When the Grid Goes Quiet: How Radio Can Help in a UK Emergency

Oct 1, 2026 • 9 min read • Updated Oct 1, 2026

Why radio, and why now?

When the power goes, your phone, broadband and TV usually go with it, and radio is often what’s left. The UK Government’s Prepare guidance asks every household to keep a battery or wind-up radio in its emergency kit, alongside water, food, a torch and a power bank.

That advice isn’t nostalgia. Mobile masts run on short battery backups, home broadband needs mains power, and networks that do survive quickly overload as everyone tries to call at once. Radio needs no network in between: a transmitter, the air, and a receiver.

As a licensed radio amateur, I want to walk through what radio can realistically do for you in an emergency, from simply listening for official updates, to talking with neighbours and family, to joining the volunteers who provide communications when everything else fails. Where would you be getting your information if the lights went out tonight?

Step one: listen

The single most useful radio in a UK emergency is an ordinary FM broadcast receiver. It needs no licence, no training and no one to talk to. In most local emergencies the official advice is simple: go in, stay in, and tune in to local radio.

For a nationwide blackout, the plans are specific. The UK Chief Medical Officers have published the public health scripts that would be broadcast, and they state that public messaging would be limited to BBC Radio 2 and Radio 4, as radio is the most power-resilient channel (GOV.UK). Your BBC local station will also carry updates for regional incidents.

Make sure your radio has FM. BBC Radio 4 Long Wave on 198 kHz was switched off on 27 June 2026 (RSGB), so an old long-wave set is no longer a fallback. DAB is fine day to day, but FM sets are simpler and usually run far longer on batteries.

What to look for in an emergency receiver:

FM (and ideally DAB) with a proper tuning display
At least two power sources: AA batteries plus wind-up, solar or USB charging
A headphone socket, to save power and listen quietly at night
Bonus: a built-in torch and USB output to top up a phone

Don’t forget your car. A car radio works in a power cut, though in severe weather it may be safer to stay indoors.

Do you know the FM frequencies for Radio 2, Radio 4 and your BBC local station where you live? Write them on a label and stick it to the radio.

Step two: talk back, your two-way options

Listening tells you what’s happening; two-way radio lets you check on family, coordinate with neighbours and ask for help. In the UK you have three realistic routes, and only one of them needs an exam.

Option	Licence needed?	Power	Typical range	Rough cost	Best for
PMR446 walkie-talkies	No, licence-exempt	0.5 W, fixed aerial	A few hundred metres in town; 1–3 km with clear line of sight	£20–£60 a pair	Family and street-level contact
CB radio (27 MHz)	No, licence-exempt since 2006	4 W FM (12 W SSB on CEPT channels)	Several km with a good vehicle or base aerial	£50–£150 plus aerial	Vehicles, rural areas, village networks
Amateur (ham) radio	Yes, Ofcom licence after an exam	25 W Foundation, more at higher levels	Local via repeaters; national and international on HF	£30 handheld up to several hundred pounds	Longer-range, resilient, organised emergency comms

PMR446 is the walkie-talkie you can buy in any outdoor shop. It’s the easiest starting point, but ignore “10 km range” claims on the box, buildings and hills cut it dramatically. To stay legal, the radio must be unmodified, use its fixed aerial and stay at 0.5 W.

CB has a little more power and lets you fit a proper external aerial, which makes a real difference. It is still popular with farmers, off-roaders and some community resilience groups.

Amateur radio is the most capable option by far. Licensed operators can use VHF/UHF handhelds through local repeaters, or HF radios that can reach across the country without any infrastructure at all. Anyone can listen to amateur bands without a licence, but you must not transmit on them unless licensed.

Which of these could your household realistically keep charged, practised and ready?

Getting your amateur radio licence

If you want more than walkie-talkie range, the Foundation licence is far easier to get than most people assume. It is a short multiple-choice exam, you can sit it at home, and the licence itself is free and lasts for life.

Study. Use the RSGB Foundation Licence Manual, a free online course such as Essex Ham’s, or a course at a local club.
Book the exam with the RSGB. It is 26 multiple-choice questions in 60 minutes, taken online with a remote invigilator or at a registered venue. The fee is £35.50 (RSGB).
Claim your licence from Ofcom. Apply online through the Ofcom licensing portal, there’s no charge, and you’ll receive an M7 callsign.
Get on air. Since Ofcom’s February 2024 changes, Foundation holders can use up to 25 W across most bands and build their own equipment.

The Intermediate and Full licences add more power and privileges when you’re ready. The RSGB club finder will show your nearest club, and joining one is the fastest way to learn practical skills from people who’ve done it for years.

Could you spare a few evenings this winter to get licensed?

RAYNET: organised emergency communications

RAYNET-UK is the UK’s national volunteer communications service run by licensed radio amateurs. It was formed after the 1953 East Coast floods, when amateurs stepped in as normal communications failed.

Today there are over 100 local RAYNET groups (RSGB). Under the amateur licence, RAYNET can pass messages on behalf of police, fire and ambulance services, the Coastguard, local authority resilience teams, government departments and the British Red Cross. Groups have supported incidents involving flooding, evacuations, telephone exchange failures and missing-person searches.

Most of the time you’ll find RAYNET volunteers at fun runs, marathons and rallies, that’s where message handling and kit get practised for real. If you’re licensed, or working towards it, contacting your local group is the most direct way to put your radio skills to use for your community.

Building a household radio kit

A radio is only as good as its power supply. Plan for at least three days without mains electricity, matching the Government’s own guidance for food and water.

Everyone

FM/DAB receiver with batteries plus wind-up or solar charging
Spare AA/AAA batteries, stored in a sealed bag and rotated yearly
A pair of PMR446 radios, with batteries in a separate pack
A printed card with frequencies, channels and family meeting points
Power bank, kept charged

Licensed amateurs, add:

Handheld VHF/UHF transceiver with spare battery and AA battery case
Better aerial for the handheld (a longer whip or roll-up J-pole)
12 V leisure or LiFePO4 battery with fused leads for a mobile or HF rig
Small folding solar panel and charge controller
Portable HF aerial (end-fed or dipole) and coax
Notepad, pencils and a printed copy of local repeater frequencies

Keep it together in one box, and test it every few months. A radio with flat batteries in a cupboard is no better than no radio at all.

How to use radio when it matters

If life is at risk, try 999 or 112 first. Mobile phones will try any available network for emergency calls. Radio supplements the emergency services; it doesn’t replace them.

Agree a plan before you need it

Pick a primary channel. Agree one PMR446 channel (and CTCSS code, if your radios use them) with family and neighbours, for example channel 1, no code. Write it down.
Pick a backup. Choose a second channel in case the first is busy or noisy.
Set listening times. To save batteries, agree to switch on at fixed times, say on the hour for ten minutes, every daylight hour.
Know the common calling frequencies. CB users have traditionally used channel 9 for emergencies; amateurs use 145.500 MHz (2 m) and 433.500 MHz (70 cm) as FM calling channels, plus your local repeaters.

Make a clear call

Listen first, never transmit over someone else.
Press, pause a second, then speak slowly and clearly, mouth a few centimetres from the mic.
Say who you’re calling, then who you are: “Dad, Dad, this is Sarah.” Licensed amateurs give their callsign.
Keep messages short and say “over” when you want a reply.
For urgent traffic, start with “Emergency, emergency, emergency” and pause for a reply.

Pass a useful message

A good emergency message answers four questions, who, where, what, what’s needed:

“This is Sarah at 12 High Street… My neighbour has fallen and can’t get up. She’s conscious. Please relay to ambulance. Over.”

Write messages down before sending, and note the time. Relayed messages get garbled quickly; a written copy keeps them accurate.

Stay legal

Stick to equipment and frequencies you are entitled to use: unmodified PMR446 and CB sets for everyone, amateur bands only if you hold a licence. Listening to broadcast, amateur, CB and PMR446 traffic is fine.

Practise

The worst time to learn your radio is during a crisis. Try a family “radio night” once a month: switch off the phones, call each other on the agreed channel and pass a test message. Which of your neighbours would you want on the other end?

Quick reference card

Print this, fill in the blanks, and keep it with your radio.

What	Where to find it
National updates	BBC Radio 2 and Radio 4 on FM
Local updates	BBC local radio: ______ MHz FM
Power cut reporting	105 (free)
Emergency services	999 or 112
Family PMR446 channel	Primary: ___ Backup: ___
Listening times	______________
Amateur calling (licensed)	145.500 MHz / 433.500 MHz FM, local repeater: ______
RAYNET 24-hour line	0303 040 1080

Final thoughts

Radio won’t stop a storm, a flood or a grid failure. But it can turn a frightening silence into information, and isolation into contact. Start small with a good FM radio and a pair of walkie-talkies; if it sparks your interest, the Foundation licence is closer than you think.

What’s one step you could take this week to make sure you’d still be in touch if everything else went quiet?