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London Metropolitan University Special Collections

City of London Polytechnic - London Guildhall University

IDENTITY STATEMENT

Reference code(s): GB 1432 CLPLGU

Held at: London Metropolitan University Special Collections

Title: City of London Polytechnic - London Guildhall University

Date(s): 1969-2002

Level of description: Collection (fonds)

Extent: 69 boxes ca. 17 linear metres (CLP) - 33 boxes ca. 12.5 linear metres (LGU)

Name of creator(s): City of London Polytechnic and London Guildhall University

CONTEXT

Administrative/Biographical history:

Anthony Crossland, in his notable 1965 Woolwich speech, laid out the Government's vision for a binary system of Higher Education within the UK: i.e. universities and polytechnics, where the latter would concentrate on high-level vocational skills. He claimed that, whilst it is always sensible to build on what already exists if rapid expansion is to be achieved within limited resources, it is also important to offer an alternative channel to H.E. that is distinct from the established University system in a number of ways:

Distinct in traditions that have been inherited from its precursors in the non-university sector

Distinct in its adaptability and responsiveness to social change

Distinct organisationally

Distinct in the kind of students that it attracts

The City of London Polytechnic was formed in 1970 from an amalgamation of the City of London College, the Sir John Cass College and the Navigation College at Tower Hill and it was one of the first of the London-based polytechnics to be so designated. It was initially organised into 4 Schools:

The Sir John Cass School of Science and Technology

The Sir John Cass School of Art

The School of Navigation

The School of Business Studies

In 1972 it became one of the first institutions in the country approved to run a modular degree. In 1977 it took responsibility for the running of the Fawcett Library (subsequently renamed the Women's Library), the oldest established women's library in the UK. It merged with the London College of Furniture in 1990. In 1992 the Polytechnic was granted university status - and, with that, its own degree-awarding powers - by the Further and Higher Education Act of that year and was renamed London Guildhall University.

CONTENT

Scope and content/abstract:

Records of the City of London Polytechnic and London Guildhall University, London, comprising (but not limited to):

Governance papers; Annual/statutory reports and accounts; Strategic plans; Ceremonial Prospectuses; Course handbooks; Students' Union magazines and handbooks; Student records*; Staff magazines

* Requests involving personal data will be handled in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and on a case-by-case basis.

ACCESS AND USE

Language/scripts of material: English.

System of arrangement:

Conditions governing access:

Enquiries should be made by email to specialcollections@londonmet.ac.uk

Conditions governing reproduction:

Details available upon request

Physical characteristics:

Finding aids:

ARCHIVAL INFORMATION

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information:

The surviving archives of all precursor institutions of London Metropolitan University are currently being appraised in detail following their relocation to a central facility at 25 Old Castle Street, London, E1 7NT

Accruals:

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

Internal accumulation by London Guildhall University during the course of business.

ALLIED MATERIALS

Existence and location of originals:

Existence and location of copies:

Related material:

The Public Record Office holds papers relating to the City of London Polytechnic at BS 9/7/19; COAL 78/357 (Energy conservation); ED 114/1652/4 (modular degree scheme); ED/114/1652/7 (Sociology Department); ED 182/111 (College schemes); ED 271/42/3 (Law Degree courses). London Metropolitan Archives holds papers relating to the Polytechnic under the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA).

Publication note:

City of London Polytechnic and London Guildhall University by Sean Glynn (London Guildhall University, 2002).

DESCRIPTION NOTES

Note:

Archivist's note: Compiled by Robert Baxter as part of the RSLP AIM25 Project. Sources: London Guildhall University website; survey information by Janet Foster, May 2000; records management survey of City of Polytechnic administrative and academic departments by Meg Sweet, Jan 1987; catalogue of the City of London Polytechnic archives by Meg Sweet, Feb 1987.