London’s risk from rising temperatures

Its 28 degrees in my flat right now. 

We need to think about long term sustainable measures that will protect wildlife and biodiversity aswell as vulnerable humans. If we humans keep invading wildlife habitats when we get too warm, the knock on effect of biodiversity loss will impact our ability to survive too. We must protect nature in order to protect ourselves. We are all nature.

We need to think about large scale redesign and future proofing, not sticking plasters like black out blinds. 

I live in a two bed flat with floor to ceiling windows in the lounge and a balcony. I close blinds and curtains on all of my windows and keep windows closed during the day and night. I have a portable air conditioner in the lounge which keeps the temp at 24 degrees C and a silent fan in the bedroom which keeps me cool at night. Only sheets on the bed no blankets.

Plant trees, trees, trees and get rid of fake grass. Perhaps there could be a grant for digging up concrete in gardens. 

Best I can achieve is 25c inside when 30c forecast. Studio flat, top floor tower block, 1960’s with a lot of windows to footprint, flat roof, east facing. Lived here for over 10yrs and done a lot of research on the subject. My current approach: 
Fabric draped outside over all balcony windows. Can’t manage on kitchen windows due to drop. Balcony windows now don’t feel hot at all when the sun hits the cloth.
Follow the closing curtains / windows during the day, open at night (based on temperature)
Needs cooler evenings.
I can’t do anything about the flat roof. 
Property design poor not allowing a through flow breeze. 
Can’t afford to buy/ run good fans or air con and it’s a small property.
Limit generating heat through cooking etc. 

Takes effort to manage the system but worth it! 
 

Need to remove block paving and concrete from front gardens and recreate green spaces.

Parking restrictions  should be free for residents that commit to do this .

Ban plastic grass, it is an abomination!

My road needs more trees - we have no public trees - I also want to depave our concrete drive but cannot afford to fo this on my own - I read that the first meter of concrete nearest the house is crucial for it to be greened over so it does not reflect back the heat into the house 

I’m a flat dweller so all decisions would need to be whole house decisions by freeholder 

If Sadiq Khan is so bothered about heat in London I suggest he allows the drivers on buses to switch on the air conditioning a bus driver friend has told me that he’s not allowed to put the air conditioning on as it increases the cost of petrol/electricity etc.

This time round I have double glazing which feels like it helps keep the heat out - not sure if I’m right.

This time I’m exercising early morning and then staying in 

Always wear hat

Scale back activities - scale back shopping as too hot to walk to supermarket 

Open windows at back of house cooler and close at front. Draw curtains at front 

Drink loads water and ice pop in freezer 

Make smoothies with frozen fruit 

need action to be take for risk manage climate change 

In this heat,using public transport for elderly like myself is frustrating when my local Arnos grove underground station does not have lifts or similar when carrying shopping and also sudden closure of Betstyle Road London N11 bus stop with no explanation 

I recently looked at a questionnaire about tackling heat in London. The options were interesting — shade, more green spaces, blue spaces (water bodies), cool public areas, all good ideas.

But let’s be honest: the main source of heat and discomfort here isn’t just the lack of trees. It’s public transport. The Tube is basically a subterranean sauna, and while I understand the engineering challenges of retrofitting air conditioning underground, there’s simply no excuse for our buses to still feel like moving ovens in 2025.

Another major issue? Construction legislation. We keep building homes as if we’re in the Arctic, obsessed with “keeping the heat in.” The reality is, in London it’s rare for temperatures to drop below zero, but increasingly common for them to soar above 30°C. Every new build, especially residential, should have air conditioning as standard. Anything less is short-sighted.

This so-called public consultation from Sadiq Khan feels more like a PR exercise than a genuine plan for change. It’s the same pattern: collect feedback, issue a press release, tick the box, and move on. London doesn’t need another heatwave survey; it needs action.

Half the tube lines and buses are absolute heat traps even without 'extreme heat' so more needs to be done to negate the impact of heat especially when tubes are held between stations due to faults.  Stations really should have a refillable water point in situ all year round.

My home is awful in winter due to the cold and awful in summer due to the heat, impossible to reach any reasonable happy medium due to conservation rules in the area and landlord permissions which would be the same challenges for most Londoners.

It's challenging to change my property to make it more resilient in heat as it is in a conservation zone so many changes would not be appropriate. Thought and advice on how to make changes in a way that maintains the heritage would be good.

I'd like to see a lot more use of trees to create shading and ideally planting by refusing parking spaces not on the pavement where space for pedestrians is often already limited.

Public transport is a nightmare. Buses are unmanageable during the heatwaves and this should be one of the biggest priorities for MoL (and the tube where it doesn't have air con). This is not just an issue for passengers but staff too.

My main strategy with the heat is not to go outside and to stay indoors for most of the day. However sometimes this isn't an option and currently it is extremely challenging to navigate the city and do anything when it is hot so there is definitely a need to make the city more liveable in high heat.

I left london, rescheduled my jobs and checked into a hotel near west wittering.

We need access to solar panels so that we can afford to run aircon. 
We also need to have access to green schemes for social housing tenants.

Every scheme available is for homeowners while the people who could best benefit from cheaper electricity are denied it.

As a gardener, I refuse to work in anything above 28 degrees so higher temperatures affect my income, my contribution to the economy and my clients. 

in 2022 the heat was so high it broke panes of glass and bent window frames out of shape in my home. To cope with the heat, we created a shaded area on the flat's balcony, placed reflective sheets on the windows, and followed the advice re windows closed and open in the day. For the dog we used wet towels on its belly, as that's a good way to cool them off, and lots of showers for ourselves. it was exceedingly uncomfortable all the same, and we have since acquired an air conditioning unit, which helps a little. We avoided direct sunlight for the duration of the heatwave. 

I live in a converted victorian house. This was built for a different Britain, and lacks ventilation. While this can be retrofitted it is at significant cost, far higher than can reasonably be met by any householder or landlord, social or no. It is obvious that sponsored retrofitting of climate controlling measures (for heat and cold) and energy efficiency is required.

Outside crops that worked five years ago no longer flourish and new crops begin to thrive. We have noticed in particular that crops used to arid conditions are doing well, but these must also be able to handle intermittent flood. We can attest to grass becoming parched to the extent that it does not recover, and London's trees sacrificing branches to survive heat.  We are seeing more deaths among small birds and fledglings.

Water is essential, and it must be put to work. It makes sense to create more water features across London's parks, ensure water is available in those parks, and invest in drinking water.

However doing so would be prohibitive in cost due to water privatisation. As such  it is a matter of both common sense and national survival that water supply is nationalised as the need for it is far too great to be in the hands of any private entity. From cooling to crops to public safety, water is national security and its management is a matter of national importance. 

I'm keeping my windows closed and curtains and blinds drawn during the day while it's hottest, and open them at night before I go to sleep.

Buying an air conditioning unit was the only way we could stay cool. It's not very efficient, and requires us to put a tube out of the window. London should update its development regulations to allow for more air conditioning units to be installed in new builds. In particular, air to air heat pumps which can cool in the summer and heat in the winter. This also helps with out green energy transition