Food and water
Keep five days of meals and snacks for everyone, including at least two complete days that need no cooking, heating or refrigeration. Choose familiar, long-life foods that suit allergies and dietary needs; include a manual tin opener. Count meals and portions, not just tins. If you have no safe cooking option, make all five days no-cook.
Store 3 litres of drinking water per person per day: 15 litres each for five days, or 60 litres for four people. Add water for cooking, washing, toothbrushing, medical needs and pets. Allow more for hot weather, illness or breastfeeding. Follow your water company’s advice during an interruption. [1]
Keep sealed drinking water cool and away from sunlight; follow storage dates. Use clean, food-safe containers for refills. Buy what you normally use, put new supplies behind older ones, and replace items as you use them.
Health and everyday care
Check you have enough regular medicines and care supplies for five days; order repeats on time through your usual pharmacy. Keep a first-aid kit, hygiene supplies, nappies and period products as needed. Plan safe infant feeding with your health visitor if relevant.
For refrigerated medicines or powered medical equipment, agree an outage plan with your pharmacist or care team now. Ask energy and water providers about extra support or priority registers; registration does not guarantee uninterrupted service. [4]
Shelter and warmth
Gather warm layers, blankets and bedding. Use one comfortable room, close internal doors and curtains, and keep ventilation openings clear. Most gas central heating also needs electricity. Arrange somewhere warm to go if home becomes unsafe, especially for babies, older people or anyone unwell.
Test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Never use a cooker to heat a room. Keep exits clear and know where keys and essential documents are kept. Follow evacuation advice rather than trying to stay at home at all costs.
Cooking and lighting
Start with no-cook meals, LED torches and a lantern; keep spare batteries handy. A camping stove is optional and only useful if you have a safe outdoor space and suitable weather. Keep it stable, away from children and anything flammable, and follow its instructions.
Never use camping stoves, barbecues or fuel generators indoors, in tents, garages or enclosed spaces. An open window does not make them safe. Change gas cartridges outdoors, away from ignition sources, and store fuel as instructed. [3]
Communications and security
Write down family, neighbour, utility and school contacts. Agree a meeting place and how to check on anyone needing help. Keep a battery radio for updates; mobile networks, broadband and digital landlines may fail. Use official council, weather and utility information.
Keep a small amount of cash if affordable, check door and window locks, and verify unexpected callers with the organisation using a number you already trust. Know how to open powered doors manually. Check on neighbours when it is safe.
Power for the essentials
Keep phones and a USB power bank charged, with the right cables. A rechargeable battery power station is an optional upgrade for lights, phones and suitable small appliances. Compare usable capacity in watt-hours, output in watts and appliance starting loads before buying.
Heaters and kettles use energy quickly; a small unit will not power a home for five days. Follow charging and ventilation instructions and never plug its output into a wall socket. Check medical-device compatibility with the care team and supplier. Solar charging depends on daylight and weather.
Food safety during an outage
Keep fridge and freezer doors closed and note when power failed. A closed fridge may stay cold for about 4 hours; a full freezer may keep food frozen for 48 hours, or 24 hours if half full. These are estimates, not guarantees. Use a thermometer. [2]
Use safely chilled perishables first, then safely thawed food, saving cupboard supplies. Normally keep the fridge at 5°C or below. During an outage, discard food requiring refrigeration once it has spent 4 hours at 8°C or above. If its temperature history is uncertain, discard it. [2]
Do not deliberately thaw the whole freezer or batch-cook food you cannot eat or keep cold. Food that has thawed safely must stay chilled and be cooked or eaten within 24 hours of full defrosting; follow pack instructions. Cook thoroughly and keep raw and ready-to-eat foods separate. Cooking cannot reliably rescue unsafe food; smell and taste cannot prove it is safe. [2, 5]
Topping up when something happens
At the start of a disruption, there may be a short opportunity to buy extra supplies while shops and transport are still operating. Treat this as a possible top-up, not something your household plan depends on. Check local advice and conditions before setting out, and buy only what you reasonably need.
Supermarkets can quickly become crowded as people rush to buy essentials. Queues, traffic, tension and panic buying may create additional personal security risks. If a place feels unsafe, leave; extra supplies are not worth a confrontation.
Think ahead about smaller independent shops, farm shops, garden centres with food sections and other local businesses that sell food but may not be the first places people think of. Check opening hours and stock before travelling where possible. These places can also become busy or run out, so judge the conditions rather than assuming they are safer. Follow any advice to stay at home or avoid travel.
Before setting out, How Long’s The Wait? may help you check community reports on food, water, fuel, access and queues during disruption. Check when each report was posted and confirm details where possible; availability and conditions can change quickly. Use it alongside official local advice.
Useful extras when the basics are covered
Add equipment that fits your home: head torches, a battery radio, fridge/freezer thermometer, cool box and ice packs, insulated flask, extra power bank, or a battery power station. A camping stove, compatible gas and suitable pan are optional only where safe outdoor cooking and fuel storage are possible. Practise using equipment before you need it.
Build the reserve a week at a time
Week 1 Check cupboards, medicines and care needs. Write contacts down. Add some drinking water and one day of familiar no-cook meals.
Week 2 Add the second no-cook day and more water. Check the tin opener, torches, batteries and phone charging.
Week 3 Build food towards five days and water towards 15 litres per person, plus other needs. Check bedding, hygiene supplies and alarms.
Week 4 Fill remaining gaps and test your household plan. Buy optional equipment only if it solves a real need and you can use it safely.
Then keep it in use: check dates monthly, eat the oldest supplies first and replace them on your normal shop. Check battery charge as instructed. Review the plan when needs change. Spread these steps over longer if needed; every small addition helps.
Get help and reliable updates
Immediate danger: 999 or 112. Power cuts: 105 in England, Scotland and Wales; 03457 643 643 in Northern Ireland. Keep your water company’s number on paper. [3, 6]
Sources and further guidance
Safety sources checked 30 October 2026. Five days is this guide’s planning target. Follow current advice from the authorities and your utility providers during an incident.