The short answer
No. Keeping a few days of water, food, light and a radio is official UK advice, not a prediction that something terrible is coming. GOV.UK's Be Ready campaign asks every household to be able to manage at home for 3 days, because power cuts, floods, storms and other disruption do happen, and help goes first to the people who need it most. Treat it like a smoke alarm or home insurance: a small, boring step you take once and check twice a year. Start with free steps, then 3 days, then a week.
Preparing isn't predicting
The biggest Mumsnet thread on this (over 100 replies) asks whether preppers are being hysterical. It's a fair question, because some prepping content online is built to frighten you into buying things.
Basic preparation is different, and it's official:
- GOV.UK's Be Ready campaign asks every household to be able to manage at home for 3 days. It mentions disruption "from severe weather to cyber attacks". It doesn't give odds, and its tone is calm: "some simple steps".
- Sweden asks households to manage on their own for at least a week.
- Norway asks for a week, because, as its civil protection agency explains, critical services are rarely lost for longer than that, and a week gives time to plan if a crisis goes on.
- The UK's National Risk Register (Cabinet Office, January 2025) sets out how likely and how serious different risks are. It's an assessment for planners, not a forecast of what will happen, and it points households to GOV.UK/Prepare.
So a few days of supplies is closer to a smoke alarm than a bunker. You hope you never need it, and it costs little.
What actually happens in the UK
The disruption most UK households will meet is ordinary: storms that bring down power lines, floods, burst mains, a few days of snow. Be Ready's power-cut page notes that gas boilers and heat pumps stop without power and mobile networks can go down if the local mast loses power. Those are the things a 3-day kit is for.
A calm first week
Day 1: the free steps (£0)
- Write key numbers on paper: 105 for power cuts (England, Scotland, Wales), 03457 643 643 in Northern Ireland, gas emergency 0800 111 999, your GP, pharmacy, water company and family.
- Check whether anyone at home can join the Priority Services Register (Ofgem): for example people over state pension age, families with young children, or anyone with a disability, long-term condition or medical equipment. It's extra help in a power cut.
- Find your stopcock and your fuse box.
- Agree a meeting place with your household in case phones are down.
Day 2–3: light and news (about £20)
- A torch or head torch each, and spare batteries. Be Ready says torches are safer than candles.
- A battery or wind-up FM radio, with your local stations' frequencies written on it.
Day 4–5: water and food (about £20–£40)
- 3 litres of drinking water per person per day for 3 days (Be Ready). For two people, that's three 6-packs of 2-litre bottles.
- 3 days of food you already eat that needs no fridge or cooking, and a manual tin opener.
Day 6–7: power, money, medicines
- A charged power bank for each phone.
- Some cash in coins and notes (Be Ready sets no amount).
- Order repeat prescriptions in good time, and write down everyone's medicines and doses.
- Set a phone reminder for 6 months to check dates (Be Ready).
That's the official 3-day kit, built in a week, mostly from things you already own.
Three budgets
These are rough guides, not prices: what you need depends on your household and what you already have.
| Budget | What it gets you |
|---|---|
| Almost nothing | The free steps, water in bottles you already have, tins from the cupboard, blankets, a charged phone |
| About £50 | Add torches, an FM radio, bottled water for 3 days and a few days of tins |
| About £150 | Add a good power bank, a first-aid kit, a week of water and food built up over a few shops |
If the news is making you anxious
Many forum threads start with "I can't sleep". Taking a few practical steps can make worry easier to live with, because you know what you'd do. It can also help to limit how often you check the news, and to use official sources (GOV.UK, the BBC, your council) rather than social media clips. If worry is affecting your sleep or daily life, talk to your GP; in a crisis, call NHS 111 or the Samaritans on 116 123.
Talking to family who think it's silly
Show them the government's own list rather than a prepper video. Keep it small: torches, water, a radio, some tins. Most people agree with "be ready for a power cut". Fewer agree with "prepare for the end of the world", and you don't need them to.
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What to buy
About these links: plain links to ordinary retailer pages. We may earn from some links in future; we don't now. We haven’t tested these and we don’t rank them: they are examples that were in stock when we checked. Prices change. Check what you already own first. Full kit list
Torch or head torch, plus spare batteries
Look for: Runs on the same AA or AAA batteries as your other kit, so one spare pack covers everything. A head torch leaves both hands free.
- Alpkit Ionic 350 Lumen Head Torch · Alpkit · £15.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Intensity 155 LED Head Torch · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £19.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Alpkit Kula 550 Lumen Head Torch · Alpkit · £19.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Lifesystems Intensity 480 LED Hand Torch · Lifesystems (UK brand store) · £29.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Dynamo Powered Wind-Up Pocket LED Torch · EVAQ8 · £3.60 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
Battery or wind-up FM radio
Look for: FM (Be Ready asks for FM; DAB as well is fine). Both a crank and ordinary batteries, so you have two ways to power it.
Power bank
Look for: From a seller you know. Check the capacity (mAh) against your phone, and that you have the right cable for each phone. Keep it charged.
- Anker Zolo Power Bank 20000mAh 30W Built-in USB-C · Anker UK (brand store) · £34.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Anker Zolo Power Bank 20000mAh 30W Built-in USB-C · Amazon UK · £28.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
- Anker Power Bank 20K 87W Built-In USB-C Cable · Anker UK (brand store) · £49.99 (price on 1 November 2026) Shop
Frequently asked questions
Are preppers just scaremongering?
Some online content is. Basic preparation isn't: the UK government's Be Ready campaign asks every household to keep enough to manage at home for 3 days, and Sweden and Norway ask for a week. That's planning for ordinary disruption like power cuts and floods, not a forecast of disaster.
Do you think something is coming? Should we be worried right now?
We don't make predictions, and nor does the government's Be Ready advice. It doesn't estimate how likely an emergency is; it says emergencies can disrupt the services you rely on, and asks you to take some simple steps. Preparing is about being able to cope with whatever happens, not about knowing what will.
I'm a total beginner. Where do I start?
With the free steps: write down key numbers on paper, check whether anyone at home can join the Priority Services Register, find your stopcock, and agree where to meet if phones are down. Then build 3 days of water and food you already eat, a torch, an FM radio and a charged power bank.
Is prepping worth it, or a waste of money if nothing happens?
If you store food and water you normally use and rotate it, very little is wasted. Most of a basic kit is torches, a radio, a power bank and tins, which you'll use in an ordinary power cut anyway.
How do I talk to my partner or family who think prepping is silly?
Point to the official advice rather than the news: it's the government's own Be Ready checklist. Keep it small and practical (a torch each, water for 3 days, a list of numbers) rather than a cupboard full of kit.
I feel overwhelmed. What are the priorities?
Water, light, news and medicines first. Then food you already eat, warmth, and a way to charge a phone. You don't need to do it all at once: add a few items to your normal shopping and check it every six months.
Sources
We opened each page on the date shown. Official advice changes: if a source says something different now, follow the source.
- GOV.UK Be Ready: home page (read 1 November 2026)
- GOV.UK Be Ready: be ready for emergencies (checklist) (read 1 November 2026)
- Cabinet Office (GOV.UK): National Risk Register 2025 (read 1 November 2026)
- Swedish Civil Defence and Resilience Agency (MCF): Home preparedness, prepping for at least a week (read 1 November 2026)
- DSB (Norway): Frequently asked questions about self-preparedness (read 1 November 2026)
- Ofgem: Join your supplier's Priority Services Register (read 1 November 2026)
- GOV.UK Be Ready: power cuts (read 1 November 2026)
Related guides
- Why is the government asking us to prepare?
- Prepping in the UK: a calm beginner's guide
- The Be Ready checklist, explained for your home
- Talking to children about emergencies, calmly
Free tools
- How ready is your home? A 2-minute quiz
- Be Ready kit: the official list as a tick list
- Priority Services Register checker
We're an independent UK site, not the government. We check guides against official sources and link to them. In an emergency call 999.
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