Once sheltering in the tube had been approved, it had to be organised by local government and Civil Defence. 79 stations were fitted with bunks, first aid clinics, and chemical toilets. On November 25th 1940, the first of 22,000 specially made triple-bunk beds were fitted into the deep Tube stations at Lambeth North. From 29th October 1940 there were even 124 canteens throughout the system, with food delivered by special trains.

The government attacked the health and sanitation problems by issuing posters with the message "Coughs and Sneezes Spread Diseases" and giving general advice on how to stay healthy. Orders were given to disinfect the air in the shelters. Toilets were provided, although too few, too late and too often they overflowed.

The government introduced a system of Shelter Marshals (they had the letters SM on their helmets). Their job was to keep order in all shelters, give first aid, help those in need as well as deal with such problems as flooded tunnels and overflowing toilets. On 2nd November 1940 season tickets were introduced so that shelterers could reserve their place in the Underground stations.

Many Londoners found shelter wherever they could - in churches, in wine cellars, in boiler rooms. In March 1940, the government asked local authorities to build brick and concrete shelters on the surface. These were usually at the end of streets or under railway arches and were used by the people living in that street, perhaps about 50 people in total. A shortage of concrete meant that many of these shelters were not that strong. There were other reasons why these shelters were not very popular. They were cold, damp, and dark. Ventilation was poor and the general stench was not helped by the fact that the chemical toilets tended to overflow.

Trench shelters were also built in public parks and gardens, dug into the ground, lined, and then given roofs of either concrete or steel. They normally contained about 50 people but were unpopular because they used to flood very easily. The idea of spending the entire night sitting with your feet in a puddle of water was unappealing to most Londoners.

No matter what the accommodation, when families were bombed out of their home they found a corner of some shelter and tried to make do as best they could.