Publication

Heat risk and adaptation in the urban built environment

As the UK continues to urbanise and the climate warms, understanding heat risks – and the options for adaptation – has become essential. This report demonstrates the urgency of action to address heat to mitigate spiralling impacts on health and economic productivity.

London city skyline with the sun setting

Last updated: May 2026

Extreme heat is one of the fastest‑growing climate risks facing people living and working in UK towns and cities. Recent summers have repeatedly broken temperature records, and hot conditions are no longer unusual. Climate change is making heat more frequent, more intense and more harmful, with significant consequences for health, productivity and the functioning of urban systems.

This study, commissioned by the Climate Change Committee to inform A Well-Adapted UK, examines how the UK’s urban built environment can be adapted to escalating heat risks. It focuses on the impacts of heat on mortality and economic productivity, and on identifying the most cost‑effective measures to reduce these risks across different regions, urban typologies and climate scenarios.

The analysis develops and assesses a series of building‑ and urban‑scale adaptation packages, evaluating their costs, benefits and sequencing over time. The evidence generated informs the UK’s Fourth Climate Change Risk Assessment, supporting robust, evidence‑based policy and investment decisions to reduce heat‑related impacts in towns and cities.