CSSC CENTENARY & HERITAGE

100 Years of our CSSC

  • 1863

    The Football Association was formed

    A picture of the Civil Service Football Club from 1863 with an old ball next to it and the year 1863 written in the top right-hand cornerOn 26 October 1893, George Wawn represented the Civil Service Football Club (CSFC) at a meeting in the Freemasons' Tavern in Covent Garden with 10 other football clubs.

    Between them, they produced a set of laws for association football, and created a governing body - The Football Association. Of the original 11 clubs at the meeting, only the CSFC survives today.

  • 1921

    CSSC was formed

    The old CSSC logo with the crown on top next to the year 1921At an enthusiastic meeting held on 4 November 1921 at Central Hall, Westminster, the Chairman, Sir Aubrey Symonds, KCB, Second Secretary, Ministry of Health, proposed the first resolution, as follows: "that this meeting, representative of Civil Service Sport in all its branches, now records its opinion that the time has arrived for the formation of a United Civil Service Sports Club" the resolution being duly seconded.
    The Civilian, 12 November 1921

  • 1926

    Chiswick opens its doors

    A picture of Chiswick from 1926 alongside an old picture of a team.The opening of the civil service headquarters' ground at Chiswick. H.M, was presided over by King George IV. His Royal Highness inspected the teams together with the respective captains.

  • 1929

    Civil Service Athletics Association meeting

    A selection of old athletics pictures alongside the year 1929Civil Service Athletics Association (CSAA) had a meeting at Stamford Bridge. The CCAA held its first championship in 1864 with such events as:

    • 100 yard dash
    • Pole Leaping
    • Cricket Ball
    • Hopping 50 yards and 100 yards.

  • 1942

    Twenty-one years of achievement

    A certificate with the old CSSC logo that reads 'twenty one years of achievement'The President of the Civil Service Sports Council, H.R.H. The Duke of Gloucester K.G, sent his congratulations to all those concerned on reaching the milestone of 21 years of achievement and urging the importance of the CSSC “during these difficult years of War but still more in the reconstruction period afterwards”.

  • 1946

    A Royal Visit

    Old pictures of the royal visit alongside the year 1946His Royal Highness King George V and the Queen Consort visit the bowls green at Chiswick

  • 1953

    Visit from her Majesty the Queen to Chiswick

    A picture of HM Queen Elizabeth IIHM Queen Elizabeth II visits Chiswick sports ground on 25 July where she spends time with her own civil servants.
    Civil Service Sports Journal, July 1953

  • 1972

    Olympic Games message

    Extract from the news sheet of Civil Service Sports Council, January 1972 alongside the olympic rings logo and the year 1972Sir Richard Hayward C.B.E. has sent the following message on the subject of the 1972 Olympic Games. “As in the past, the Civil Service Sports Council has been asked to play a part in raising money to help send a British team to the Olympic Games, to be held this year in Munich between 26 August and 10 September."
    Extract from the news sheet of Civil Service Sports Council, January 1972

  • 1981

    CSSC Festival of Sport

    The programme from the 1981 festival of sport alongside two pictures of people playing basketball3,000 members helped CSSC celebrate its Diamond Jubilee in the presence of HRH The Duchess of Gloucester at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on 22 May.

  • 1987

    Mussum ipsum cacilds

    Extract from CSSC yearbook 1988 showing the civil service riding club on their horses The Civil Service Riding Club Quadrille performing in Kensington Gardens, prior to the loss of the avenue of trees in the background, during the great storm of October 1987.
    Extract from CSSC yearbook 1988

  • 2003

    CSSC Games

    Two pictures of teams playing sports at the 2003 CSSC gamesThe first Games were held at Millfield School and have been held every other year at Loughborough University. Over the years, 27 sports have been included and two royal visits have taken place in 2003 and 2015.

  • 2013

    CSSC plays football at Buckingham Palace

    The Civil Service Football Club playing a game of football at Buckingham Palace in 2013Hosted by HRH The Duke of Cambridge the Civil Service Football Club (CSFC) took part in a football match at Buckingham Palace, on 7 October 2013, to mark the 150th anniversary of the Football Association and the CSFC.

Gallery of Our Heritage

Enjoy some of these gems from the past 100 years. Look out for more fantastic images in the coming months as we add to this important collection.

You may also be inspired by this collection of photographs from the Queen's Coronation visit at Chiswick sports ground in 1953.

Civil Service Athletics Championships Steeple Chase Scuba Diving - CSSC's 60th Anniversary Festival of Sport, Crystal Palace 1981 Jubilee Run, 2002 Jubilee Run, 2002 Jubilee Run, 2002 CSFC Team Photo, 1893 Civil Service Bicycle Club Leaflet
Civil Service Athletics Championships Civil Service Athletics Championships Civil Service Athletics Championships Civil Service Athletics Championships Civil Service Athletics Championships Civil Service Athletics Championships Archery Competition Autumn Flowers Show, 1959
CSFC Team Photo, 1907 The Duchess of Gloucester should read Duchess of Gloucester attending CSSC’s 60 Anniversary Festival of Sport at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in 1981. Cycle Association, 1927 CSFC Team Photo, 1913 Autumn Flowers Show, 1959 Autumn Flowers Show, 1959 Autumn Flowers Show, 1959 Autumn Flowers Show, 1959

The Queen's Coronation visit, 1953

Be inspired by these fantastic images of The late Queen Elizabeth II's visit to our sports ground in Chiswick during the 1953 coronation celebrations. We're very grateful to Madeline Skelly for sharing these photos. Madeline was a player in a cricket match on that day:

“I was very excited and very nervous when I had to go into bat (unexpectedly!) but managed to survive and score some runs. I was told later that the Duke of Edinburgh commented on my ability to give the ball a good thump!".

The late Queen greeting a player
The late Queen greeting player The late Queen Elizabeth II & Prince Philip Madeline Skelly posing in front of the Royal car
Women's cricket match Civil Services Woman's cricket team Prince Philip

Write your own history

In this short factsheet, we will show you how to document the history of your club or association (hereafter referred to as club in this factsheet) so that you can preserve that valuable knowledge for the future.

We also look at the benefits of preserving your history in writing and have a look at the types of information you need to include.

What's a club history?


This section covers all of the important events and achievements that have occurred over the lifetime of the club. It provides an overview of where the club has come from and the key people involved in creating it. Often histories are written for a major event, such as the 25th, 50th or 100th anniversary of a club's founding.

Why do it?

For a club, the benefits of having a documented history include:

  • Interest and curiosity value for members
  • Having a sense of tradition
  • Understanding where certain policies or processes came from
  • Giving members a sense of belonging to an enduring club
  • Generating extra pride in that club
  • Generating ideas that may help your club
  • Demonstrating longevity to attract members and volunteers

The first step is to clarify the scope of the history to be documented, that is, picking how wide and to what depth the club wants to know about its past. Scoping the project tightly means it can be broken down into small manageable tasks and this avoids wasting time.

Your club may also need to delegate a person to coordinate the research efforts. This doesn't mean that they will have to do the whole thing - just be in charge of organising the project and assigning tasks where needed.

Areas to consider for research

  • When/why was it founded?
  • Who was involved at the start of the club?
  • What were the names of the first members?
  • Are any of the original members or their family members still part of the club?
  • How many original members were there, and how many members are there now?
  • What did the first membership subscription cost?
  • Were there any requirements for becoming a member, and what membership categories existed?
  • If appropriate, where were the original club facilities located?
  • What contests or club championship events were held, and who won them?
  • Have club members represented the CSSC or country? If so, who, when, how many times, what events and did they perform?
  • What awards or honours have been presented to the club?
  • Has there been any royal visits?
  • How was the clubs activity programme changed and/or developed?
  • What does the club offer now?

The next step is doing the research! You'll need to find as much information as possible about the club over the years. To ensure accuracy, it's a good idea to cross-check and verify this where possible.

Try to find photos or similar as well. As the cliche says, a picture is worth a thousand words and they add interest to your research. In developing this section, your club might use a number of sources:

  • Experienced on long-serving club members
  • Club honours boards
  • Club/committee meeting minutes, documents and archives which can either be found at your own club
  • Local/regional CSSC records or CSSC national records

The third step is to get writing! It will take time to craft, but collate all of your research into one place. Create an outline of what areas you are going to cover and then fill in the blanks. Be careful about including sensitive or debateable information, try to stick to the 'facts'. It's also a good idea to get your work edited by a single person at the end of the project so the writing is well structured, readable, and free of grammatical and spelling mistakes.

How do we use our club history?

Release and communicate your work? It would be a shame if you did all that great work and then no-one ever saw it! Show club members what you've found. You might consider a special printed edition for an anniversary event, or uploading onto the club webpage so you can update it over time.

Don't let it gather dust in the back of your club! Potential members and eligible employers may be interested in it if you can demonstrate something interesting or take a unique angle. Free positive publicity is great for attracting members and new members.

For more information please contact Hedley Featherstone, Centenary Development Executivevia emailor call 07802 482330.