Brief History of the ROC
The Royal Observer Corps (ROC) was a defence warning organisation operating in the United Kingdom between 1925 and December 1995. It was created to provide a system for detecting, tracking and reporting aircraft over Britain. In 1955 the detection and reporting of nuclear blasts and fall-out was introduced. By 1965 the aircraft role was no longer needed and the corps formed the field force for the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation (UKWMO).
Despite the ROC no longer being in use, many of the monitoring posts still remain. The layout and structure of these posts is consitent from site to site, however the condition of the posts tends to vary dramatically. Some look very close to how they did when they were in use, but sadly some have been vandalised and stripped out.
There are many websites which cover the history of the ROC in great detail, if you'd like to know more have a look at the following sites;