London’s risk from rising temperatures
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Discussion | Coping with hot weather in 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.
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Community Member 1 month agoUltimately, climate change is here and we need to think about ways to mitigate its effects, whilst keeping our warming effects to as low as possible.
Show full commentPeople will scream that we need AC. We don’t. We need better designed buildings to cope...
Ultimately, climate change is here and we need to think about ways to mitigate its effects, whilst keeping our warming effects to as low as possible.
Show less of commentPeople will scream that we need AC. We don’t. We need better designed buildings to cope with the heat.
Insulated, well designed buildings will keep heat in during the winter and out during the summer.
To mitigate the effects, we should adapt on days like today to close schools and businesses early. We should have cool rooms that the elderly and vulnerable can visit to cool down. We should have more water stations in central London, that serve chilled water. We should have portable misting stations that can be rolled out to high footfall traffic areas for those that wish to pass through them.
Public spaces like libraries could be retrofitted with AC to help with groups that can use those facilities to cool down.
Public transport will need to be adapted in the coming years to have more powerful AC, and this will require investment.
We need to rewild our streets with better shade, trees that grow, with boulevards and less concrete!
Finally, we should follow the French in ensuring that only shops that have automatic or closed doors can use air con.
People may say: back in my day we would just get on with it when it was hot… but ultimately the world is hotter now, with higher humidity and less areas in London to cool down. Most of London has been paved over with skyscrapers that radiate heat and trap it at ground level.
Heat is not a joke and should be treated seriously, but in a responsible and managed way - not an all out race to fit AC in as many places as possible.
Debbi-s
Community Member 1 month agoAbsolutely agree with all - thank you!
vicS
Community Member 1 month agoI completely agree that AC should be employed on a collective rather than personal scale but many disabled and immunocompromised people can't just up and go to communal spaces and they stand to be abandoned.
Pattyl
Community Member 1 month agoDuring the heatwave of 2022 I stayed inside (in the shade) as much as possible, drinking lots of cool drinks. I have 2 fans at home, one in my living room and the other in my bedroom so whenever I'm in either room I turn the fans on. This...
Show full commentDuring the heatwave of 2022 I stayed inside (in the shade) as much as possible, drinking lots of cool drinks. I have 2 fans at home, one in my living room and the other in my bedroom so whenever I'm in either room I turn the fans on. This year I'm closing the blinds in my bedroom (I didn't have them last year) we've been hosing down the patio at the back to keep the house cool. I'm in a wheelchair so find it VERY difficult to get in and out of my clothes so that's why I need to make the correct choice of clothes in the morning. I've been able to do it quite well this year
Show less of commentsuburb1
Community Member 2 days agoGood point about disabled people, but others are in high rise with NO ventilation and not able to do anything to help themselves. Fans merely move the scorching hot air around. People cannot use drinking water to hose anything, during...
Show full commentGood point about disabled people, but others are in high rise with NO ventilation and not able to do anything to help themselves. Fans merely move the scorching hot air around. People cannot use drinking water to hose anything, during drought
Show less of commentldwgf
Community Member 1 month agoAll the investments towers of concrete, glass and steel accelerate heating. All developers must be made to build around mature trees, plus all the few green areas MUST be preserved and increased
SumptiousPangolin
Community Member 1 month agoIn singapore they put green areas on top of the skyscrapers and also in thr middle of them
ldwgf
Community Member 1 month agoExactly, in Bali development projects, by law, build incorporating their trees which are not allowed to be felled
Anonymous - deleted by community member
Community Member 1 month ago