said: "The note is beautifully designed and its introduction in the UK allows for a new generation of cleaner, safer and stronger banknotes with robust security features and the very latest in anti-counterfeit technology.”

Other countries  using Innovia’s polymer include Australia and Canada, where counterfeiting rates decreased by 98 per cent after the introduction of polymer notes in 2011.

The Bank of England is also planning to introduce a £10 polymer note next year, followed by a £20 polymer note by 2020.

Innovia already has the contract for the £10 and is in the process of tendering for the £20 note contract.

Find out more about the polymer fiver, including a video, here: