[Infowarrior] - Bletchley Park may close

[Richard Forno]

Bletchley Park faces bleak future

12 May 2008 10:39

The secret home to Britain's World War II codebreaking efforts could  
face closure in two to three years unless it receives more funding

Historians have postulated that, without Bletchley Park, the Allies  
may never have won the war.

But, despite an impressive contribution to the war effort, the  
Bletchley Park site, now a museum, faces a bleak future unless it can  
secure funding to keep its doors open and its numerous exhibits from  
rotting away.

The Bletchley Park Trust receives no external funding. It has been  
deemed ineligible for funding by the National Lottery, and turned down  
by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation because the Microsoft founder  
will only fund internet-based technology projects.

"We are just about surviving. Money — or lack of it — is our big  
problem here. I think we have two to three more years of survival, but  
we need this time to find a solution to this," said Simon Greenish,  
the Trust's director.

As a result of lack of funds, the Trust is unable to rebuild the  
site's rotting infrastructure and faces an uncertain future. "The  
Trust is the hardest-up museum I know," said Greenish. "We have this  
huge estate to run and it's one of the most important World War II  
stories there is."

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Story URL: http://resources.zdnet.co.uk/articles/imagegallery/0,1000002003,39415278,00.htm