FEELING THE HEAT?

6 easy ways to stay cool without breaking the bank

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ONCE upon a time, a British summer meant a few days of warmth, a trip to the coast, and a battle for the last 99 Flake. But those days are behind us.

In July 2022, the UK passed a historic milestone when Coningsby, Lincolnshire, hit 40.3 °C — the first time the country had ever topped 40 °C, beating the previous record of 38.7 °C set in July 2019.

Fast-forward to spring 2025 -provisionally the warmest and sunniest on record - with average daytime highs of 14.6 °C and more than 653 hours of sunshine. Summer followed swiftly, with a heatwave already pushing temperatures above 33 °C in parts of the country.

And the heat hasn't let up. A second spell of extreme warmth is now under way, with amber Heat-Health Alerts in place across southern and eastern regions from 27 June to 1 July.

It's a far cry from 50 years ago, when spring averages in the mid-1970s hovered around 7 to 8 °C, and a typical summer day peaked at just 25 to 28 °C. Experts say extreme heat events are now up to 10 times more likely than they were then.

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