IDENTITY STATEMENT
Reference code(s): GB 0505 RHC AS120-164
Held at: Royal Holloway, University of London
Title: Student's Meeting/Union of Royal Holloway College
Date(s): 1895-1973
Level of description: sub-fonds
Extent: 6 boxes, 4 volumes
Name of creator(s): Royal Holloway College | Students' Meeting; Royal Holloway College Union Society
CONTEXT
Administrative/Biographical history:
The Students' Meeting was the recognised channel of communication between the Principal, the administrative and domestic staff, and the students on matters affecting student welfare, discipline and domestic problems. The Senior Student (nominated by the Principal from the fourth and fifth year students, and elected by the whole student body) presided over a hierarchy of First, Second and Third Year Meetings, which reported to the main Students' Meeting, where messages were received from the Principal and other members of staff.
In 1923, the Student's Meeting reformed as the Royal Holloway College Union Society and became affiliated to the National Union of Students. In 1925 it took over the responsibilities and functions of the College Meeting, which included the administration of funds for various College societies and committees.
By 1966, the provision of a Student's Union building on the Royal Holloway Campus resulted in a bar and a shop for students. By 1968, Union activities had become increasingly demanding, leading to the creation of the first full-time President in 1969-1970. In the same year, the President and another student representative (elected by the main body of students) were given a place on the College Council.
CONTENT
Scope and content/abstract:
Constitutional papers and handbooks, 1923, 1937-[1950], and 1971-1973. Minute books of General Meetings of the Student's Meeting (later Union), 1895-1956. Reports and memoranda, 1914-1941, including material concerning the Central Committee for War Work, 1914-1918; reports on subscriptions to the Theoric and Games Fund, 1927; and a report on the examination system of Royal Holloway College, 1938. Statement of Account, 1934-1935, and estimated expenditure, 1936-1937. Papers of the Student's Union Committees, 1898-1947, notably minute books of the Theoric and Games Fund, 1921-1929, the First Year Meeting, 1907-1947, the Second Year Meeting, 1913-1935, and the Third Year Meeting, 1914-1937; and albums created by the College Albums Committee, 1898-1956, containing photographs and poems. Records of the Senior Student, 1906-1944, mainly comprising letters from various Principals of Royal Holloway College and members of academic and administrative staff, relating to domestic and social issues of the College, and letters and papers relating to national student bodies and general student affairs in Great Britain.
ACCESS AND USE
Language/scripts of material: English
System of arrangement:
The papers are arranged in bound volumes or files according to subject.
Conditions governing access:
Administrative and Committee papers are closed for 30 years from the last date on file. Papers relating to individuals are usually closed for 100 years from the subject's birth. Users are advised to consult the College Archivist for specific details.
Conditions governing reproduction:
Copies of open material may be supplied, subject to the condition of the original. Requests to publish original material should be directed to the College Archivist.
Physical characteristics:
Finding aids:
'A guide to Royal Holloway College Archives' by Derryan Paul, Jun 1973.
ARCHIVAL INFORMATION
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information:
Accruals:
Archival history:
Immediate source of acquisition:
The papers were deposited in the archives after 1945.
ALLIED MATERIALS
Existence and location of originals:
Existence and location of copies:
Related material:
The Royal Holloway, University of London Archives hold papers of the College Meeting, 1890-1925 (RHC AS100-102); papers of the Senior Student, 1909-1944 (RHC AR135-136); photographs of students, 1890-1943 (RHC PH206-207 and 270-271).
Publication note:
The history of Royal Holloway College, 1886-1986 (Constable, London, 1987), by Caroline Bingham.
DESCRIPTION NOTES
Note:
Archivist's note: Compiled by Sarah Aitchison as part of the AIM25 project.
Date(s) of descriptions: Apr 2000