UK emergency kit list: what to put in a 3-day kit

The full checklist

Tick these off over a weekend. Quantities are for the whole household unless it says otherwise.

Water

• Drinking water 3 litres per person per day
  Official figure: 3 litres of drinking water per person per day, for 3 days. Treat this as your minimum.
• Extra water for cooking and washing As much as you have room for
  The official advice says more is needed for cooking and washing but gives no figure, so anything above your drinking total is comfort. Extra may also be needed for baby formula and medical devices.
• Water for pets Some extra bottles for each pet
  Animals drink a lot more than people expect, especially dogs after a walk. If you aren't sure how much your animal needs in a day, ask your vet next time you are in.
• Clean containers with lids Optional, before a forecast storm
  If you fill clean containers from the tap before a forecast storm, use that water first, for washing, flushing and cooking, and don't keep it for weeks. Count shop-bought bottled water as your drinking supply.
• Water purification tablets Only if you have no space for bottled water
  A fallback, not a plan, if you have no space at all for bottled water. They come in different strengths, so always follow the label; most alternative water sources need filtering first.

Food that needs no cooking

• Tins of protein (fish, meat, beans)
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Tins of vegetables and potatoes
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Tins or pots of fruit and pudding
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Breakfast cereal
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Crackers or crispbreads
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Dried fruit
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Nuts
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Cereal bars
  Based on the book's family-of-four menu for three days; for one person, divide by four and round up. Portion sizes are not specified: buy food you'd usually eat.
• Long-life milk and juice Some small cartons
  Small cartons, so nothing is left open without a fridge. Long-life juice and squash help make water more appealing for children.
• Manual tin opener
  The item people forget most often. If your opener is electric, a pile of tins is just a pile of tins.
• Special diet foods If anyone at home needs them
  If someone has a serious allergy or a medical diet, build their three days around food they already eat safely and keep it in a separate, clearly marked bag. If unsure, ask the GP, dietitian or diabetes team who already supports them.
• Ready-to-feed formula A few cartons
  Ready-to-feed formula is the safest option in an emergency, because you may not be able to boil water or sterilise bottles. Powdered formula is not sterile and should only be made up with freshly boiled water.
• Baby food, bottles and feeding equipment Enough for three days
  Check the labels on pouches and jars to see whether they can be served without heating, and check the age guidance.

Light, power and information

• Torch
  One per person, battery or wind-up, kept where you can find it in the dark. Torches are safer than candles.
• LED lantern One or two
  Lights a whole room. Far better than a torch for reading, eating or playing cards.
• Head torches If you have children or need both hands free
  For children, or anyone who needs both hands free, for example to care for someone.
• Spare batteries In the right sizes
  In the right sizes, in their packets, stored separately from the torches: batteries left inside a torch for years can leak and ruin it.
• Wind-up torch
  A back-up that never needs batteries.
• Battery or wind-up FM radio
  When the internet and TV are down, radio usually isn't. Write the frequencies of your national and local stations on paper and tape the list to the radio.
• Charged power bank and cables
  Consider one for each adult. A power bank is only useful if it is charged: top it up at your monthly check and keep the right cables with it.
• Cash in small notes and coins A mix of coins and notes, plus your cards
  There is no official figure. Think of three days of small essentials: a top-up shop, fuel, a prescription charge, a taxi.

Health, first aid and hygiene

• First aid kit
  Waterproof plasters, bandages, a thermometer, antiseptic, eyewash solution, sterile dressings, gloves, medical tape and tweezers; useful extras are triangular bandages, cleansing wipes, scissors and a foil blanket. Check it twice a year.
• Regular medicines Enough for at least three days
  Request repeat prescriptions up to five working days before you need them, so nobody gets down to their last few days of tablets. Please don't stockpile beyond what is prescribed; talk to your GP or pharmacist about a small, sensible buffer.
• Painkillers and everyday remedies Your usual ones, in date
  Your usual painkillers and any everyday remedies your household already relies on, in date and in one place. Ask your pharmacist if you're unsure what suits a child or someone on other medication.
• Hand sanitiser and wet wipes Enough for three days
  Where you can't wash with soap and water, use alcohol-based hand sanitiser. Always clean your hands after the toilet or a nappy change, and before preparing or eating food.
• Toilet roll and heavy-duty bin bags Enough for three days
  Bin bags are useful for rubbish that can't go out, and for keeping things dry.
• Toothbrushes, toothpaste, sanitary products, deodorant The basics for everyone
  Put the hygiene items in one labelled bag inside your kit.
• Small towel
  A small towel per person.
• Paper plates, cups and disposable cutlery For a day or two
  Saves water on washing-up when every litre counts. Dry shampoo helps too.
• Bucket
  Keep it by the bath. A bucket of non-drinking water poured briskly into the toilet bowl flushes it, saving your clean supply.
• Nappies, wipes and nappy bags At least three days' worth, more if your baby goes through them quickly
  Plus any creams you use.
• Spare glasses or contact lenses If anyone wears them
  An old pair in a case is perfect. Contact lens wearers: keep a supply and some solution.
• Spare hearing aid batteries If anyone uses hearing aids
  If hearing aids are rechargeable, keep the charger with the power bank and check the power bank can charge them.
• Spare chargers or batteries for essential equipment For anyone who relies on equipment
  For medical equipment, mobility aids and accessibility aids used every day. Make a power-cut plan with the care provider or clinical team, and keep printed instructions with your documents.

Warmth and safety

• Blankets or sleeping bags Enough for everyone
  Homes can become cold very quickly when the heating goes off. Plan first for older adults, babies, young children and people with long-term health problems.
• Warm layers and hats For everyone
  Several thin layers rather than one thick jumper.
• Carbon monoxide alarm One in every room with a fuel-burning appliance
  Fit an audible alarm that meets British or European standards (look for the BS Kitemark or EN 50291) in every room with an appliance that burns gas, oil, coal or wood, and test it when you test your smoke alarms.
• Fridge thermometer
  Turns guesswork into a quick glance in a power cut: food can stay in the fridge while it is below 8°C. It doubles as a room thermometer.
• Games, books, a pack of cards Optional
  Something to keep the evening calm.

Pets

• Pet food Three days of your pet's usual food, plus any treats or medicine they rely on
  Dry food keeps well; tins of pet food need a tin opener as much as yours do.
• Lead, harness, collar with tag, or a carrier, and a bowl For each pet
  Keep suitable carriers ready in case you have to leave home.
• Pet medication, with name and dose written down If your pet takes any
  Seal microchip numbers, vet and vaccination details in a watertight bag with a recent photo of your pet.
• Poo bags A supply
  For the pet section of the grab bag.
• A little litter and a tray For each cat
  For cats.

Paper copies

• Emergency contacts sheet, on paper
  One in the grab bag, one on the fridge or inside a kitchen cupboard door, and one for anyone who lives alone and relies on you. Phones run out of battery; paper doesn't.
• Written list of everyone's medicines and doses One, kept with the kit
  Vital if someone else has to take over care or explain things to a paramedic.
• Copies of important documents in a waterproof bag One set
  Copies, not originals: passports, birth certificates, insurance policy details and instructions for any medical equipment, in a clear, zip-top waterproof pouch.

Keeping the kit ready

• Once a month, ten minutes: test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, charge the power bank, check the torch and radio, replace anything you used.
• When the clocks go forward and back: eat and replace food near its date, replace stored water by its best-before date, check medicines and the first aid kit.
• After any change at home (a new baby, a pet, a house move, new medication): update the kit and the plan.