Cabinet Office, Registered Files, etc

Division within CAB

1866-2007

A collection of miscellaneous records, some Cabinet papers dating back to the nineteenth century, will be found in CAB 1.

Precedent books dealing with Cabinet procedure, and that of its committees, will be found in CAB 181.

The registered files of the Office from 1916 will be found in CAB 21, with a few files that were originally held back on security grounds in CAB 104. A new registry system, introduced in 1966, separated the files into subject and committee series: selected files are in CAB 164 and CAB 165 respectively; and the Defence Secretariat series was also started at this time - selected files are in CAB 196.

Press notices will be found in CAB 173.

A series of memoranda giving guidance to ministers on questions of procedure will be found in CAB 171.

A selection of registered files relating to the internal administration of the Office will be found in CAB 150 and personal files are in CAB 160. The records of the Departmental Security Officer of the period of the Second World War and just after are in CAB 116.

There are a number of file series of bodies or officers attached, from time to time, to the Cabinet Office. For the period of the Second World War, there are the records of the Cabinet War Rooms in CAB 156, the Secretariat of the Minister of Defence in CAB 120 and those of the Special Secret Information Centre in CAB 121. Telegrams passing through the Office in this period are in CAB 105.

For the post war period, file series of the Economic Adviser to Harold Wilson as Prime Minister are in CAB 147, of the Paymaster General and the Minister without Portfolio relating to Government Information Co-ordination in the late 1960s in CAB 151 and of the Social Services Co-ordinating Staff in CAB 152. Records of the Civil Service Medical Advisory Service are in CAB 174.

Digital records of the Central Information Technology Unit relating to the Government Direct initiative which were in CAB 172 have been transferred to CAB 202.

File series relating to the Joint Intelligence Committee, and of the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster are in CAB 163 and CAB 170 respectively, while records relating to the Chief Scientific Advisor are in CAB 168 and CAB 178, records of the Constitution Unit are in CAB 198 and the records of the co-ordination of accession into EEC are in CAB 199.

Cabinet Office: Security Procedures and Practices in the Public Service Records: CAB 318.

There are also the records of a number of committees of enquiry into certain issues or events which had secretaries supplied by, or otherwise reported to, the Cabinet Office. These are as follows:

• Hamilton and Cromer and Pickford Commissions on the operations in Mesopotamia and the Dardanelles during the First World War: CAB 19.
• Tube Alloys Consultative Committee and Combined Policy Committee, which looked at issues relating to atomic energy: CAB 126.
• Templer Committee on the setting up of a Commonwealth Youth Trust: CAB 144.
• Brabin Committee into the case of Timothy Evans: CAB 143.
• Longford, Stewart and Crossman Youth Inquiry: CAB 153.
• Renton Commission on the preparation of legislation: CAB 135.
• Review Committee on Overseas Representation: CAB 162.
• Wakeham Commission on the reform of the House of Lords: CAB 180.
• Better Regulation Commission registered files: CAB 203.

Public Record(s)

English

37 series

Topics

Government finances

Europe and Russia

Computing

Conflict

Nuclear energy

Crown lands and estates

Intelligence

Wills and probate

Communications

Armed Forces (General Administration)

Operations, battles and campaigns