Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker
A Cold War regional government bunker in Essex, hidden below a bungalow, with a self-guided audio tour through three underground floors.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The bunker at Kelvedon Hatch was built on farmland requisitioned from the Parrish family. It began in the early 1950s as an RAF ROTOR radar station, with a plotting room where aircraft were tracked around the clock. A bungalow built by the Air Ministry in 1952 hides the entrance, which leads into a reinforced tunnel about 120 metres long and then through heavy blast doors into the bunker proper.
After a brief period in the 1960s as a civil defence centre, the site became Regional Government Headquarters 5.1. It was designed to hold up to 600 military and civilian staff who would try to organise the survival of the population after a nuclear attack, and a cabinet minister would have acted as regional commissioner. The three levels, about 80 feet below the Essex countryside, contain communications and plant rooms, a government level, and the dormitories, canteen and surgery for everyday life underground.
As the Cold War ended, the government no longer needed the bunker, which cost millions of pounds a year to keep on standby. It was decommissioned in 1992 and bought back by the Parrish family at a closed-bid auction, so it is now privately owned. It opened to the public as a museum and is today part of the Nuclear Essex site, which also offers outdoor activities. Visitors follow a self-guided tour with handsets, with films and displays along the way.
Highlights
- Largest and deepest Cold War bunker open to the public in the south-east of England
- Self-guided audio tour with separate adult and child versions
- Original plotting room, communications equipment and government level
- Films en route and a dressing-up area with military uniforms and gas masks
- Entrance hidden below an ordinary bungalow, with a 120-metre tunnel
Permanent exhibition
- Regional Government Headquarters 5.1 – A self-guided tour through the three underground floors, with the plotting room, communications equipment, government level, dormitories, canteen and films.
- Operated by
- Nuclear Essex (Parrish family)
Admission & discounts
| Adults | £15 |
|---|---|
| Children & teens | £13free up to age 4 · Child ticket for ages 5 to 16. |
| Groups (15+ people) | £14 per personGroups of 15 or more: adults £14 per person, children £12 per person. |
| Families | £38Up to 2 adults and 2 children. |
Tickets are bought on the day with no online booking. Payment is taken at the end of the visit, and mobile and card signal can be unreliable underground, so the bunker recommends bringing some cash. The self-guided audio tour is included in the price.
Accessibility
- Partially wheelchair accessible
- Elevator: not available
- Accessible restroom
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
Access is limited because the bunker was built with many stairs: there are 9 wide, shallow steps down from the entrance and 20 each between the upper floors, and the bottom floor has several short flights. Wheelchair users can enter through the canteen (the exit) and do the tour in reverse: the top floor is level, a stairlift reaches the middle floor, which is also level, and much of the bottom floor can be seen from a wheelchair. Visitors must be able to climb 9 steps with handrails to leave the bunker. A step-free accessible toilet is at the bunker. Visitors are asked to contact the bunker in advance.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
| Kids’ admission | free up to age 4 |
|---|---|
| Family ticket | £38 · Up to 2 adults and 2 children. |
- Family tours & workshops
- Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide
- Hands-on stations
The child version of the audio tour and a dressing-up area with real-style military uniforms and gas masks are designed for younger visitors. The site also offers outdoor activities such as high ropes for older children. The route has many stairs.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Regular buses run from Brentwood station and Ongar and stop at the Secret Bunker and Kelvedon Hall. Brentwood station (Liverpool Street and Elizabeth line services) and Epping Underground station are each about a 15-minute drive away.
By car
Free parking
Parking is free at all Nuclear Essex sites and events, within a short walk. From the car park to the bunker entrance is about 100 yards.
Nuclear Essex is about 15 minutes from the A12, M25 and M11. Wheelchair users can ask to drive on to the staff car park next to the canteen entrance. Local taxi: Brentwood Treble Twenty Taxis.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Café
- Restaurant: not available
- Museum shop
A small canteen serves hot drinks, cakes, snacks and sandwiches. The gift shop is at the end of the tour. Mobile phone signal is lost inside the bunker.
Events & venue rental
- Spaces for rent
- Private parties
- Corporate events
The bunker, the WW1 and WW2 trenches, woodland, lakes and other areas on site can be hired for events, filming and photography.
Inquiries & detailsPlan your visit
| Guided tours | no |
|---|---|
| Audio guide | yes |
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | The tour is self-guided with personal handsets, included in the admission price, with an adult version and a child version that follow the same route. The bunker says the tour takes about an hour to an hour and a half, and visits usually last one to two hours; watching all the films and trying on the uniforms can make it much longer. Well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome. School visits are offered. |
