In 2003 the Council of Professors and Heads of Computing changed its name from the Conference of Professors and Heads of Computing to clarify its role of representing Computing in Higher Education in the U.K.
It was originally formed from the two bodies representing Computing in the pre-1992 universities (the Conference of Professors of Computer Science) and the former polytechnics (the Heads of Computing in Polytechnics). The merger was approved at Annual General Meetings of the two bodies in 1993.
The merger was greatly assisted by the chairs of the two merging organisations – Andrew McGettrick, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Strathclyde (CPCS) and Professor Tony Whitehouse of the University of Central England (HCP).
The first Annual General Meeting of the CPHC was held in Glasgow in July 1994, and the CPHC’s first chair was Roland Ibbett, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Edinburgh.