Library
Michelle Crowther
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The university houses the archive of the College of Guidance Studies which was established in Sidcup and later at Hextable. Read on to find more about the College and what its archive contains.
A History of Careers Training
Although youth employment work was introduced in 65 local authorities in the UK as early as 1910. It was not until the mid-1940s that the need for careers training was recognised. At this period, careers officers were known as youth employment officers.
In 1948, the Principal Careers Officer persuaded Kent County Council to set up a training centre at Lamorbey Park in Sidcup. This centre was known as the Kent Training College for the Youth Employment Service. It later became known as the Kent College for the Careers Service and finally in 1993 as the College of Guidance Studies.
In 1951, The Piercy Committee on Recruitment and Training for the Youth Employment Service recommended that a full-time training course should be established for youth employment officers with the entry requirement set at advanced general certificate standard. Suggestions that the training should take place in universities was rejected in favour of expanding the provision at Lamorbey.[i]
A move to Swanley
In 1967, the Kent Training College moved to the former horticultural college at Hextable, near Swanley which had been founded in 1889, and remained there until the year 2000.
In 1974, the Careers Service run by the Department for Employment and the local authority youth employment services came together to form a single Careers Service.
The professional qualification offered at this time was the Diploma in Careers Guidance. It was offered full-time from 1974 and part time from 1989.
From 1985, the College continued to offer the Diploma in Careers Guidance but in addition offered continuing professional development courses, NVQs and BTECs. It also undertook research both commissioned and self-directed and sought to expand overseas.
As a result of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, the College chose to opt out of local authority control and became an incorporated body with charitable status funded directly from central government via the Higher Education Funding Council for England in 1993. At the same time it changed its name to The College of Guidance Studies (COGS)
The College of Guidance Studies
The College of Guidance Studies (COGS) was run by a board of governors consisting of seven independent members, the Principal, a member of staff, a student and three co-opted members. There was also a Clerk to the Board of Governors who took minutes and attended to business matters. The other directors of the College usually attended meetings, which were held four times a year. There were three main sub-committees: the audit sub-committee, the finance sub-committee and the personnel sub-committee.
In 1994, the government announced a shake up of careers education, launching Better Choices. The Education Secretary, Gillian Shepherd said “We have to give all our people the opportunity to give of their best, from their very first day at school to the end of their working lives”[ii]
From 1998 onwards, the college governors decided to seek a merger partner. By 1999, it had selected Canterbury Christ Church University College. In August 2000, COGS had officially merged with CCCUC. The College’s work in training careers officers therefore continued but now part of a new department known as the Centre for Career and Personal Development, within the then Faculty of Education at Canterbury Christ Church University College.[iii]
On merging with Canterbury Christ Church University College the Governors’ Papers were selected for permanent preservation and were sent to the care of the College Secretary of Canterbury Christ Church University College. Student records were retained by the new Centre for Career and Personal Development. In 2002, the Governors’ Papers were transferred to the Library where they are now kept in the archives.
The College of Guidance Studies Archives
The records mainly consist of Governors’ Papers and papers of the various sub-committees. There are also many papers connected with COGS’ merger with Canterbury Christ Church University College. There is one Unofficial file, which is a collection of items of historical interest about the College. The majority of the material dates from 1970 to 2000.
If you would like to book an appointment to see the archive, please email library.canterbury@canterbury.ac.uk.
[i] David, T. (1951) ‘Youth Employment Officers’, Times Educational Supplement, 20 Jul, 587, available: https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/KJZPMW389072371/GDCS?u=ccc_uni&sid=bookmark-GDCS&pg=11&xid=e1ca3a3b [accessed 01 Jun 2026].
[ii] Hazell, T. (1994) ‘Government to shake up careers education’, Daily Mail, 03 Nov, 63, available: https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/EE1860918686/GDCS?u=ccc_uni&sid=bookmark-GDCS&pg=57&xid=da172ef2 [accessed 01 Jun 2026].
[iii] Note the University no longer offers training for careers guidance.
