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    3522 Londoners have responded | 01/07/2025 - 31/08/2025

    A very hazy view of London's skyline, featuring the Gherkin and the Walkie Talkie

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    Discussion | Coping with hot weather in London

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    Added by Talk London

    The summer of 2022 saw temperatures above 40°C, the highest ever recorded in England. Climate change could bring hotter, drier summers in London, with longer, more intense heatwaves.

    City Hall’s Climate Adaptation team wants to hear your experience to help inform London’s first Heat Risk Delivery Plan. 

    Join the conversation 

     Thinking back to the heatwave of 2022: 

    • How did you cope with the heat in London?  
    • What helped you stay cool at home or while you were out and about? 
    • What made it better, and what made it worse?  

    Thinking of this summer:  

    • What, if anything, are you doing differently to cope with the heat in London? 
    • What, if anything, does London need to help you cope with the heat? 

    Please share as much detail as you can. Eleanor and Annette from City Hall’s Climate Adaptation team will be reading your comments and joining in.  

    About the action plan

    The London Heat Risk Delivery Plan will set out the roles and responsibilities our city needs to manage heat risk. The recommendation for this action plan came out of last year’s London Climate Resilience Review.  

    Between March and September 2025, Londoners and stakeholders are invited to help inform the action plan. Read more on our background page.

     

    The discussion ran from 01 July 2025 - 31 August 2025

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    Comments (632)

    Avatar for - Colombian spotted frog

    Why does the shortest distance between different area of London have to cross through central london? Can you build any like tunnel or road to bypass the heart area of London in shortest way? I We need to go to the destination fast as...

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    Why does the shortest distance between different area of London have to cross through central london? Can you build any like tunnel or road to bypass the heart area of London in shortest way? I We need to go to the destination fast as possible, and not travelling in the city as a tourist. 

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    Avatar for - Amur leopard

    You need to allow shading on the outer side of windows and glazed doors, including in cosevation areas. 
    Shading from the inside still allows sun rays to pass through the glass window panes and raise the temperature indoors, so it’s not a...

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    You need to allow shading on the outer side of windows and glazed doors, including in cosevation areas. 
    Shading from the inside still allows sun rays to pass through the glass window panes and raise the temperature indoors, so it’s not a sufficient remedy. 

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    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    I’d like to see more tree planting in car parks - orchards would be nice!

    Avatar for - Orangutan

    We absolutely need to install air conditioning on the entirety of the London underground network. It's crazy that this public health emergency is allowed to happen.

    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    I have epilepsy and have had to spend most the summer indoors with 3 fans pointed at me because heat triggers seizures for epileptics

    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    It's not "how to deal with heatwaves" that concerns me but what we are doing. What we have. (The way.) I'm glad that there are still many places AC free in London as a reminder of how things used to be and work very well for us not a long...

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    It's not "how to deal with heatwaves" that concerns me but what we are doing. What we have. (The way.) I'm glad that there are still many places AC free in London as a reminder of how things used to be and work very well for us not a long time ago. Besides, AC is a killer. Imagine it's super nice outside, British summer at its best (we are still SO LUCKY) and you have to "enjoy" 'lightly air conditioned" yoga and pilates spaces (they won't open the window, the trend is trendy and never mindful and the Elizabeth Line should operate Manhattan where these things are the norm: cold so cold). I'm even happy the Northern Line is AC free. I'm fortunate to be in England but what does that mean? I's a global life from childhood to death where you find the good and glorify it.

     

    Thank you for reading.

     

    No replies will be given.

     

    Stay in sanity.

     

    What are we doing to ourselves, who aren't our lives, in plural, but (no "one") singularity.

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    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    People are having heatstrokes and fainting while youre virute signaling 

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    People are having heatstrokes and fainting while youre virute signaling 

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    Avatar for -

    Good to learn to spell in your spare time.

    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    It's a typo, get over it

    Avatar for - Koala

    I wish people would stop driving massive cars around London. Land rovers, BMWs etc. People are way to careful dependent in this city. 

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    I wish people would stop driving massive cars around London. Land rovers, BMWs etc. People are way to careful dependent in this city. 

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    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    Yeah because it's the capital city of the UK and people manage massively long commutes, it's impossible for this city to not have cars but honestly the planning is poor, cars and pedestrians should have much more separation 

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    Yeah because it's the capital city of the UK and people manage massively long commutes, it's impossible for this city to not have cars but honestly the planning is poor, cars and pedestrians should have much more separation 

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    Avatar for - Koala

    Cars should not be allowed in Zone 1.  High streets should be made car free. There should be more days when cars aren't allowed on the roads. There should be more priority given to bicycles, buses and pedestrians. Our bodies evolved to move...

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    Cars should not be allowed in Zone 1.  High streets should be made car free. There should be more days when cars aren't allowed on the roads. There should be more priority given to bicycles, buses and pedestrians. Our bodies evolved to move. You don't need 2000kg of metal to move your body a few miles. Dare to dream xtergo.

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    Avatar for - Adelie penguin

    You clearly don’t understand how London works. Zone 1 doesn’t exist in isolation, it’s the beating heart of a mega city and spans 50+ miles. Millions commute in daily from towns like Luton, Slough, Croydon, Reading, Watford, and Essex...

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    You clearly don’t understand how London works. Zone 1 doesn’t exist in isolation, it’s the beating heart of a mega city and spans 50+ miles. Millions commute in daily from towns like Luton, Slough, Croydon, Reading, Watford, and Essex because London priced them out. You think they’re going to hop on a Brompton and pedal 40 miles to a kitchen porter shift?

    Removing cars from Zone 1t creates a privilege fortress. You’re locking out plumbers, delivery drivers, disabled folks, and working-class people who rely on cars to bridge long, indirect, unreliable commutes. You’re turning the economic core of Britain into a gated museum for the childless, rich, and young.

    Cities don’t run on bikes and buses. They run on logistics, white vans, tradesmen with tools, ambulances, taxi drivers pulling 12-hour shifts.

    What scares me however is not that you're wrong but also where the government is headed, pedestrianisation is great but it should never happen in a way that makes working in this city a nightmare.

    The real dream is a seamlessly connected megacity, like Tokyo or LA with fast arteries, reliable transit, and freedom to choose how you move. Your dream? It’s basically Paris: high taxes, housing crisis, riots, and choking the city for the sake of aesthetics giving no thought just because it sounds nice as an idea.

    London’s already facing a productivity crisis. You think killing car access is going to fix that? You’re solving aesthetic grievances by destroying mobility, efficiency, and inclusion. That’s not visionary. That’s short-sighted urban decay wrapped in eco-virtue.

    What scares me is not that you are wrong, but you have the right idea but the way you choose to implement it, has the opposite effect of what you mean. The government also, has no idea what it's talking about, British urban planning is some of the worst in the world.

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    Avatar for - Staghorn coral

    Hi, my comment is probably not related but wanted to tell my experience...

    It's regarding Persistent Noise & Vibration from Haringey Café – No Action from Council

     

    I would like to write here to seek your help regarding a serious and ongoing...

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    Hi, my comment is probably not related but wanted to tell my experience...

    It's regarding Persistent Noise & Vibration from Haringey Café – No Action from Council

     

    I would like to write here to seek your help regarding a serious and ongoing noise and vibration problem I’ve been facing as a resident in Haringey.

    A café next to my home has installed a loud fan unit on top of a thin dividing wall. The sound and vibration from this machine run continuously throughout the day, creating a low, disturbing hum and shaking that penetrates my living space.

    This has been going on for weeks and weeks in summer even today during cool summer. It affects my health: I feel physically unwell, anxious, unable to rest or sleep properly, and deeply exhausted. In addition there are other noise neusances with the cafe I have been patient with...

    I have reported the issue multiple times to Haringey Council, contacted my councillor, and even written to my MP – but no one has taken action.

    I feel completely neglected. I am just one individual, but I am suffering every day in my own home.

    I am reaching out in the hope that you might consider reporting on this case, or simply speaking with me to raise awareness about the real harm environmental noise can cause – and the lack of response from local authorities.

    I can provide a noise diary, copies of my communications with the council and councillors. The owner can be hostile when last one of the councillors approached. I just do tied....

    Thank you for your time reading my case.

     

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    Avatar for - Staghorn coral

    In addition, I have another very similar case with a noisy cooling fan with a resident in South London. Her council acted very quickly and removed the fan. But with Haringey council, I have been battling through noise neusances with the...

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    In addition, I have another very similar case with a noisy cooling fan with a resident in South London. Her council acted very quickly and removed the fan. But with Haringey council, I have been battling through noise neusances with the cafe for more than 8 years and still it is ongoing despite my efforts. So this time I wrote my experience here hoping to change something....

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    Avatar for -

    Hi lJOnishi. Thank you for sharing your experience, that sounds frustrating. 

    As City Hall can’t comment on individual cases, we recommend getting in touch with your local ward councillor or Citizens Advice if you haven’t already.

    Best wishes

    Talk London

    Avatar for - Sea turtle

    I became ill from the heat at work and needed to go to the emergency department of my local hospital

    Avatar for -

    We're sorry to read that, RedCrow. Hope you started feeling better soon after you went to the hospital?

     

    Avatar for - Tiger

    New build apartment blocks from 2020 onwards are heat traps because of poor Building Regulations that are yet to be updated to remove this loophole. 

    Shared ownership/social rent sections of those new builds over the last 25 years do not...

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    New build apartment blocks from 2020 onwards are heat traps because of poor Building Regulations that are yet to be updated to remove this loophole. 

    Shared ownership/social rent sections of those new builds over the last 25 years do not have cooling systems/AC in-built. Once people moved into those social housing flats, usually at the bottom of the building, they find that the inside temperatures can go up to 52 degrees centigrade (usually averaging 35-45 at peak summer). It's a nasty surprise, and residents then end up battling with their social housing landlords for a decade to retrofit AC/cooling systems, which end up costing more that simply connecting them with the private housing flats above during the original building of the housing block. Builders cut corners and put flimsy fixtures for social housing flats. They also actively disconnect the social housing floors from the main AC system during the build-phase.

     

    My health was damaged for life after living 15 years in my first buyer shared ownership flat in a mid-rise building with 13 floors. The damage to health and the financial exploitation of ever increasing rent and service charge is not worth it long term. It can ruin your chances in life as you are run down to the ground and you become a regular fixture at the GP surgery and hospitals. No one wants that life. My old flat was surveyed by the council and found to have a Category 1 heat hazard. That was the type of flat sold to me by the housing association. It's criminal. I'm sacred of the 800,000 new build homes the government are planning because there is a high probability they will be heat hazard apartment blocks like this.

    I would never live in a flat again.

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    Avatar for - Colombian spotted frog

    Although air conditioning would make it more comfortable inside, it would put more heat into the air outside buildings, which is not a sustainable option. New buildings should optimise passive solar design and apply Passivhaus principles.

    Avatar for -

    It is so nice to have a decent summer again. At a few weeks short of 88 years old and with no air-conditioning or other help I am coping splendidly thanks. The sooner all this drivel from the Mayor and others about a "climate crisis" comes...

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    It is so nice to have a decent summer again. At a few weeks short of 88 years old and with no air-conditioning or other help I am coping splendidly thanks. The sooner all this drivel from the Mayor and others about a "climate crisis" comes to a stop, the better. All the evidence shows that extremes of COLD cause more deaths than warmth. Enjoy the sunshine and stop wasting time and money.

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    Avatar for - Tiger

    The London Mayor must order all councils to ban burning. Bonfires are inexcusable. So is the sale of disposable vapes, and the sale of disposable BBQs, fire pits, log burners etc.

    Avatar for - Tiger

    High rise especially single aspect is hellish (Times june 29) People in flats cant ventilate and cant retrofit  blinds or shutters. Tenants can do nothing.

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    High rise especially single aspect is hellish (Times june 29) People in flats cant ventilate and cant retrofit  blinds or shutters. Tenants can do nothing.

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    Avatar for - Leatherback sea turtle

     

     

    Where London councils are freeholders they should be enabling insulation and measures like external awnings. My freeholder Newham doesn't do anything.

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    Where London councils are freeholders they should be enabling insulation and measures like external awnings. My freeholder Newham doesn't do anything.

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    Avatar for - Sea turtle

    I have been enjoying the sun and have been sleeping a lot with the fan on. I have enjoyed going out and socialising with my friends and family. 

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    I have been enjoying the sun and have been sleeping a lot with the fan on. I have enjoyed going out and socialising with my friends and family. 

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    Avatar for - Colombian spotted frog

    Allowing more people to install air conditioning at home might seem like a short-term fix, but it actually adds to the problem. AC units pump heat out of buildings and into the air — making the city even warmer. It's a dangerous loop we're...

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    Allowing more people to install air conditioning at home might seem like a short-term fix, but it actually adds to the problem. AC units pump heat out of buildings and into the air — making the city even warmer. It's a dangerous loop we're creating, like opening Pandora’s box.

    Instead of just cooling ourselves indoors and pushing the problem outside, we need to find ways to reduce the overall heat in the environment. Otherwise, London will end up like the Victoria Line — electrified and overheating — where trapped heat becomes a design failure, not a solution. 

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    Avatar for - Sumatran elephant

    Depending on the sort of heat we could ensure buildings are painted white, which should reflect some of the sun also have more green areas instead of building on every patch of ground that we can find. 

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    Depending on the sort of heat we could ensure buildings are painted white, which should reflect some of the sun also have more green areas instead of building on every patch of ground that we can find. 

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    Avatar for - Vaquita

    Yes the Vic Line is a great example. Agreed - air con is not the answer. We need environmentally sustainable homes where cool is kept in during hot spells and out when it's cold! Our city needs cooling with trees, plants and parks for...

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    Yes the Vic Line is a great example. Agreed - air con is not the answer. We need environmentally sustainable homes where cool is kept in during hot spells and out when it's cold! Our city needs cooling with trees, plants and parks for people to enjoy the warming climate. 

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    Avatar for - American pika

    I agree

    Avatar for - Vaquita

    Agreed alarmism is not helpful during a crisis. Climate change however is real and a look at stats from experts across the globe confirms it 

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    Agreed alarmism is not helpful during a crisis. Climate change however is real and a look at stats from experts across the globe confirms it 

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    Avatar for -

    Agree.

    Avatar for - Monarch butterfly

    How about taking Thames Water back? Thrice water is being cut off because some pipes burst. Privatized water company not reinvesting on infrastructure and blaming on old assets. Water is a necessity for humans and should never be privatised...

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    How about taking Thames Water back? Thrice water is being cut off because some pipes burst. Privatized water company not reinvesting on infrastructure and blaming on old assets. Water is a necessity for humans and should never be privatised for profits in the first place.

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    Avatar for -

    Not one single answer related to the provision of air conditioning or the Mayor’s attempts to prevent and deter new builds from installing air conditioning. New builds are designed to keep heat in and are dangerously hot in the summer, even...

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    Not one single answer related to the provision of air conditioning or the Mayor’s attempts to prevent and deter new builds from installing air conditioning. New builds are designed to keep heat in and are dangerously hot in the summer, even when there are no heatwaves. The Mayor and his team are failing Londoners. They must do something to help those in new builds to keep their flats cool. Paying lip service to this issue by discussing ridiculous and ineffective options, and totally ignoring the need for air conditioning is sadly not unexpected. Shame on the Mayor and his team. 

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    Avatar for - Sumatran elephant

    It's a complex issue. Yes I agree, new builds tend to be overly warm however the flip side of that is they need minimal heating in the winter which given the spiralling cost heating, is no bad thing. 

    I've lived in flats built in the...

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    It's a complex issue. Yes I agree, new builds tend to be overly warm however the flip side of that is they need minimal heating in the winter which given the spiralling cost heating, is no bad thing. 

    I've lived in flats built in the Seventies and believe me they could give fridges a run for their money in how cold they got. 

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    Avatar for - Pangolin

    Insulation, ventilation and working with the sun are key. 

    I live in a tiny, well-insulated, basement flat, which is easily aired by opening doors and windows. Plus I have a small but leafy garden which cools the air.  Only downside is...

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    Insulation, ventilation and working with the sun are key. 

    I live in a tiny, well-insulated, basement flat, which is easily aired by opening doors and windows. Plus I have a small but leafy garden which cools the air.  Only downside is occasional humidity. Wish I had permission for a heat pump as then I wouldn't need my dehumidifier. 

    Many urban new builds have large windows, glass cladding and inadequate ventilation. And snobby rules about not drying clothes on the balcony!  Shutters, solar panels and green walls/roofs should be mandatory and outdoor laundry-drying encouraged.  More vegetation and less heat-holding concrete. Grey water soakaways to irrigate the vegetation and save energy on water purification.

    Air con in public spaces is usually too cold imo and uses loads of electricity.  

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    Timeline

    STAGE: Evidence gathering

    Launch of the London Climate Resilience Review

    Happened

    London’s changing climate

    Happened
    -

    Londoners have responded 927 times

    Find out more
    STAGE: Programme launched

    London Climate Resilience Review is published with a recommendation to create the London Heat Risk Delivery Plan

    Happened
    STAGE: You said, we did

    Report on impacts of climate change published

    Happened
    Read our update
    STAGE: Evidence gathering

    London Heat Risk Delivery Plan programme launches

    Happened
    STAGE: Evidence gathering

    March-September 2025: Stakeholder engagement to help inform the London Heat Risk Delivery Plan (including here on Talk London)

    Happened

    Shaping London's Heat Plan

    Happened
    -

    Londoners have responded 3454 times

    Find out more
    STAGE: Programme design

    September 2025 - March 2026: Drafting of the London Heat Risk Delivery Plan

    Happened
    STAGE: Programme launched

    Spring 2026: Publication of the London Heat Risk Delivery Plan

    Happened