Note: If you are interested in donating equipment, books or documents please see our Equipment Donations page for details.
Crowdfunder Appeal
Help us Renovate the Roof of The National Museum of Computing, Preserve and Protect the Origins of Digital Computing. Be part of the Bletchley Park Legacy.
Why are We Fundraising?
We need to raise £150,000 in matched funding to restore our roof. We are reaching out to ask you to join the community of people who help us continue to conserve British computing history, engage, educate and inspire our visitors and future generations. Our Museum is located in Block H on Bletchley Park. Block H, a grade two listed WW2-era building, was the world’s first data centre containing Colossus electronic codebreaking machines and now houses our world class collection of working exhibits, including our unique working reconstructed Colossus.
We have successfully applied to an external charitable trust who are willing to award significant funds to help us restore the roof over the Colossus and adjacent galleries as part of an essential project to improve our visitor experience and facilities.
Why Now?
Over the years we have patched and repaired parts of the roof from limited Museum funds, but with the passage of time and a changing climate, the time has come to replace the original structure with a modern waterproof and insulated roof to protect the building and preserve its contents for future generations.
Problems and risks:
Roof leak threat around major exhibits, aging plumbing leaks, and poor environmental conditions (temperature and humidity) all threaten the building and collection. Renewal of the roof and other aging areas and better insulation will address these and help us be more energy sufficient, making the Museum more sustainable and protecting our historic collection for future generations.
How it will work
A funding application has been submitted for £500,000 to a charitable trust. Our successful bid requires us to raise a matching £150,000 to meet the total project cost of ~£650,000 including VAT.
Please view the video below and click the link to help us reach our goal.
Fundraising : Conserve, Educate, Engage & Inspire
To build on the successful completion of phase 1 - 'Restoration Fix It Up' project, which secured a new Restoration Facility that is now in active use, the Museum has enormous ambitions for future refurbishment, machine repair, restoration and maintenance, plus development of new interactive and education exhibits.
As a Museum, we acquire, conserve, restore and reconstruct historic computing systems for preservation, display, demonstration and research. Our valuable community of exceptional Volunteers plays a vital part in supporting the Museum's activities. The mental and physical wellbeing of our Volunteers is extremely important to us. The National Museum of Computing provides a stimulating, creative, friendly, and safe environment where Volunteers can come together and be inspired to develop fresh ideas, participate in valuable skill and knowledge transfer, meet and network with like-minded individuals and have a real, tangible impact on visitor experience.
The money raised from our online TNMOC Restoration fundraiser will go towards:
Staying connected to and nourishing relationships with our existing community of Volunteers.
Facilitating our diverse community of Museum Volunteers to better collaborate on the repair, restoration, maintenance and management of the Museum's collection.
Growing our existing pool of Museum Volunteers by connecting with, engaging and encouraging new individuals to join our thriving community.
Supporting our STEM Trainees, particularly those students from within the neurodiverse community, by providing genuine, valuable learning experiences which help individuals to flourish and aid their possible transition into the workplace.
Creating innovative technological engineering, software and design solutions to determine new ways to overcome interpretation/curatorial-based questions such as: 'How can the interactivity and immersive nature of this asset be improved to better educate visitors on its significance?'
Undertaking research and experimentation to answer practical considerations such as: 'How do we input information into and extract information out of systems?'
Returning broken items in our collection to full working order by undertaking critical restoration work.
Carrying out essential maintenance and repair on our collection of operational machines, to keep them running for future visitors to experience and enjoy.
Implementing appropriate preservation measures and conservation techniques to safeguard our collection for researchers and future generations
Jacqui Garrad, Museum Director commented:
"Displaying our collection of historic computers and technology requires a lot of work behind the scenes, especially to keep the machines in full working order. We currently have ongoing restoration projects for our Argus 500 computer and for our Spectrum and Atari Gaming Kits, among many others. Our Restoration Auction will not only allow us to meet this demand but will support us in further expanding the incredible offerings and exhibits the Museum already possesses."
If you can help with this part of the project, please follow the Localgiving donation button below. Thank you
Your donations secure the future of this unique museum
The National Museum of Computing does not receive government or Heritage Lottery Funding, so we need your help. As a registered charity we can claim Gift Aid on donations from UK tax payers and thereby increase the value of your kind contribution.
If you pay UK income tax or capital gains tax that is at least equal to the amount you are donating in any one tax year, The National Museum of Computing can reclaim tax on the donation, so we would be very grateful if you would complete a Gift Aid Declaration Form.
Donate via JustGiving
We use JustGiving to manage many donations - they help us reclaim gift aid where appropriate.
Donate via CAF America
For our American friends, you can now donate via our entry on Charities Aid Foundation of America or you can download a CAF America donation form here.
Please use the following for Charitable Organization on the form:
The National Museum Of Computing
Block H, Bletchley Park, Bletchley, Milton Keynes,
England, UNITED KINGDOM MK3 6EB
Contact: Operations Manager
Telephone: +44 (0)1908 374708
Donate via Paypal
Legacy Donations
Leaving a gift to charity in your will is a very special way of helping The National Museum of Computing.
If you leave The National Museum of Computing a bequest in your will, the amount will be exempt from inheritance tax and this could reduce or even eliminate tax which might otherwise be payable out of your estate. We would suggest however that it is always advisable to have your will made by a solicitor who will be able to give you all the legal and tax advice you require.
The three main types of gift are:
Residuary bequest
This is the balance of your estate after any tax, expenses and other types of legacies have been paid. You can leave the whole, or a share of the residue to The National Museum of Computing.
Pecuniary legacy
This is an exact sum (e.g. £1,000).
Specific bequest
This is a gift of personal possessions such as property, jewellery etc.
With the passage of time, pecuniary (cash) legacies will lose value because of inflation and you may wish therefore to review your will every few years. Alternatively, you can index-link your cash gifts or divide your whole estate into shares or percentages, so that each of your beneficiaries will gain if the value of your estate increases between the time of making your will and your death.
How to word your bequest
It is very important that wills are written accurately and it may be helpful to you and your solicitor to know how to phrase a bequest in favour of the The National Museum of Computing.
You should ask your solicitor to ensure the following are included in your bequest:
Our name - The National Museum of Computing
Our address - Block H, Bletchley Park, Milton Keynes, MK3 6EB, UK
Our charity registration number - 1109874
You should also include the phrase 'I declare that the receipt of the Treasurer or any other proper officer shall be sufficient discharge therefor'.
The National Museum of Computing is a UK registered charity, No. 1109874.
Become a Fundraiser
The National Museum of Computing warmly welcomes anyone who wants to take on a challenge to fundraise for the Museum. The Museum receives no government or Heritage Lottery funding and survives on the generosity and commitment of individuals and companies.
Some run marathons, cycling sportives, trek to Everest Base Camp or even enter boxing competitions! The options are endless.
You can talk to us about fundraising for a specific project or it can be for much-need general funds.
JustGiving lists some past and present TNMOC fundraisers.
Here are some current or recent ventures:
