Library FAQ

Yes! The library is open to all members of the public during our regular opening hours. Members of Cambridge University and the Cambridge Theological Federation are permitted to borrow books after a simple registration process. External researchers and members of the public may borrow books after paying an administrative fee of £12 per term or £36 per year. An ID is required for external registration.

With nearly 10,000 volumes and over 100 journals, it is hard to describe the collection in just a few words. Material ranges from publications relating to the western missionary movement and the growth of the ecumenical and evangelical movements to studies of contemporary Christian movements in diverse places around the world. It includes numerous books published outside the UK that are often available nowhere else in Cambridge or indeed the country. You can search the collection using Cambridge University Library’s iDiscover tool.

Yes! In our purpose-designed location, the library is a welcoming place to browse and read. There are study carrels for those who wish to work in the library during our opening hours. The Librarian is happy to help you find books relating to your research and studies.

In certain circumstances, we do take book donations. Please read our guidelines on donations and then be in touch if you think your material would be of interest to us.

Yes and no. We provide access on a designated computer within the library to all eresources on iDiscover. These eresources are also available to staff and students of Cambridge University with a Raven password. See the ebooks LibGuide, a guide to finding and using ebooks at Cambridge University. Cambridge Theological Federation staff and students have access to another range of CTF library eresources through Hedwig. There are also a number of free access internet resources that broaden and deepen the study of mission, theology, and global Christianity. See a list that we have compiled on our Online Research Resources page.

The library opened in 1898 in Henry Martyn Hall. It was known as the Henry Martyn Library. Since then, it has been through numerous iterations but the core idea remains the same: providing a leading library of material that educates and informs people about the Church in the non-western world and encourages them to be involved. Since the foundation of the Henry Martyn Centre in the mid-1990s, the collection has expanded rapidly and moved onto a solid academic footing. In 2014 the Centre changed its name to the Cambridge Centre for Christianity Worldwide, and the library became the Cambridge Centre for Christianity Worldwide library, also known as the CCCW library.