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Preparing for Emergencies

Simple things you could do now to prepare for emergencies

  1. Free service which provides extra advice and support, including when there’s an interruption to your electricity, gas or water supply: Priority Service Registers.
  2. Set a reminder to check your smoke alarms at least once a month.
  3. Keep important numbers for services: household emergency plan
  4. Talk to your children about emergencies – teach them how and when to call 999 and what they should do if there’s an emergency, such as a fire at home. 
  5. Check your long term flood risk and sign up for flood and weather warnings.

Below are a few simple and effective steps that you should consider taking to prepare for emergencies and the disruption they cause. 

Stay Informed

Ready Scotland compiled links to the most up-to-date information sources for any forecast disruption, be it related to weather, traffic, or a more unusual issue. Use the following information to help you prepare for disruptions coming your way.

You can access more advice on Flooding here:  SEPA | Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Make a Plan / Prepare your Home

It’s helpful to think carefully and plan what you would do in an emergency before it happens

Make a plan to check in on neighbours if an emergency happens, particularly if the power goes out!

Emergency Kit & Supplies

Ready Scotland recommend that all households build a small emergency kit and keep it in a safe place. This will help prepare you for a wide range of emergency situations, and minimise the stress or expense that unexpected events can bring.

Make sure that you include a copy of your household emergency plan. We have a plan template that you can download to your device or print out and keep in a safe place. It also includes an emergency kit checklist.

Get Support & Assist Others + Priority Services Register

Many people are eligible for extra, free support in challenging times, find out if you are eligible to sign up to a Priority Services Register (PSR) http://thepsr.co.uk/

Ready Scotland has collated the main ways to register for this help below. We recommend signing up to these services before you need them.

Skills & Maintenance

You can learn useful skills to help yourself and others around you during periods of disruption, so long as it’s safe to do so.

Business Continuity in an Emergency

If you run a business, follow Ready Scotland’s Business Checklist and plan for serious disruptions to minimise any impact.

Preparing in this way can help you and your staff to deal with more day-to-day difficulties and might even help to improve your processes by highlighting the things that matter most.