Students’ societies: history and archival material

From the early days of ICAEW, students’ societies developed as local organisations through which those training to become chartered accountants could manage their own activities, with support from the district society in their area. They were – and remain – independent of ICAEW.

Several societies had been established by 1900 (the Liverpool Chartered Accountants Students' Association, for example, had its inaugural meeting in 1883), and by 1903 they were affiliated through the Union of Chartered Accountants Students’ Societies. For several decades, the Union provided a collective link with the Institute and arranged periodical conferences.

Although the societies’ activities varied, they commonly came to include examination support, general education, residential courses, debates, sport, and social events. Some provided formal tuition for examinations. As such, they offered students services, opportunities and facilities that may not have been available through their firms or principals.

In 1935, the ICAEW Council agreed to support a training scheme administered by a Tuition Authority established by the Union of Chartered Accountants Students’ Societies. Controversy over the appointment of an official tutor and the disclosure of newly enrolled students’ details led eventually (after the preparation of a report on the matter) to the Authority’s closure. The episode reflected a wider debate about how closely ICAEW, as an examining body, should involve itself in tuition. Only following the Parker Report of 1961 did the Institute gradually adopt a more active interest in this area.

From 1948, every articled clerk was required to join their local students’ society, with the subscription paid by their principal. By 1964 the societies collectively had more than 16,000 members and, by 1966, there were 30 societies serving towns and districts across the country.

In more recent times, the general model of student organisation and representation which emerged in the late-19th and early-20th centuries has endured, although its scope and structure have evolved over the years.

By the late 1960s, a new body – the Association of Chartered Accountants Students’ Societies (ACASS) – had been established to collectively represent the interests of the societies, replacing the aforementioned Union. For some time, members of the Association’s executive committee sat, along with members of the standing committees of the ICAEW Council, on a Students’ Liaison Committee. During its existence, the Committee was the principal forum for discussion between ACASS and the Institute.

In the late 1970s, ICAEW initiated a review of the roles of the students’ societies, with a Joint Working Party on Students’ Societies being established by the Institute’s District Societies Committee and ACASS. The Working Party issued a report for discussion and comment in February 1980, followed by further reports in 1981 and 1983; minutes of some of its meetings are held at the London Archives. One outcome of this review appears to have been the dissolution of ACASS circa 1984, and the establishment of a reconstituted National Students Liaison Committee, to which the societies nominated representatives.

Today, there are students’ societies not only across the UK but also overseas. ACA trainees are automatically allocated to a local society according to their address, and each society is run by a committee of students who meet regularly to organise local events, discuss matters that affect students and report back to ICAEW. The primary vehicle for the formal representation of students’ interests is now the ICAEW Student Council, whose members are drawn from societies across the UK and overseas. Its Chair sits on the ICAEW Council.

Throughout their existence, students' societies have supported the education, welfare and professional development of students. As independent organisations, they have helped to shape ICAEW’s education and training policies, and championed students’ interests. They have also provided impartial advice and confidential support, and enabled students to build professional networks, exchange experiences and form lasting connections with their peers.

The table below lists the students’ societies for which the Library holds material — annual reports, magazines, or newsletters, for example — and provides links to the Library catalogue, through which these holdings may be browsed. It is not a comprehensive list of all of the societies which currently exist, or which have existed historically.

Enquiries about particular holdings should be addressed to the Library by phone on +44 (0)20 7920 8620 or by email at library@icaew.com. As many sources are held in an off-site store, requests for access must be submitted in advance. Alternatively, the enquiry team can check them for you to find the information you need.

For information on the students’ societies which are presently active, see the student societies and groups page.