A SWINDON museum curator said he was flattered to have been visited by a senior member of the government.

Simon Webb, of the Museum of Computing in Theatre Square, hosted Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for digital, culture, media and sport and gave the minister a tour of the museum.

The visit was organised by North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson, who was keen for Mr Hancock to see the first museum in the UK devoted to the history of computing and digital development.

Curator Mr Webb said: “We were flattered and honoured for the minister to pay us a visit in view of all the constraints on his time. I feel the interest that the minister has shown is a testament to the wonderful work of the museum volunteers.”

The museum exists to collect, document, safeguard and interpret artefacts, and to provide a record of all aspects of the history of computing.

It also runs a computer club and puts on educational and interactive classes for school groups.

Mr Hancock praised the museum’s volunteers and thanked the chairman Jeremy Holt and Mr Webb for their passion and dedication in providing such a “fantastic venue which Swindon can be proud of”.

Mr Tomlinson said: “Here in Swindon, we have a lot of businesses of all sizes working in computing, gaming and digital tech, so it is fantastic to have such a wonderful museum in dedication to the history of this area.

“We are very proud of our Museum of Computing – the first of its kind in the UK.”