The UK government is asking every household in the country to be ready for three days of disruption. Under the new “Be Ready” campaign, launched on 22 October 2026 by the Cabinet Office, homes are advised to keep enough bottled water, non-perishable food and basic kit to get through 72 hours if everyday services are interrupted.
The advice is aimed at ordinary emergencies: severe storms that knock out power, floods, wildfires, a water supply failure or a cyber incident that disrupts payments and communications. The campaign’s own message is deliberately calm: being ready for three days helps you manage while support reaches those in need.
Key Takeaways
- The Be Ready campaign, launched on 22 October 2026, asks UK households to be ready for three days of disruption.
- The checklist centres on 3 litres of drinking water per person per day, food that needs no fridge or cooking, a torch, a radio and cash.
- Ministers stress the advice is about sensible precautions for everyday emergencies, not panic buying.
What the campaign asks for
At the heart of the advice is a simple target: three days. The Be Ready checklist advises storing nine litres of drinking water per person for three days, alongside non-perishable food that needs no refrigeration or cooking. It also lists a torch, a battery-powered or wind-up FM radio to receive updates during outages, spare batteries and a power bank, banknotes and coins in case electronic payments or cash machines are disrupted, a first-aid kit, blankets or sleeping bags, toiletries and essential medicines.
Eligible households are also urged to sign up to the Priority Services Register, which gives extra help from energy and water suppliers during an outage. The guidance says supplies can be built up gradually during normal shopping, and that some of the most useful steps cost nothing at all.
Being ready for three days helps you manage while support reaches those in need.
Why the government is doing it now
Ministers say the UK has faced a run of disruptions that make household readiness more urgent. The country has endured powerful storms in recent years, a record-setting summer of heat, drought and wildfires, and major cyber incidents, all of which can disrupt power, water, transport and supply chains. Storm Goretti, which hit in January, left tens of thousands of homes without power across parts of the Midlands, south-west England and Wales, with winds reaching nearly 100 mph.
The campaign is the first stage of a three-year programme, and more than 500 organisations have signed up to share the advice, with social media and radio advertising set to follow. The new Be Ready website replaces the previous GOV.UK Prepare site, which now redirects to it. A Cabinet Office-backed survey of 10,791 UK adults, conducted from 27 February to 11 May 2026, found that only 13% felt their household was largely or totally prepared for an emergency, while 84% said government information on household preparedness was important.
What is on the checklist
- Drinking water: 3 litres per person per day, nine litres per person for three days
- Non-perishable food that needs no fridge or cooking, such as tinned food
- A torch, spare batteries and a power bank for phones
- A battery-powered or wind-up FM radio for updates during outages
- Cash in banknotes and coins, in case cards and cash machines stop working
- A first-aid kit, blankets, toiletries and essential medicines
What the advice is not
Officials have been keen to draw a line between readiness and alarm. The campaign does not tell people to stockpile, does not set a deadline, and is not a warning of war at home. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has described the advice as taking sensible precautions rather than causing panic, telling broadcasters that households should simply have the supplies to get through those moments when services are disrupted. Ministers have also pointed to similar guidance already issued in France, Ireland and the Netherlands, and to the heavy rain and gales that regularly test the UK’s infrastructure each winter.
What to Watch Next
The campaign will roll out in stages over three years, with advertising and partner organisations spreading the checklist in the coming weeks and months. What matters now is whether households actually act on it: whether the three-day target becomes a normal part of weekly shopping, whether vulnerable households join the Priority Services Register, and whether the next storm, flood or cyber incident finds more homes able to cope on their own for 72 hours. The government has said much of the advice has not changed from earlier guidance; what is new is the push to make readiness a household habit rather than an afterthought.