- Hand-crank FM/DAB radio with USB out (£20-45), for BBC output; UK Emergency Alerts also broadcast to phones, but need a working mobile network — your one-way news lifeline when cell networks die.
- PMR446 walkie-talkies (£25-45/pair) — family within a few km. Baofeng UV-5R (£25-30) hears everything (air, marine, ham, weather) even unlicensed; get the Ofcom licence via an RSGB Foundation exam now (£35-36, licence itself free online) to legally transmit — ham is THE grid-down long-range network.
- Signal whistles (£2 each, 3 blasts = distress), signal mirror, pre-agreed family rally points + out-of-area contact card on paper in every bag.
- Paper maps of your area + region, compass (£15) + the skill to use them. Mark water sources, hospitals, routes out.
- Offline phone prep now: organic maps/OSMAnd full-region download, Kiwix wikis, this app installed as PWA, all PDFs — a £30 used Android phone kept charged in a drawer is a survival library.
- Faraday protection (EMP/solar-flare hedge, ~£0): spare radio, USB sticks with the app + documents, old phone → nested in a steel dustbin or biscuit tins lined with cardboard.
Comms, info, navigation
Hand-crank radio for news, family radios for local range, paper map and compass as the backup.