When something unexpected happens, communities are often among the first to respond. Neighbours check on one another, community buildings become places to share information and local groups find practical ways to help.

But a little preparation can make that community response much easier.

Ready Together is a free toolkit from the National Emergencies Trust, designed to help communities across the UK think about how they could prepare for and respond to emergencies. Importantly, you don’t need to be an emergency planning expert to use it. The approach starts with the people, places, skills and resources your community already has and helps you build from there.

The toolkit covers eight practical areas of community preparedness, including communications, places and spaces, people and skills, essential supplies, money and finances, supporting people with additional needs, events, and working with your community. Each section offers guidance and activities that groups can work through at their own pace.

One useful feature is that there is no expectation that a community tackles everything at once. You can start with whichever area feels most relevant, perhaps identifying the people with useful skills locally, thinking about places where people could meet or get help, or agreeing how trusted information would be shared during an emergency.

The toolkit is free and can be used without creating an account. Groups that choose to create a free account can also save their community plan, return to it later, download their plan and resources, and add their organisation’s logo to selected materials.

For parish and town councils, community buildings, voluntary organisations and other local groups, Ready Together could be a useful starting point for a conversation about how well prepared your community already is, where the gaps might be and who else locally should be involved.

Take a look at the Ready Together Toolkit and consider where your community could start.