2-Week Emergency Supply List UK

How to grow your 3-day kit into a 2-week emergency supply in the UK: water, food, medication and power, built up gradually and rotated.

GOV.UK asks households to be ready for 3 days. Once you have that, building towards 2 weeks gives you real peace of mind during longer disruptions, such as a big freeze, a long water outage or illness in the house.

The trick is to build it slowly through your normal shopping and eat what you store, so nothing goes to waste. Never panic buy: it empties shelves for people who need them now.

Based on official GOV.UK Be Ready guidance.

Water for 2 weeks

3 litres of drinking water per person per day means 42 litres per person for 14 days.
A family of 4 needs about 168 litres. Several 20 litre containers are far more practical than bottles at that scale.
Keep purification tablets or a filter as a backup, and a water butt for flushing toilets.

Food for 2 weeks

Base it on what you already eat: tins, pasta, rice, oats, jars and long-life milk.
Keep at least 3 days of food that needs no cooking for power cuts.
For the rest, a camping stove lets you cook, but only use it outdoors or with good ventilation.
Add treats and comfort food. Morale matters in a long disruption.
Store the oldest items at the front and use them in everyday meals.

Health, power and hygiene

Ask your GP or pharmacist about keeping a small buffer of regular medication, and always reorder 5 working days early.
A well-stocked first aid kit, painkillers, rehydration sachets and a thermometer.
Spare batteries, power banks, and a solar charger or portable power station.
Two weeks of toilet roll, soap, hand sanitiser, bin bags and sanitary products.