Research questions

We are happy to receive research requests by email, but we do not have the resources to respond to written requests except from Friends of the Mills Archive.

Free services

Our aim is to both conserve our unique collections and make them available for consultation. We offer many free services to genuine researchers:

1. All registered users may search our online Archive catalogue, and examine images, free of charge.
2. Access to our online Library catalogue of books and pamphlets is free without registration.
3. Brief summary information from our online Mill People database is also free without registration, but full details are restricted to Friends of the Mills Archive.
4. Simple research queries that are emailed to us and take less than five minutes to answer will be handled as rapidly as possible without charge, although we cannot guarantee to respond within a few days.
5. Visitors who make an appointment will be able to inspect catalogued original documents, and browse our Library, and use our online catalogues, at our Research Centre in Reading, all free of charge. Visitors may not access our uncatalogued material.

Research fees

If a researcher requires one of our volunteers to do more extensive research a fee may be payable, whether or not a positive result is found. If we have the resources to do the work we shall limit our initial efforts to four hours and send you a report, letting you know if we feel that more research is needed. Please wait until your request is accepted and the fee confirmed, and then make the appropriate payment so that we can start work.

Friends of the Mills Archive who join for at least a year will not be charged for the first hour, after which we shall inform you of the likely duration and cost of further research.

Please note that we cannot guarantee that we shall find anything relevant. However, our researchers will check our uncatalogued material and our large library of mill reference books as well as catalogued reference items. We recommend for most queries that you request an initial search and report (up to four hours work, fee £200) and we shall provide you with a summary of the sources checked and provide an estimate of the work required for a comprehensive study.

Fees
Friends	£25 per hour (first hour free)
Others	Up to 4 hours	£200.00
	More than 4 hours	Negotiable

For the most rapid service you should use our online request form and wait until you receive an email acknowledgment and Paypal invoice to pay by credit card through our secure website.

If you wish to pay by cheque, please send a cheque drawn on a UK bank for the appropriate amount and made payable to the Mills Archive Trust, with details of your request, to the address on our Contact page. Please provide an email address for our response.

Note that if copies of images or documents are required on CD or as prints an additional charge will be made to cover production costs and, if necessary, copyright fees. More information.