Adapting to intense heat is not a choice but a necessity. Thousands of people – up to 440 per day – lost their lives prematurely during the record-breaking May and June heatwaves in England and Wales.
With maximum temperatures reaching 36.7°C, schools have been closed, transport networks have been disrupted and more than 20 people have died from cold-water shock while trying to cool off in rivers, lakes and seas.
Heatwaves hotter than 45°C could be possible in the 2050s. But in the face of extreme heat, the UK’s lack of preparedness is glaring. Our ongoing research looks into how workplaces, buildings and community spaces can be better equipped.
Work conditions
Working under heat stress leads to mental fatigue, impaired decision-making, physical exhaustion, heat stroke and collapse. People who work outdoors (in construction or farming, for example) or those who must travel to and for work are particularly affected.
Studies show that productivity declines at around 20°C and progressively decreases as temperatures rise. Hospital admissions also increase during heatwaves.
Yet, the UK does not have a legally mandated maximum temperature. For workplaces, employers are legally required to keep indoor workplaces at a “reasonable” and comfortable temperature.
In Belgium, workplace heat thresholds are explicit. It’s 29°C for office work, 26°C for moderate work (such as shelf stacking), 22°C for heavy work (such as warehousing, construction) and 18°C for very heavy work (such as manual roadwork). When these temperatures are exceeded, Belgian employers must take measures such as cooling, ventilation, extra breaks and providing drinks.
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Building regulations
For housing, the building regulations for England set standards to limit overheating in new-build homes. These regulations prioritise improvements to the internal and external components of homes (such as shutters, insulation, shades) over mechanical cooling such as air conditioning.
Not only is air conditioning energy intensive, but it also contributes to increased ambient air temperature and makes urban heat worse.
Currently missing from these building regulations, however, are mandated maximum temperature thresholds, especially for rented homes. The private rented sector comprises approximately 19% of all UK households. Introducing a mandated threshold would protect tenants from the serious and potentially fatal health effects of extreme heat while protecting them from the costs of adapting buildings that others own.
After successful protesting from tenant unions, New Westminster in British Columbia became the first city in Canada to pass a maximum heat bylaw. This legally requires landlords to ensure that at least one room in every rental unit is kept below 26°C between 8pm and 8am.
In the UK, the Renters’ Rights Act, implemented in May 2026, protects renters against poor living conditions (including damp and mould). Extending this to include protection against extreme heat is also necessary.
Parks, pools and public spending
Cool spaces and accessible facilities such as water stations, libraries, swimming pools, green spaces, public libraries, leisure centres, street furniture and shading enable people to cope with heat. In Leeds, UK, this summer, 39 community hubs, libraries and leisure centres across the city have been designated as cool spaces.
However, across the UK, erosion of these everyday infrastructures has reduced public access – often within communities that would benefit the most. England has lost 500 public pools as a result of austerity. More than 125 libraries closed in England between 2016 and 2023, with another 100 handed over to community groups.
This deepens existing inequalities, meaning that the communities most at risk of heat are least likely to have access to cooling infrastructures. Stronger local investment into everyday infrastructures can make cooling more accessible for more people. That include extending the hours of operation of these public cooling spaces.
In Toronto, Canada, the city’s heat relief strategy explicitly states free access and extended hours at select designated cool spaces across the city during heat warnings. The city also extends hours of operation of outdoor pools until 11.45pm.
JohnInNorthYork/Shutterstock
Toronto’s eco-roof incentive programme has supported the installation of green roofs with living plants and painting reflective coatings onto roofs that reflect solar heat across the city.
The Green Alleys of Montréal in Canada,, a community-led initiative that has been in place since 1995, enables the conversion of back alleys into shady green community spaces. These greening programmes were not initiated by city planners but were established and are still maintained by local resident volunteers.
Paris, France, has invested extensively in the city’s blue-green infrastructures (such as rivers and parks). The council has planted more than 150,000 trees and created 63,000 hectares of green space. This cools the city and provides shade. Research shows that such green spaces can lower temperatures by 1–7°C.
These networks of green parks, rivers and lakes are important interventions for heat relief. But a lot of invisible labour goes in maintaining them and there’s a risk of “green gentrification” (when urban greening can increase property values and result in displacement). This can all exacerbate pre-existing inequities, so recognising who gets to access these spaces is critical.
Read more:
The cooling divide: how air conditioning is creating a new climate inequality
Reducing the risks of increased heat in the UK without compromising climate targets requires a strong political will plus policy interventions and investment.
Equitable solutions to heat risk will avoid locking Britain into a system that’s dependent on air-conditioning. Energy-intensive cooling tech only exacerbates the cooling divide or comes at the expense of other less energy-intensive solutions likely to benefit everyone.
Changes in public spaces (including increased provision of green parks, lakes and water fountains) enable easy public access to cooling. Everyday heat adaptation is not only about technological fixes, but about building or redesigning everyday infrastructures that enable a fair and equitable living environment for everybody, whatever the weather.
Subina Shrestha receives funding from the Meltzer Foundation and from ESRC Centre for Joined-Up Sustainability Transformations (JUST ES/Z504130/1).
Claire Hoolohan receives funding from ESRC Centre for Joined-Up Sustainability Transformations (JUST ES/Z504130/1) and ESRC Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformation (ES/S012257/1).
