If you wish to apply for a free, one-year individual subscription to the AM Digital Ltd products ‘AM Scholar– ’ and ‘’, you must meet the eligibility criteria. This guide explains who may apply, how to apply and what to do if you are not eligible for an individual subscription.
Who may apply?
Applications are particularly welcomed from people looking for records about an area for which few locally held sources are available for research, or who wish to use the mission records alongside Indigenous sources.
You do not need to be undertaking research for a course of study or for the purpose of publication, but you should be willing to tell AM Digital Ltd about your experience. So that we can continue to offer free subscriptions, AM Digital Ltd may contact you to provide feedback on your experience of using the collections, the range of content available, and how digital access has supported your research.
You may apply for a free, one-year individual subscription if you meet all of the following conditions:
- you are at least 18 years old.
- you wish to use the Church Mission Society Archive (formerly known as the 'Church Missionary Society Archive') to find documents or published works relating to the history of your own local area, country or culture.
- you are not a member of the University Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ or any other institution that subscribes to the AM Digital products ‘AM Scholar - Church Missionary Society Archive’ or ‘Church Missionary Society Periodicals’.
- you are not able to visit the Cadbury Research Library, University Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ or any other institution that subscribes to the Adam Matthew digital products.
- you have access to the internet.
- you would be willing to share feedback on your experience of a free, one-year subscription.
- you have not had one of our free, one-year subscriptions before.
How do I apply?
- You may apply at any time during the calendar year January-December 2025.
- Subscriptions will be offered to the first 12 applicants who meet all of the eligibility criteria. If you apply after all the subscriptions have been allocated, you may try again in the following year.
- You will need to apply in English.
- Before applying, please check that you are eligible for a free, individual subscription.
- Before applying, please read the . The Privacy policy sets out how any personal information you provide to AM Digital (or data they collect about you from other sources) will be processed (meaning collected, stored, and otherwise used) by AM Digital.
- Please also read the product information on the AM Digital website so that you can be sure that ‘’ and ‘’ are the right products for you.
- If you wish to apply once you have checked that you are eligible, that you understand the AM Digital Privacy policy, and that the two AM products will be helpful for you, .
How will I know if my application has been successful?
- Once AM Digital receive your application, they will email you to let you know the outcome of your application within three working days.
- If your application is successful, AM Digital will send you a username and password so that you can start using the online resources.
I am not eligible to apply. How can I see material in the Church Mission Society Archive?
- If you are a member of the University Â鶹¾«Ñ¡, you already have free access to the two AM Digital products. Log in to and enter ‘Church Missionary Society’ as a Database Â鶹¾«Ñ¡.
- If you are not a member of the University Â鶹¾«Ñ¡ but can visit the Cadbury Research Library, you will be able to use our computers to access the two AM Digital products. You will also be able to look at records in the CMS Archive which have not been digitised.
- If you are a member of another university, a college, or other academic institution you may already have free access to ‘AM Scholar - archive’ and ‘ through your own institution.
- If you are a member of an institution that does not subscribe to these AM Digital products, your institution may be able to apply to AM Digital for a on your behalf.
- If you can visit a college, university, or other academic institution which subscribes to AM Digital products, you may be able to access the resources as a visitor.
- You may be able to buy copies of material through the Cadbury Research Library reprographics service.
- You may ask the Cadbury Research Library to show you one or two items from the CMS Archive through a one-hour virtual consultation on Zoom.
- See our information about visiting the Cadbury Research Library, enquiring about the collections, ordering copies, and requesting a virtual consultation. From the website, you will also be able to follow links to the online catalogues for the CMS Archive and related collections.
- When you contact the Cadbury Research Library, your data you will be processed in line with the .