How a visit to Margate got me thinking about cash

Last week was the autumn half-term at my children’s school, and we decided to spend a few days by the sea in Margate, to get a bit of fresh sea air and have a change of scene. My other half had just taken a big TV job and couldn’t get any time off, so I wanted to make a good plan to keep me and the kids busy.

My mum grew up in Herne Bay, and it’s where her sister (my auntie) Judy still lives, so we thought we’d all get together in this cute seaside town nearby. My mum booked an airbnb and kindly drove, with our suitcases, the kids’ scooters, and a big shop I’d done loaded into her boot, so I could get the train with the kids. There’s a direct one from Kings Cross St Pancras to Margate- it only takes an hour and a half. Lovely. On the way me and the kids did colouring and relaxed- what a luxury- I enjoyed shading this stained glass picture, which took about the length of the journey. I really enjoyed not having the pressure of concentrating on the motorway behind a steering wheel- thanks Mum!

From Margate station, you can walk just a few minutes downhill, and there it is – the sea! The kids were beside themselves with excitement, running towards it, shouting “there it is!” And “Look at the horizon!” When we got to the majestic railings, we were greeted by stunning views of the sandy beach that goes on for miles, and a lovely wide promenade, that was so peaceful when you’re off the main strip. We live in a pretty built-up area, and it was great being able to see the kids run for practically miles and have real freedom- it’s hard to do that in London.

Margate is a great place to explore, with lots to see and enjoy. There’s a Turner Gallery with beautiful sea views and a lovely gift shop, and an Anthony Gormley statue which appears and disappears with the tide. My mum found it very moving – it reminded her of the fragility of life. There’s also a gorgeous pink neon sign on the Tourist Information Centre which lights up across the bay. It’s by Tracey Emin and it says “I never stopped loving you”. Looking at it at night across the dark cove, it was like a beautiful form of lighthouse, and it reminded me of those chapels in Vegas where you can dash in and get married in a flash.

There’s also lots to explore in little lanes – a gorgeous bookshop with a rocking chair, loads of places to eat, inside and outside, and cute vintage shops too. Not to mention some great places to get fish and chips to have on the beach- a Margate must. Some of my friends excitedly recommended places in advance (“you just HAVE to go to the pink place along the seafront!”) I ate some of the best chips I’ve ever tasted, and we came across a beautiful yellow house along the promenade which is apparently always decorated like Christmas inside. I was quite desperate to know who lives there!

I was planning on having a bit of a break from everything and clearing the old mental cobwebs, but sometimes, a subject that you care about comes and pulls on your coattails, whether you’re planning on it or not.

The first thing we saw when we got to the station – even before we had seen the sea, was a cash machine which looked like one of those ones that charge you £2, but this one was free to use. “What a result!” I thought. “This cash is going to be spent in the businesses of Margate”. I also wondered why we don’t have these everywhere- free cash machines! I think the powers that be, whoever they are, are totally out of touch with how much people still need and like using cash.

One of the main complaints I hear about in Bounds Green where we live is how the cash machine by the station is out of action, and how the one at Tesco’s often doesn’t have any cash in it. One local dad recently told me he had to give his teenage daughter his own bank card when she went out with her friends, as he couldn’t get cash out locally anywhere to give her. We all joked that she’d probably be half-way to Paris right now – funny but not really funny when you can’t even get out £20 to give to your teenage daughter.

Once we’d done some exploring, we settled into our apartment which was right on the seafront, and realised we were about five doors down from a beachfront arcade, called “The Flamingo”. I loved the sign, it reminded me of 1920s ballrooms and those ladies who danced in a line in sequins (why don’t we have those shows any more?!)

I’d been looking forward to seeing some arcades. At home, I’d gone through the change box and separated out the coins that we could use (which was very therapeutic). They looked kind of beautiful when laid out on the floor. We’ve all been using cash a lot more in our house. A few months ago I started giving my children- my daughter who is 7, D and my son who is 9, A, weekly pocket money of £5 on a Saturday morning. It has gone down well, you won’t be surprised to hear. My son loved getting his first note with a King on it and traced it, and I taught them how to make a king and queen smile by folding notes. I’ve bought them wallets, and they’re in charge of their own money- whether they spend it or save it. They can make extra money by selling toys they no longer want that I put on local Facebook groups too, and it’s been good for their arithmetic. It’s led to more things happening too. I’ve realised how much they like autonomy, and they now take out their own rucksacks with toys that they choose when we go on a trip.

Heading to the arcades, everyone was excited. But it was Auntie Judy who’d really come up trumps. She’d saved her change over a few weeks, and gave A and D a special purse each filled with coins. And these weren’t just any purses – the soft leather one belonged to my late grandma, Joan, or Nana to me- who was my mum and Judy’s mum. She loved an arcade. We looked at the purses and thought of Nana. “She was very careful with money”, says my mum thoughtfully. “But also very generous”. It was true. She was both careful and generous. I was reminded of her love of opera and novels, and how she always planned what outfit she was going to wear for an event about a week in advance, and would excitedly tell you down the phone. Nana got a lot of enjoyment out of life, family trips to the seafront being one of them … watching us all trampolining, and then spending a couple of quid in the arcade.

When I started using cash again, and thinking about coins, I was reminded of fairground rides and arcades. There’s something about the magic of childhood in coins and notes isn’t there. A and D were given £5 a day for the arcade on top of their wallets of change, and set to work. (We took this seriously- meals were generally had at our place to save money- cash was spent on treats or in the arcade).

Us adults love the coin arcades, but these days, it’s not just about coins or prizes – you can win strips of yellow tickets. It’s quite good fun- you can end up with reams and reams of them, and A and D were in control of their own stash. They’d feed them through a machine which gobbled them up and counted them, spouting out a receipt with the number of tickets they were worth, which was great fun in itself, and they’d be surrounded by receipts and colourful ping pong balls. It was great for them adding things up, and again, they had complete autonomy, deciding what to spend them on in the arcade shop, where everything was priced up by the price in tickets.

You needed a lot of tickets to get things, I’m not going to lie, but A and D still loved being in charge of their own destiny- winning tickets, adding things up, choosing their goods from the shop. Hours were spent in the arcade with them sitting on the floor, thinking, surrounded by bits of white paper and balls, and looking through the windows … “I can have one notebook, a lollipop, and that sticker book”.

There was also a free cash machine at the back, and a sign out the front saying “free cash”. Now I know what you’re thinking- these arcade people are just after our money! And yes- of course they want you to know you can get cash out so you spend it there. But it really got me thinking. Why don’t we have free cash machines in more places? There was also a “tap for a tenner!” contactless point. When the card machine went down in the local chemist last week, this would have been very handy!

My kids might have loved the tickets, but it was the 2P machines that me, my mum and Judy loved. Putting a pound into the change machine, 50 delicious 2 P coins came clattering out into the bottom tray.

It’s quite mesmerising, playing the 2 P shelf arcade game, in case you’ve forgotten. Watching the 2 P’s wizz down the chute, and land on the moving shelves- hoping they’ll land when there’s space, make a position for themselves, and not disappear on top of a layer of coins. When I played, three 2 P’s were hanging over the front looking extremely precarious. “They’re a gonner” I thought. Incredibly, after 50 coins went in, the same three coins were there at the front. It really made me think- they looked so precarious- but actually they were pretty stable. I thought about busy and stressful days I’ve had, when everything has felt like it could fall apart at any moment, but how everything was much more secure than it had felt.

On the flip side, looking at these three coins, I thought of moments when I’d anticipated an easy win- just like how I thought I was going to win these coins – a TV interview was going to come through, a freelance job was going to happen, that had escaped my grasp. Appearances can be deceptive. Sometimes things can feel precarious, and aren’t, sometimes we don’t get the easy wins we think.

I loved the sunsets of Margate and looking out to sea – but what really got me thinking, was the 2 P coins that didn’t move at the front shelf of the arcade coin machine. I know Turner painted a lot here. He painted the sunsets- and they’re truly beautiful. But if he’d have lived a few hundred years later and I’d have bumped into him, I’d have suggested he headed to The Flamingo- it might not be as scenic for painting, but that’s the place that really got me thinking.

Carla Francome, November 2024