Spotlight On The Bristol Pound Legacy

It’s been budget week in the UK … and talk of money, finances and taxes leads me to the interesting story of The Bristol Pound. The Bristol Pound was a local currency that operated from 2012 to 2021. Among its aims was to build community wealth and to raise awareness of the importance of local trading. The Bristol Pound was the first local currency to have digital and paper money from the outset; and was the first local currency to be accepted for payment of local taxes. Working for The Bristol Pound, my guest this week, Diana Finch, wrote a book “Value Beyond Money”, outlining the story of The Bristol Pound …. I caught up with Diana to find out more…. Hi Diana 😊

Hello. My name is Diana. I live in Bristol, but I only moved here because I got the job at the Bristol Pound. Before that I lived in many different places – Bath, Wiltshire, Devon, Kent, London and Edinburgh. I’m a mother of two grown up girls. In my spare time I currently enjoy dancing and playing the piano badly. I’ve worked in accounts most of my life, and for the last 24 years, I’ve focused on leadership roles within the voluntary sector.

Who or what inspired you to write the interesting Bristol Pound story “Value Beyond Money”?

When it became clear that the Bristol Pound would be wound up on my watch, I suggested to the board that when the time came, I’d like to write a book to leave a legacy for the organisation. At first it seemed like an easy thing to offer, but as the time got closer, I realised that writing a book would be more of a commitment than I’d thought!

Your book highlighted the enthusiasm, hard work and encouragement; as well as the importance of the aims; and unfortunately, its eventual closure in 2023 encompassing the Bristol Pound/BristolPay. It really is a “warts ‘n’ all” tale. Although you were not involved at the beginning of the Bristol Pound set up; did you discover anything surprising during your research that you were perhaps unaware of?

I was really completely unaware of the story as it unfolds in chapters two and three of the book – from when the founders first met, through the height of its success and fame, right through to when the organisation was really struggling (which led to the vacancy for managing director being advertised). The biggest surprise was that so much of our funding was to create a mutual credit scheme that we never actually got off the ground! Part of me wishes I’d known more when I joined. But then maybe I would have felt more constricted in what I could do. But the main thing is, I’m really pleased to have understood all that background to my work now, as it puts it into a fuller perspective.

The Bristol Pound/ Pay aims were to raise awareness of the importance of localisation of trade to help towards reducing food miles/co2 emissions and to build community wealth by trapping money in the local currency. It was the first local currency to have digital & paper money from the outset; and the first local currency to enable the payment of local taxes in the local currency. Who was attracted to the ideals of the local currency and why, do you think the attraction wasn’t maintained or extended?

The people who were attracted to our ideals initially were the people who already thought like us – who had a similar understanding of the economy and the importance of localisation. It’s no surprise, as our marketing messages very much focused on our purpose. We thought, I think, that once we’d got people who understood the cause on board, the use of the currency would just grow organically. But in reality, the only people who ever joined were people who thought like us. It didn’t really speak to people who hadn’t thought in these ways about the economy, so they didn’t join. And without that critical mass, we could never really grow to the point where we would either be viable as a business ourselves, or create real impact in the economy.

How much do you think people in Bristol would have benefited, in general, from having a local currency?

It’s very hard to say. And it would have depended on other institutions really getting on board and viewing the currency as an infrastructure project, rather than a niche hobby. I think with some additional collaboration, the potential was enormous. For example, imagine if payments in the currency were made to people struggling with food poverty, instead of using that money to support food banks. We could then encourage local grocers and farmers to set up markets in parts of the city particularly affected by food poverty, which the people in receipt of the payments could spend their money at. This would be amazing. Instead of food banks undermining the local food economy, as they currently do, we could be underpinning the local food economy whilst alleviating food poverty. And instead of people in food poverty having to put up with whatever happened to be available at the food bank, they would have choice and control over the food they buy. There are lots of ideas like that – the scope for experimenting with different ways of addressing our social, environmental and economic problems was (and is) huge.

Reflecting on other local currency schemes worldwide, is there any method or thought that could have, on hindsight, been adopted by Bristol to ensure it remained buoyant?

In South Korea, lots of local currencies have been set up in the last decade. They have been heavily supported by local governments, with social benefits being paid out in the local currencies. The reason the local authorities are keen on this is that the money they give out in benefits gets spent in the local economy. So, they achieve two positive impacts with the funding they provide – alleviating poverty and boosting local businesses. I think that kind of approach would have been really helpful, as it would have meant that the money was available to a much wider demographic, rather than only to those who align themselves with a particular economic way of thinking. At that scale, the impact would have been much greater.

I was particularly impressed to read about the artwork on the old Bristol pound notes and so I was pleased to see the souvenir notes on display on your website. They are so colourful. Do you have a favourite or two that you are particularly drawn to?

Perhaps it’s because they’re the notes that I know the best, but the 2018 series are my favourites. I would find it hard to choose between them. They all feel very iconic to Bristol, though I guess urban foxes (the beautiful £B10 note) are found in most towns and cities these days.

Growing up, did you always want a career in finance or did you have completely different career aspirations?

I really had no idea what I wanted to do when I was younger. I fell into bookkeeping because I was good with numbers. And then I decided to work in the voluntary sector after I became a mother, as I started to become more aware of the numbers of families really struggling. It was only when I got the job at the Bristol Pound at the age of 53 that I really thought, ‘Now this is what I really want to do when I grow up!’

Is “Value Beyond Money” available to purchase worldwide?

Yes – it should be available anywhere through Amazon, I think.

Personal now – what outfits and shoes would you normally be found wearing?

I have to say, I think I’m a bit of a mess! I try not to buy new clothes because of the impact on the environment. A lot of my clothes are from charity shops or are hand-me-downs. I also make some of my own clothes – that way I can buy organic cotton and make the styles I want. If you try to buy clothes made ethically, there is little choice, and the costs are astronomical! When I’m dancing, I wear a lot of skirts and dresses that flow or swing out (wearing shorts underneath, for modesty.) Otherwise, I’m generally in trousers or jeans with t-shirts and jumpers. In terms of shoes, they’re nearly all flat. Clumpy boots most of the winter, and sensible walking sandals in the summer.

Do you have any favourite shops or online sites?

All the charity shops down the high street are my favourite boutiques! I tend to use online shops for things like my face oil and toothpaste – I try to buy products that don’t come in plastic containers, and without any chemicals or artificial fragrances. I rarely wear any makeup, and don’t possess any perfume. I don’t wear jewellery either.

What’s next on your clothes/shoe wish list?

I’ve got some fabric that I want to make into a skater style dress. I thought I would do it in time for this summer – but it will have to be next summer now!

Boots or Shoes?

Boots for walking – more support and I find them more flexible than shoes. I’m thinking of trying out barefoot-style footwear next time I need to replace my boots. Shoes for dancing – with leather bottoms for ease of spinning.