bereadyforemergency.online - Discussions

On 22 October 2026 the UK government launched Be Ready, a national campaign asking every household in the country to be ready for three days of disruption. It's run by the Cabinet Office, it's the first stage of a three-year campaign, and its message is deliberately calm: keep a small stock of water, food and everyday essentials at home so you can manage while support reaches the people who need it most.

This site is a plain-English guide to what the campaign actually asks of you. No alarmist headlines, no doomsday lists — just the official advice, explained item by item, plus practical ways to build your kit without spending much.

Quick facts

• What: Be Ready, the UK government's national resilience campaign
• Launched: 22 October 2026
• Run by: the Cabinet Office (Security Minister Dan Jarvis fronting it)
• The ask: households ready for 3 days without normal services
• Official site: beready.campaign.gov.uk
• Scale: 500+ organisations signed up to share the message; radio and social media ads rolling out over the coming weeks
• Scotland and Northern Ireland: local advice via Ready Scotland and NI Direct

Why is the government doing this now?

The campaign follows the government's Resilience Action Plan, published in July 2026. That plan named the risks plainly: severe storms, floods, wildfires, power cuts, water failures and cyberattacks — the kinds of events that can knock out the services you rely on for a few days at a time.

Ministers pointed to recent experience. Storms last winter and wildfires over the summer showed how fast things can unravel. On 23 October 2026, Prime Minister Andy Burnham hosted a wildfire and resilience summit in Liverpool and told fire chiefs the country needed to talk honestly about preparedness. His line was simple: "We're living in a world where unexpected events seem to be becoming more and more common."

The numbers explain the urgency. Government research found only 13% of people in the UK felt prepared for an emergency that could cut them off from the services they rely on. At the same time, 84% said they wanted the government to give them more information about emergency preparedness. Be Ready is the answer to that 84%.

The UK isn't going it alone here. The three-day guidance lines up with advice already in use in France, Ireland and the Netherlands, and with wider EU guidance on 72-hour household readiness.

What does "ready for 3 days" actually mean?

It doesn't mean stockpiling for the apocalypse. The campaign's own framing is modest: being ready for 3 days helps you manage while support reaches those in need. The idea is that if a storm knocks out your power and the shops can't open, you can look after yourself for a short stretch instead of adding to the pressure on emergency services.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis put it this way: "By taking simple steps to be ready for everyday emergencies like severe storms, people can reduce pressure on emergency services, helping them prioritise people who need more support in an emergency." That's the whole logic. Your three days of supplies free up help for someone who truly can't cope alone.

The campaign covers the scenarios you'd expect: storms, floods and wildfires, but also power cuts, water supply failures and cyberattacks that could take down payments or communications for a while.

The Be Ready checklist at a glance

The government's official Be Ready checklist groups the advice into nine categories. The headline numbers are easy to remember: three litres of bottled water per person per day — that's nine litres each for the full three days, or at least 36 litres for a family of four — plus extra for cooking and washing.

Beyond water, the list covers: non-perishable food that needs no fridge or cooking; hand sanitiser, wet wipes and basic toiletries; a torch with spare batteries plus blankets, sleeping bags and warm clothing; a battery or wind-up FM radio and a charged power bank; physical cash in coins and notes; copies of ID documents and a written list of important phone numbers; a first aid kit and essential medication; ready-to-feed formula, nappies and wipes for babies; and pet food plus water for animals.

I've gone through every item on the checklist in detail — what it means in practice, why it's there, and the cheap versions that work just as well.

You don't need to do it all at once

This is the part the headlines skip. The government is explicit that nobody should panic-buy a month's worth of supplies this weekend. The guidance says: "You don't need to do it all at once. Build up your readiness gradually over time by taking it step by step, and picking up an extra item or two when you can."

That's genuinely good advice, and it's the cheapest way to do it. An extra tin of beans in the weekly shop, a pack of batteries next time you're near a pound shop, a bag of rice the week after. If money is tight — and the campaign's own consultation included organisations representing people who rely on foodbanks — the free steps matter most: signing up to the Priority Services Register costs nothing, and writing down phone numbers costs a pen.

For a week-by-week plan that keeps the total cost down, see how to build your 3-day emergency kit on a budget.

The Priority Services Register: the free step everyone should know

One part of the campaign costs nothing at all and helps the most vulnerable first. The Priority Services Register lets gas, water and electricity suppliers know which households might need extra help during an outage — older people, people with medical equipment that needs power, families with young children, and others.

Signing up is free and takes a few minutes at thepsr.co.uk. I've written a full guide to who qualifies and how to sign up, because this is the single most useful thing in the whole campaign for anyone who'd struggle in a power cut.

Frequently asked questions

Is this about war?

No. The campaign names everyday emergencies: storms, floods, wildfires, power cuts, water failures and cyberattacks. The scenarios are the ones Britain has actually faced in the last few years — last winter's storms and this summer's wildfires are the examples ministers keep giving.

Do I need to panic-buy?

The government says the opposite. Build your kit gradually, a couple of items at a time, alongside your normal shopping. Panic-buying helps nobody and the campaign was designed to avoid it.

How much will it cost?

Less than you'd think. Most of the list is cheap basics: tinned food, bottled water, batteries, a torch. The radio and power bank are the priciest items, and even those have budget options. The Priority Services Register and the written phone list are free.

Where's the official checklist?

The government publishes a one-page PDF checklist. You can download the official Be Ready checklist from this site — the file comes straight from the campaign's own website.

What if I live in Scotland or Northern Ireland?

The campaign points you to local advice: Ready Scotland for Scotland and NI Direct for Northern Ireland. The core checklist is the same, but local services and contacts differ.

The bottom line

Be Ready isn't asking you to become a survivalist. It's asking for a few tins, some bottled water, a torch, a radio and a written list of phone numbers — built up slowly, at your own pace. Three days of basics, so that when the next storm hits, you're managing at home instead of queuing for help someone else needs more. Start with the official checklist, pick up two items on your next shop, and you're already ahead of the 87% who felt unprepared.

This is an independent guide and is not affiliated with the UK government or the Cabinet Office. For the official campaign, visit beready.campaign.gov.uk. Read our disclaimer and about this site.