A house move is a hundred small jobs with a deadline, and in a family, most of them belong to someone different. There's the admin, the packing, the children's school and nursery, the pets, the day itself, and the first night in a home that doesn't yet have a kettle. The move goes better when the jobs are written down once, given dates, and given names.

The quick answer

• Start with the key dates, like completion or closing, moving day and the last day at school
• Work back in stages: eight weeks, four weeks, two weeks, the last week, moving day, the first week
• Pack by room, and keep a bag for moving day and a box for the first night
• Share the list, and give every job a name and a date

Start with the key dates

Before anything else, write down the dates that everything else depends on: when you get the keys, when the movers or the van arrive, when you have to be out of the old place, and the last and first days of any school or nursery. Everything else in the checklist hangs off those. In Petal Home, household plans on the calendar are free, each one can carry a note, and everyone in the household sees the same dates, so the key ones are always in front of you.

A move in stages

These stages assume roughly two months' notice. If you have less, squeeze them together and start with the earliest jobs.

• About eight weeks out: tell your landlord, agent, solicitor, conveyancer or lawyer what they need to know, sort out the movers or a van, start going through cupboards and storage, and tell your children's school or nursery
• About four weeks out: declutter room by room, book anything you'll need on the day, and start packing the things you use least
• About two weeks out: tell the organisations that need your new address, arrange mail forwarding, and arrange childcare and pet care for moving day
• The last week: pack the rest by room, defrost and clear the freezer, confirm the movers or van, and make up the moving-day bag
• Moving day: keep the essentials with you, and give everyone a simple job
• The first week: unpack the essentials first, meet the neighbours, and find the nearest shop, pharmacy and any places your family will use regularly

The admin that's easy to forget

The list of people to tell about a new address is long, and it helps to write it down in one go. It usually includes the bank and cards, the doctor and dentist, work and payroll, schools, insurers, utilities and broadband, subscriptions and memberships, and family and friends. Set up mail forwarding or redirection with your postal service, and still update your address directly with the organisations that need it. Write down the meter readings on your last day. Keep this list on the shared list, in its own section, so several people can work through it.

Pack by room, and by person

Label every box with the room it's going to, not just what's in it. Where practical, leave some familiar things accessible until late in the move and set up the children's sleeping space early at the new home, so their beds and favourite things are ready on the first night. Give each child a small bag or box for their own things, and let them help decorate it. Keep important documents, keys and essential medicines with you rather than packed deep in the van, following any storage instructions for the medicine.

Moving day and the first night

Make two bags: a moving-day bag with the things you need through the day, and a first-night box with what you need to sleep and eat on the first evening.

• Moving-day bag: keys and documents, chargers, snacks and water, a first-aid kit, cleaning basics and something for the children to do
• First-night box: kettle or coffee maker, mugs, tea and coffee, a few plates and cutlery, toilet paper, bedding, nightlights, pyjamas and toothbrushes
• Children and pets: for children, if you can, arrange a calm place away from the busiest part of the move, with a familiar adult. For pets, plan their moving-day setup separately, with a secure carrier or safe space appropriate to the animal

Give each adult a set of jobs for the day, and put the timings on the calendar. In Petal Home, a household reminder can be assigned to one person, with a due date and time, so the nudge for "read the meters" or "hand the keys back" reaches their phone. With Premium, a countdown shared with the household can hold the moving date, a note, and the lists and reminders, so everyone can see how many days are left.

Settling into the new home

Household details are easy to lose in the chaos, so write them down once. In Petal Home, household info holds things like the new wifi password, the rubbish collection day and any door codes, in one place everyone in the household can find. It's free, and each entry can be private or shared with the household. After that, unpack the essentials first, put up the children's things early, and give everyone a few weeks before expecting the new house to feel like home.