A Sky Data poll has revealed 28% of people are stockpiling in preparation for a no-deal Brexit, or have thought about doing so.

In Cornwall, Nevine Mann and her family have been buying extra food and supplies since last summer to make sure she is prepared if there is no deal as Britain leaves the European Union.

She tells Sky News why she is doing it.

A no-deal Brexit may result in disruption to a whole range of products and services, some for a short time, others for much longer. As a parent, I make all sorts of plans, provisions and other steps to protect my children and buffer them from a range of risks in everyday life, and have done since before they were even born.

When we realised that Brexit was to happen we were disappointed. When we realised that a no-deal scenario was not only a possibility but a likely one we were concerned.

The first thing we did was some light research looking at what the potential implications were. After seeing just the tip of the iceberg, and only in layman’s terms, we decided that more in-depth knowledge was needed.

The realisation that no-deal was becoming more and more likely and had the potential to affect everyday life in such a major way, became clearer in the autumn of 2017. At the time my husband and I had already been discussing the ramifications of any Brexit, looking into the implications, and decided together that we should aim to make some small preparations as a family.

After moving house last summer, we discussed what we wanted to do to provide our family with an insurance policy in case of a no-deal Brexit.

We decided we would create a list of products that we used regularly and had a long shelf life, we then started adding an extra pack of these items each time we went shopping – typically once every two to three weeks.

This list included common household medicines as well as food stuffs. We also bought extra toiletries because so many of us have sensitive skin and require specific brands of things like shampoo and shower gel.

We brought forward the planned installation of solar panels on our roof, and kept all three of the raised veggie patches we had previously decided to keep just one of. We also bought a lot of vegetable seeds to try growing – despite having a terrible record for keeping plants alive!

As time went on and no-deal Brexit became more and more of a possibility and we learnt more and more about the real life implications, we began to look at more things we might need to do to protect our family. This included getting a filter to make the water from our garden water butt drinkable, and buying other things that we may need and may become difficult to obtain – toilet roll, meat substitutes, sources of calcium, dried and tinned fruit are just a few examples.

The whole time we’ve been gathering extra food and products, we’ve been clear that, predominantly we are only buying greater quantities of what we would anyway. Everything will get used, whether there are shortages or delays with products or not, anything we don’t use normally and don’t need will be donated to food banks.

We are also mindful to never leave a shelf empty, to ensure there is always something for the next person and avoid creating panic. We have also bought slowly, over time, during a period when supermarkets and shops can easily replenish their stocks.

People routinely spend money on home insurance – they hope never to have to use, but have it for peace of mind, to protect themselves and their families in case they do.

Our preparations for a no-deal Brexit are no different.

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