The £10 is the first UK banknote with a tactile feature to support blind and partially sighted users and follows on from the Churchill £5. A new £20 note featuring artist JMW Turner is set to follow in 2020.

The Bank says the new £10 note contains sophisticated security features which make it very difficult to counterfeit. It is expected to last at least 2.5 times longer than the current paper £10 notes – around five years – and stay in better condition during day-to-day use.

The series of raised dots in the top left-hand corner helps blind and partially sighted users to identify the denomination of the note. This tactile feature is in addition to the elements already incorporated in Bank of England banknotes for vision impaired users: the tiered sizing, bold numerals, raised print and differing colour palettes.

Winchester Cathedral, Jane Austen’s final resting place, is  shown in gold foil on the front of the note and silver on the back of the note, which also features a quill at the side of the window which changes from purple to orange.

In addition, there is a hologram which contains the word ‘Ten’ and changes to ‘Pounds’ when the note is tilted, and a book-shaped copper foil patch which contains the letters JA.

On the reverse of the note is Jane Austen's portrait with a quotation from her best known work, Pride and Prejudice, which says: ‘I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading.’ The line is from a character called Caroline Bingley who, in fact, has no interest in books and is merely trying to impress Mr Darcy, a potential suitor.

Victoria Cleland, the Bank’s chief cashier, said: ‘Today is an exciting day. It is wonderful to see the inspirational author Jane Austen celebrated on the new £10, and even more poignant being launched during the 200th anniversary of her death. I am grateful to the cash industry for their support in bringing the cleaner, safer, stronger notes to the public.’

All existing paper £10 notes featuring Charles Darwin will be gradually withdrawn from circulation as they are banked by retailers and businesses. Their legal tender status is set to be withdrawn in spring 2018, and the Bank said the exact date will be announced at least three months in advance.

The first £10 note to be printed will be given to the Queen, the second to Prince Philip, the third to Theresa May, the prime minister, and the fourth to the Philip Hammond, the Chancellor. The Bank of England also holds back some other early-printed notes to give to museums and other institutions.

Notes with very low or unusual serial numbers can sell for many times their face value.

According to ChangeChecker.com, which tracks valuations for notes and coins, in the case of the Jane Austen £10 these include 16 121775 and 18 071817, which are the author’s date of birth and death, 17 751817, which is Jane Austen's birth and death year combined. Serial number 28 011813 is also one to watch out for, as it is the date that the author's celebrated novel Pride and Prejudice was first published.

The Bank of England is holding a charity auction of some of the new £10 bank notes. It will take place on October 6, starting at 11am, run by Spink.

More information about the new £10 note is available here

Report by Pat Sweet