IT Business
Bletchley Park code-breaking centre finally given restoration funding
Enigma home will get vital repairs
By Leo King | Computerworld UK | Published 13:53, 25 March 10
Bletchley Park, birthplace of British computing and home to the Enigma code-breaking machine in the Second World War, has been awarded £250,000 restoration funding.
The award was announced as part of yesterday’s Budget, and comes after years of campaigning by the site’s supporters. One year ago, the government had turned down an appeal to support the trust.
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Some 100,000 people visit Bletchley Park each year. The money will be used for the maintenance and repair of buildings including the site’s museum. It will also help with new IT equipment, to replace “ageing” systems currently used, as well as for road resurfacing.
Ben Bradshaw, culture secretary, said the museum had doubled its visitor numbers over the last three years, but “urgently needs funds to keep it in good condition”.
Simon Greenish, chief executive at the Bletchley Park Trust, said the funding was “enormously appreciated”, and demonstrated that the government saw the site as “a place of national importance”.
