Power Cut Preparation UK: How to Prepare Your Home for an Outage
Updated: 3 days ago
A power cut can affect much more than the lights.
Your heating, broadband, cooking appliances and phone charging may all depend on electricity. Depending on the circumstances, mobile communications and even water supplies can also be disrupted.
Most UK power cuts are local and short-lived, but the Government's current Prepare guidance notes that more widespread or longer outages can happen. Prepare
Good power cut preparation in the UK therefore isn't about turning your home into an off-grid bunker.
It's about making sure a relatively ordinary outage doesn't immediately leave your household in difficulty.
1. Power cut preparation UK: start with emergency lighting
Start with something simple: lighting.
Government guidance recommends keeping a battery-powered or wind-up torch, together with spare batteries. It specifically notes that torches are safer than candles.
Keep at least one somewhere easy to find in darkness rather than buried in a cupboard.
Avoid relying solely on your phone's torch. Your phone battery may become much more valuable during an extended outage.
2. Have a way to charge your phone
A portable power bank is one of the simplest pieces of backup equipment to keep at home.
But owning one isn't enough.
Charge it periodically and make sure you know where the correct cables are.
For a short outage, a conventional power bank may be enough to keep a phone functioning. Households wanting longer backup for multiple devices may eventually consider higher-capacity portable power solutions.
We'll shortly be adding a HomeStrength Backup Power Calculator to help households work out what level of backup they actually need.
3. Don't assume your internet will keep working
Your router normally requires mains electricity.
Government guidance also warns that mobile service can be affected if local masts are disrupted, meaning a power cut can become a communications outage too.
Prepare by:
Keeping important telephone numbers written down.
Keeping phones and power banks charged when severe weather is forecast.
Considering a battery or wind-up radio.
Agreeing how household members would reconnect if communications failed.
Downloading important information or maps you may need offline.
If you depend on a landline, telecare device or connected medical equipment, check in advance what happens when mains power fails.
Would your household cope with a power cut?
HomeStrength's free Home Check looks at Prepare, Power, Water, Connect and Protect and identifies practical gaps in your household arrangements.
4. Know how to report a power cut
Write this number down:
105
In England, Scotland and Wales, 105 can be used free of charge to report or obtain information about a power cut. Northern Ireland uses 03457 643643.
Don't rely solely on saving the number in your phone. A paper copy of useful emergency contacts is worthwhile if your phone becomes unavailable.
5. Think about food before the electricity goes off
A power cut can stop electric ovens, hobs and microwaves working.
Government guidance therefore recommends keeping some non-perishable food that doesn't require cooking, together with a manual tin opener where necessary. Prepare
During an outage, keep fridge and freezer doors closed as much as possible. This helps them remain cold for longer.
Follow current Food Standards Agency guidance if you are uncertain whether food remains safe after an extended outage.
6. Think about heating
A gas boiler generally still requires electricity for its controls and pump, so having gas supplied to the property doesn't necessarily mean your central heating will continue working during a power cut. The Government specifically warns that boilers and heat pumps may stop working.
Think about how your household would stay warm, particularly in winter.
Blankets, layered clothing and closing curtains and unused rooms can help conserve warmth. Babies, older people and those with some health conditions may be more vulnerable to cold.
Avoid improvised indoor heating or cooking methods that could create a fire or carbon-monoxide risk.
7. Consider water too
Power and water resilience aren't completely separate.
Government guidance notes that mains water supplies can sometimes be affected during power disruption.
Keeping a sensible emergency drinking-water supply therefore provides resilience against more than just a water-company outage.
8. Check whether you qualify for extra support
The Priority Services Register (PSR) is a free service for eligible customers who may need additional support.
The Government advises eligible households to register with their energy supplier and network operator. Support can include additional help during supply interruptions and, where possible, advance notice of planned cuts. Prepare
This is particularly important if someone depends on electrically powered medical or mobility equipment.
9. Know what to switch off during an outage
When power fails, turn off potentially hazardous appliances such as ovens, irons, electric fires and fryers.
Government guidance also recommends unplugging equipment such as televisions and computers that could potentially be damaged by a surge when electricity returns.
Leaving one light switched on can make it obvious when power has been restored.
10. Build your backup power around what you actually need
Not every household needs an expensive portable power station.
Start by identifying what you would genuinely want to keep running.
For many households that might simply be:
Phones → lighting → communications
For others it could include:
Laptop → broadband equipment → medical devices → refrigeration → other essential equipment
Once you know the devices, their power consumption and how long you want them to run, you can calculate the amount of backup energy required.
That's much more useful than simply buying the biggest battery you can afford.
Start with the gaps in your own home
Our UK Emergency Kit 2026 guide covers the wider supplies worth considering alongside power resilience.
And the free HomeStrength Home Check gives you practical next steps based on your household's current arrangements.
Organise your household plan
The HomeStrength Household Preparedness Pack brings your emergency planning together in one printable workbook, including power-cut preparation, emergency contacts, food and water planning, supplies tracking and a seven-day action plan.
£9.99 · One-off purchase · Instant digital download
HomeStrength provides general household preparedness information. During an actual outage, follow advice from your electricity network operator, emergency services and other relevant authorities.
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