WW3 WW3 PREP / FIELD LIBRARY
A family plan for a power cut
Prepare a practical household plan for a power cut, with light, communication and official local guidance.
Before the lights go out
Choose where the torch lives and make sure everyone can find it. Prepare charging options for your phone. The UK Prepare campaign recommends planning for power cuts before they happen; use the official guide below for detailed precautions.
Make communication simpler
Put essential contact details on paper. Discuss where your family would meet if normal communication fails. An agreement made together is more useful than a contact list nobody knows about.
Adapt the plan to your home
List the things you depend on that stop working without electricity. This could include access systems, cooking equipment or essential powered equipment. Arrange suitable backup support with the relevant provider; this calculator cannot assess those needs.
During an outage
Check instructions from your electricity supplier and local authorities. Do not interpret a power cut as evidence of a particular cause. The simulator helps organise supplies; it does not provide live outage information.
Primary source
UK Prepare — Power cutsRead the full instructions and your local official guidance. References accessed 3 October 2026. No independent expert review.