Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council

Includes CYEC youth exchange reports; minutes including Board of Management; publications; grant ledgers; annual reports; special project files; advance visit reports.

Founded in 1970, the CYEC has developed into a leading youth development charity which promotes young people as change makers and active citizens across the Commonwealth network of nations. In the late 1960s a small group of people led by David Dilks, CYEC’s founding Chairman, took up an idea first pioneered by Major Fred Ney. Believing that the future of the Commonwealth lay with young people, Ney had established a programme of exchanges between the UK and Canada. Dilks participated in this programme and then set about building up an organisation to create more opportunities for young people in the Commonwealth to meet and interchange. Initially many exchanges took place with Canada and Australia, but as the Commonwealth group has enlarged so CYEC’s programme expanded to reflect the growing membership and a wider and more diverse range of participants. 90% of exchanges and projects now take place with Africa, Asia and the Caribbean.

Open for research although at least 48 hours notice is required (off-site storage). Access to individual files might also be restricted under the Freedom of Information Act. See archivist for details.

Catalogued online on the Senate House Libraries archives catalogue with a pdf list to file-level, http://archives.ulrls.lon.ac.uk/dispatcher.aspx?action=search&database=ChoiceArchive&search=priref=110049092