Our history

Capital City College (trading name Capital City College Group), came into existence as a result of the merger between three colleges: City and Islington College, The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London, and Westminster Kingsway College.

Our history can be traced back to 1828, when the Grove House School began offering education to residents of Tottenham, noted for its advanced curriculum and refusal to use corporal punishment. The school later became part of The College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London, and produced several well-known alumni, including 11 future UK MPs.

Westminster Kingsway College started in the 1890s as the Westminster Technical Institute, offering courses in the building and plumbing trades, carriage-building, and elementary subjects, before opening the UK’s first school of hospitality in 1910.

City and Islington College was formed in 1993 through a merger of the City and East London College, North London College, Islington Adult Education Service and Islington Sixth Form College.

This rich history culminated in the group’s formation in 2016, bringing together the three colleges with eleven centres across central and north London, working primarily in Islington, Camden, Westminster, Haringey and Enfield, but with students and apprentices coming from across London and the South East.

Today, our college trains over 25,000 students every year, equipping them with the academic and vocational skills and knowledge they need to progress into employment or higher education. Our diverse alumni include household names such as renowned chefs, Jamie Oliver, Ainsley Harriott and Anthony Worral Thompson, award-winning performer Paloma Faith, actors Jessie Wallace, Zawe Ashton, and Steve McFadden, presenters Maya Jama, Trevor Nelson, and Reggie Yates, and Olympians, Lina and Laviai Nielsen.