Staying Cool in a Changing Climate: Heatwave and Climate Anxiety Advice

Last week Oxfordshire experienced a period of extreme heat – already the second this year, with the UK Health Security Agency extending red heat-health alerts for several regions in England from Wednesday 24th June until 11pm on Friday 26 June. A red heat-health alert means that a severe heatwave could affect health and social care services, transport, food, water, energy supplies and businesses - and that there may be a risk to life even for the healthy population.

Extreme heat can affect anyone. But some people are more at risk, including older people, babies and young children, people with long-term health conditions, people with mobility issues, people who live alone, and those living in homes that are difficult to keep cool.

For many people, hot weather can also bring worry. Feeling anxious about climate change, and about what hotter summers could mean for the future is understandable. But there are practical steps we can take now to stay safer during heatwaves, while also making our homes more comfortable and resilient for the future.

What can you do before or during a heatwave? Explore the information below.

Keep out of the heat

The NHS advises people to keep out of the heat where possible, especially between 11am and 3pm, stay in the shade if going outside, wear light clothing and a hat, use sunscreen, drink plenty of fluids, and avoid activity that makes you hotter.

Watch out for heat exhaustion

Watch out for signs including tiredness, dizziness, headache, feeling sick, excessive sweating, cramps, a high temperature, thirst or irritability. If someone has heat exhaustion, move them to a cool place, remove unnecessary clothing, give them water and cool their skin. Heatstroke is a medical emergency, and you should call 999 if someone remains unwell after 30 minutes of cooling down, or has symptoms such as confusion, fast breathing, a seizure or loss of consciousness.

Make simple changes at home

Simple changes can make a difference. Close curtains, blinds and windows in rooms that face the sun during the day, then open windows at night when the temperature outside has dropped. If you use an electric fan, NHS guidance says fans can help when the temperature is below 35°C. It is also important to check on people who may be more vulnerable to heat, especially if they live alone.

Explore home retrofit

Many homes in Oxfordshire pre-date modern energy efficiency standards and can be difficult to keep cool in summer. Retrofitting can improve resilience to heat through measures such as better windows, insulation, roofs, and flooring. Once insulated, households may consider low-carbon heating and renewable technologies like heat pumps and solar panels. Support is available through Oxfordshire County Council’s targeted household support and the Warm Homes: Local Grant, which offers up to £30,000 per eligible property to help residents manage extreme heat and rising energy costs. Better Housing Better Health also provides tailored advice and home visits.

Get support as a lower-income household

Support is particularly important for households more exposed to fuel poverty and heat risk. Better Housing Better Health targets those facing inequalities, with 54% of cases receiving at least one benefit and 51% of service users having a long-term health condition. Oxfordshire County Council similarly delivers fully funded retrofit schemes for fuel-poor and vulnerable residents in some of the least energy-efficient homes, and is among the top-performing authorities in the Warm Homes: Local Grant, distributing nearly £1 million since April 2026 while seeking further funding this financial year. The council also promotes national schemes such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and funds free access to the Energy Saving Trust’s HomeWise Tool, which helps residents create tailored retrofit plans based on cost, carbon reduction, EPC improvements or budget. Lower-income households may also be eligible for grants for measures such as insulation, solar PV and low-carbon heating systems.

Protect wildlife

During a heatwave, wildlife can struggle to find water, shade and safe shelter, so small actions can make a real difference. Leaving out shallow dishes of water with stones for insects to land on (best done in the evening to avoid evaporation), avoiding cutting back plants or mowing lawns, and creating shaded areas with trees, shrubs or even temporary cover can help protect animals from overheating. It’s also important to keep ponds topped up and avoid disturbing habitats, as many species will already be under stress.

Look after hedgehogs

Hedgehogs may struggle to find food and water, especially when the ground is too hard and dry to dig up. As well as leaving bowls of water out, providing some meat-based pet food can help. Additionally, if you see a hedgehog lying in the sun in broad daylight, the British Hedgehog Preservation Society recommends using gloves to place the animal in a deep-sided cardboard box with a covering, offering a shallow bowl of water, and contacting an animal rescue centre.

Explore available resources

Residents can access practical advice through the council’s Keeping Cool webpages and the national Beat the Heat campaign, which focus on low-cost actions to help people stay safe during hot weather. ‘Cool packs’ are also being developed, including thermometer cards and advice on what to do during extreme heat events. Find out more about retrofitting your home on Climate Action Oxfordshire: The Basics of Retrofitting, and energy at home.

A hedgehog drinks from a plate of water and sits on parched, dry grass in a heatwave.

Wildlife such as hedgehogs need help from us during heatwave periods.

Silver foil taped to the inside of the window of a building.

Taping silver foil or hanging sheets and towels to the inside of your windows can act as a makeshift blind and keep out the worst of the heat.

The sun setting over a river in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

If you can, avoid going outside between early morning and late evening, to avoid the worst of the heat. [Abingdon, Oxfordshire, George Woodman]

Climate Anxiety

Periods of extreme heat can make the climate crisis feel very immediate. It is normal to feel worried, frustrated or overwhelmed when we see hotter summers affecting people’s health, homes and daily lives. Research shows that these feelings are increasingly common, particularly among younger people, with studies finding that large numbers report feeling anxious about the future because of climate change. This sense of climate anxiety has grown over time as extreme weather events become more frequent, and while it is often highest in countries already experiencing severe impacts, it is also rising in places like the UK where these changes are becoming more visible.

There are also many examples of these feelings leading to positive change. Around the world, climate anxiety has helped to drive community action, from neighbourhood resilience projects to youth-led climate movements and increased public demand for stronger climate policies. One thing that can help is focusing on practical action – checking in on neighbours, keeping your home as cool as possible, finding out what support is available, and making improvements that build resilience over time. These steps may feel small on their own, but together they help protect people now and prepare our communities for the future.

Hotter summers are part of our changing climate, but we are not powerless. By taking steps to stay safe during heatwaves, supporting those most at risk, and improving the comfort and energy efficiency of homes across Oxfordshire, we can help build a healthier, fairer and more resilient county.