Kirsty Ketley, a freelance writer and parent consultant, describes her frustration after receiving an email from her children's school during the late June heatwave. The email offered parents the option to collect their children at 1:00 pm due to the extreme heat. Rather than relief, Ketley felt frustration that in 2026, children are losing learning time because the UK cannot cope with rising temperatures.
Schools scramble to adapt as temperatures soar
Ketley's children had already swapped uniforms for PE kits, were encouraged to refill water bottles, and were told to avoid the playground. Assemblies were cancelled and quiet activities provided. Despite these measures, the heat was too much for many children. Ketley faced a difficult choice: collect her 9-year-old son Leo at lunchtime, leave him at school, or keep him home for the heatwave's duration.
As a freelancer working from home, Ketley was able to pick up her son and work with him by her side. She is grateful for the flexibility, but acknowledges that many parents lack such options. Parents in retail, healthcare, or teaching cannot simply leave work to collect their children. Schools try to support working parents by offering early pickups rather than full closures, but this highlights a system that is not fit for purpose.
UK infrastructure not built for current climate
The UK seems incapable of handling temperatures that are becoming increasingly normal. The current heatwave is expected to last over two weeks in some areas. According to the Met Office, the decade 2015-2024 was 1.24°C warmer than 1961-1990 across the UK, and the last three years have all ranked among the UK's five warmest years on record. Extreme heat events are becoming more frequent, longer lasting, and more intense as the climate warms.
Ketley argues that much of the UK's public infrastructure, including schools, is still designed for a climate that no longer exists. Teachers cannot teach effectively in overheated classrooms, and children cannot concentrate when uncomfortable. Expecting schools to close or parents to absorb the disruption is not a long-term solution.
Need for investment in school infrastructure
Ketley calls for school buildings designed or adapted for hotter weather, including better air conditioning and more shaded outdoor spaces. She believes the government must invest in infrastructure and recognise that the climate is changing, rather than hoping it will return to how it used to be. She emphasises that head teachers are making the best decisions with limited resources, but the real responsibility lies with higher authorities due to years of underinvestment in schools.
Every summer, the same cycle unfolds: railways struggle, roads melt, schools face criticism whether they close or stay open, and parents juggle competing demands. Ketley concludes that children deserve classrooms where they can comfortably learn, and parents deserve not to have to choose between work and collecting their child halfway through the day. She urges a national conversation about investment and adaptation as the next heatwave arrives.
