Foreign and Commonwealth Office and predecessors: Information, News and Guidance...

This series contains registered files of the Information, News and Guidance Departments. The records relate to the provision of factual guidance to overseas posts on government policy, and the policy, financial and administrative affairs of the overseas information services, plus the work of liaising with UK and overseas press, radio and television.

By former file reference

For earlier Foreign Office information departments records see FO 953

For earlier Colonial Office information departments records see CO 1027 DO 191 DO 192 DO 194

For earlier Commonwealth Relations and Commonwealth Office information departments records see:

• Commonwealth Office, Information Policy Department, 1966-1968
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, European Communities Information Unit, 1970-1972
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Guidance and Information Policy Department, 1970-1977
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Guidance Department, 1968-1970
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Information Administration Department, 1968-1977
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Information Department, 1980-2002
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Information Policy Department, 1968-1970
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Information Policy Department, 1978-1980
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office, News Department, 1968-1968
• Foreign Office, Information Administration Department, 1967-1968
• Foreign Office, Information Policy Department, 1967-1968

From 1999 Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Topics

International

Radio and television

Joint Foreign Office/Commonwealth Office information departments were established before the formation of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in October 1968 to provide an integrated information service for the two offices in the run up to their merger. From October 1968, there were four distinct FCO information departments: Guidance Department; Information Administration Department; Information Policy Department; and News Department.

A merged Guidance and Information Policy Department was formed in 1970, and in that same year an European Communities Information Unit was established to handle information work relating to the UK's application to join the three European communities. The Unit lasted only until 1972, when information work relation to the application became one of the functions of the new European Integration Department (2).