The next pound notes: a puffin, a barn owl, a bumblebee and a hedgehog
Serguey Asael Shinder1 min readThe Bank of England announced on 7 October the four animals that will be the central images on its next series of banknotes: the Atlantic puffin, the barn owl, the buff-tailed bumblebee and the European hedgehog — one for each denomination.
How they were chosen. A public consultation that ran from 3 June to 3 July drew 478,531 responses — the most the Bank has ever received on banknote imagery — and 2,549,003 selections across a shortlist of 18 animals in three categories, drawn up with a panel of wildlife experts. The barn owl, the bumblebee and the hedgehog topped their categories; the puffin was picked as the most popular marine animal, which the Bank says adds variety and makes denominations easier to tell apart.
What is not decided yet. Which animal goes on which note will be announced closer to launch. The designs may include other elements from nature, possibly other shortlisted animals, and will keep the monarch's portrait. Because designing, testing and printing takes years, the Bank expects the first note of the new series over the next few years.
Why redesign at all. The project, started in July 2025, has counterfeit resilience as its main goal; nature was chosen as the theme in March 2026 after a first consultation with more than 44,000 responses. The current Series G notes date from 2016 to 2021 and carry Churchill, Austen, Turner and Turing.
Cash in numbers. The Bank notes that cash is still the preferred payment method for about one in seven people and that the amount of cash in circulation reached £91.5 billion at the end of February 2026. Rhys Phillips, who becomes Chief Cashier on 19 October, will deliver the series.