Be ready: how to prepare your home for 3 days, without panic

In this guide

1. Why we’re being asked to prepare
2. What to keep at home
3. What it costs
4. How much cash to keep
5. If you rent a flat
6. Make a simple plan
7. Keep it fresh

In short

• The UK Government’s Be Ready campaign, launched in October 2026, asks households to be able to manage at home for 3 days if everyday services are disrupted.
• It isn’t a warning about a particular threat. France, Ireland and the Netherlands give the same advice. It’s like keeping a first aid kit: sensible, and rarely needed.
• A basic kit costs about £160 for one person, £180 for two and £230 for a family of four. You probably have some of it already.
• Keep some cash as well. Our advice: about £200 per person.

Why we’re being asked to prepare

On 22 October 2026, the government launched Be Ready, a three-year campaign to help households cope when everyday services are disrupted for a while (GOV.UK). The reasons are ordinary ones. Last winter’s storms and this summer’s wildfires showed how severe weather can cut power, water, phone signal or the internet for a few days.

Being ready for 3 days isn’t only about you. When many people can look after themselves for a short time, emergency services and charities can reach first the people who need help most: older people, families with babies, people who are ill.

What to keep at home

This is the government’s checklist (Be Ready), in short. Start with what you already have.

• Water: 3 litres per person per day for drinking, so 9 litres each for 3 days. You’ll want extra for cooking and washing: the British Red Cross suggests about 10 litres per person per day in total.
• Food for 3 days that needs no fridge or cooking: tins, crackers, nuts, dried fruit, cereal bars. Choose things you normally eat, and keep a tin opener.
• A torch with spare batteries. Torches are safer than candles.
• A wind-up or battery FM radio, with your local news stations written down.
• A charged power bank for your phone.
• A first aid kit, and your regular medicines. Order repeat prescriptions in good time.
• Hand sanitiser, wet wipes and toiletries.
• Blankets, sleeping bags and warm clothes.
• Cash in coins and notes, as well as your cards.
• Printed copies of ID and important documents, and a paper list of emergency contacts and medicines.
• If you need them: baby supplies (ready-to-feed formula, nappies, wipes) and food and water for pets.

What it costs

You don’t need a ready-made “survival kit”. What the basics cost if you buy them yourself:

Item	About	Where to buy
Bottled water, 9 litres per person	£4 per person	Tesco still water, 6 × 2 litres
Food that needs no cooking, for 3 days	£20 per person	Tesco tins and packets
Torch and spare batteries	£20	Ansmann AA torch, Amazon; Amazon Basics AA batteries
Wind-up or battery FM radio	£25	Wind-up radio, Amazon
Power bank (20,000 mAh)	£35	Anker power bank, Amazon
First aid kit	£25	General Medi 210-piece kit, Amazon
Hand sanitiser, wet wipes and toiletries	£8	Tesco hand gel
Tin opener and waterproof bags for documents	£16	Tin opener, Amazon; A4 zip wallets, Amazon

Links are examples to save you time, not adverts: we don’t earn anything from them.

1 person£160

2 people£180

Family of 4£230

Source: Prices at Tesco and Amazon, November 2026, rounded up. Medicines, baby and pet supplies extra.

Spread over two months of normal shopping, that’s about £25 a week for a couple. Eat the food and water before they go out of date, and replace them.

How much cash to keep

If the power goes off or there’s a problem with payment systems, card machines and cash machines may not work, so the government advises keeping some cash in coins and notes. It doesn’t say how much.

Why that much? Three days is long enough to need more than a pint of milk. You may need to buy food and water from the shops that stay open, pay for medicines, a taxi or fuel, or help a neighbour, and some shops may only take cash. UK prices are high, so a small amount runs out quickly.

Some countries suggest less. The Dutch central bank, for example, advises €70 per adult and €30 per child for 3 days (DutchNews, May 2025). We think that’s too little to cope comfortably in the UK. If £200 per person is a lot for you right now, build it up over time: any cash at home is better than none.

• Keep it in small notes (£5, £10 and £20) and some coins, so you can pay exact amounts.
• Keep it somewhere safe at home, not all in one obvious place, and don’t tell people you have it.
• Check your contents insurance: many policies only cover a limited amount of cash at home, so check yours covers what you keep.
• It isn’t money spent, just money set aside. If you use it, top it up.

If you rent a flat

• Know where to turn off the water (the stopcock), the electricity (the fuse box) and the gas. Ask your landlord or agent on move-in day.
• Keep your landlord’s or agent’s emergency number on paper, as well as the power cut line: 105 in England, Scotland and Wales, or 03457 643643 in Northern Ireland.
• In a block of flats, lifts and electric entry doors can stop in a power cut. Know the stairs, and the building’s fire instructions (they should be on display, or ask the managing agent).
• On a high floor, carrying water up the stairs is hard, so keep yours at home.
• Your landlord’s insurance doesn’t cover your belongings. Contents insurance does, including for flood or fire.
• Before you rent, check the flood risk for the address on GOV.UK, especially for basement and ground-floor flats.
• Test your smoke alarm once a month.

Make a simple plan

• Write important numbers on paper: family, your landlord or agent, your doctor, 105 for power cuts, 111 for NHS advice and 999 for emergencies.
• Sign up to the Priority Services Register with your energy and water suppliers if you, or someone you live with, would need extra help in a power or water cut. It’s free.
• Make sure emergency alerts are switched on on your phone (GOV.UK Emergency Alerts).
• Swap numbers with a neighbour, and agree to check on anyone who lives alone or might need help.
• Agree a place to meet if you can’t get home or reach each other.

Keep it fresh

Every 6 months, check the dates on food, water and medicines, charge the power bank, and test the torch and radio. A good habit: use the oldest food and water in your normal meals, and buy new to replace it. That way nothing is wasted, and your kit is always ready.