Heat desk · chart page
Heat deaths in England, summer by summer
Heat deaths in England peaked at an estimated 2,985 in summer 2022, by UKHSA's count; summer 2025 had 1,504, with people aged 85 and over most at risk.
By the Cooler Indoors desk · figures checked · 4 charts · sources · methods
Heat deaths in the UK are tracked most closely in England, where UKHSA publishes an estimate after every summer. The highest figure so far is 2,985 deaths across five heat episodes in 2022; the latest full summer, 2025, came to 1,504. The way these numbers are counted has changed twice, so the chart below needs reading with care.
Source: UKHSA, Heat mortality monitoring reports · checked 29 October 2026
How we read this Not one like-for-like series. 2016–2019 count excess deaths in people aged 65+ during Level 3 heatwaves only; 2020–2022 count all-cause excess deaths at all ages; from 2023 UKHSA counts heat-associated deaths across defined heat episodes. The 2026 total is not yet published.
Show the numbers
| Label | deaths | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 908 | Aged 65+ only |
| 2017 | 778 | |
| 2018 | 863 | |
| 2019 | 892 | |
| 2020 | 2,556 | Method change: all ages |
| 2021 | 1,634 | |
| 2022 | 2,985 | Highest estimate |
| 2023 | 2,295 | Method change: heat-associated |
| 2024 | 1,311 | |
| 2025 | 1,504 |
How many people die from heat in England each summer?
In recent summers the central estimate has run between about 1,300 and 3,000. UKHSA's 2022 monitoring report put that year at 2,985 all-cause excess deaths, calling it "the highest number in any given year". The 2025 report, published on 2 April 2026, gives 1,504 heat-associated deaths over five episodes.
Each figure is a statistical estimate with a wide margin. Deaths are not certified as "heat" one by one; UKHSA compares observed deaths during hot spells with what would be expected from recent patterns.
Source: UKHSA, Heat mortality monitoring reports · checked 29 October 2026
How we read this Bars show the 95% confidence interval UKHSA reports around each central estimate. Years before 2020 were reported per episode only, so they are not shown. Method changes in 2020 and 2023 still apply.
Show the numbers
| Label | Low | High | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2,139 | 2,926 | |
| 2021 | 1,125 | 2,143 | |
| 2022 | 2,258 | 3,712 | |
| 2023 | 1,681 | 2,910 | |
| 2024 | 929 | 1,692 | |
| 2025 | 936 | 2,072 |
Why did the counting method change?
Public Health England's early reports looked only at excess deaths among people aged 65 and over during the most severe heatwaves. From 2020 the count widened to all ages and all causes. From 2023 UKHSA moved to "heat-associated deaths" across every heat episode, defined as an amber alert in at least one region or a mean Central England Temperature of 20°C or more, and the 2024 and 2025 reports are official statistics.
So the jump between 2019 and 2020 is partly a change in what was counted. Comparing 2022 with 2024 is fairer, though even those two use different methods.
There is one more mismatch to flag. UKHSA's public advice page says 2,803 people aged 65 and over died from the heat in 2022, which is a different measure from the 2,985 all-ages total, and the page does not cite where its figure comes from.
What about summer 2026?
Only an interim figure exists. UKHSA's interim report for May and June 2026 estimates 2,877 heat-associated deaths across two episodes, and it does not include the heat of 5–17 July. Final figures are due early in 2027, so we leave 2026 off the chart rather than compare a part-summer with full ones.
Who is most at risk from hot weather?
Age is the strongest signal in the data. In 2025 the heat-associated death rate for people aged 85 and over was 364 per million, more than three times the rate for those aged 75–84.
On video: How to spot heat exhaustion and what to do about it
“How to spot heat exhaustion and what to do about it”, a video from the NHS Sussex channel on YouTube. An NHS Sussex clinician describes heat exhaustion symptoms and first aid (cool fluids, wet towel, lie down with feet raised), and says heatstroke is an emergency: dial 999. It is their video, not ours, and it loads from YouTube only when you press play.
Source: UKHSA, Heat mortality monitoring report: England, 2025 · checked 29 October 2026
How we read this Heat-associated deaths per million population in summer 2025. UKHSA names these two as the highest-rate age groups; other bands are lower and not charted here.
Show the numbers
| Label | deaths per million | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 75–84 | 116 | |
| Aged 85 and over | 364 | Highest rate |
UKHSA's Beat the heat advice now lists adults aged 65 and over as higher risk (it used to say 75). It also names children aged 5 and under, pregnant women, people who live alone, and people with heart or breathing problems, dementia, diabetes, kidney disease or Parkinson's, or on certain medicines. A daily phone call or visit to an older neighbour during a hot spell is one of the simplest checks there is.
What do the heat-health alert colours mean?
UKHSA and the Met Office issue Heat-Health Alerts mainly between 1 June and 30 September, with an extraordinary alert possible outside that window. Each colour combines how likely the heat is with how serious its effects would be.
| Alert | What UKHSA says it means | Who is affected |
|---|---|---|
| Green | No alert | Normal summer precautions |
| Yellow | Heat unlikely to affect most people | Particularly vulnerable people |
| Amber | Impacts likely across the whole health service | Potentially the whole population |
| Red | Significant risk to life | Even the healthy population |
How do you spot heat exhaustion and heatstroke?
Heat exhaustion usually clears within 30 minutes of cooling down; heatstroke is a medical emergency. The NHS heat exhaustion and heatstroke page lists the warning signs of heat exhaustion as tiredness, dizziness, headache, feeling or being sick, heavy sweating with pale clammy skin, cramps, a high temperature, intense thirst and irritability.
If someone has those signs, the NHS says to move them somewhere cool, take off unnecessary clothing, give them plenty of water to drink, and cool their skin with a spray or sponge of cool water while fanning them. Stay with them. Call NHS 111 if you are struggling to bring the symptoms under control.
Heatstroke is an emergency: call 999. Signs include still being unwell after 30 minutes of rest and cooling, a very high temperature, hot skin that has stopped sweating, a fast heartbeat or fast breathing, confusion, a seizure or loss of consciousness. While you wait, wrap the person in a cool, wet sheet or sponge them with cold water. Do not drive yourself to A&E.
Could heat deaths rise in future?
The Climate Change Committee projected in 2019 that UK heat-related deaths could rise from a baseline of about 2,000 a year to 5,000 a year by 2050 without action, or 7,000 once population growth is allowed for. That is a whole-UK projection on a different basis from UKHSA's England counts.
Source: Climate Change Committee, UK housing: Fit for the future? · checked 29 October 2026
How we read this A projection, not a measurement, made in 2019 for the whole UK. It is not directly comparable with the England estimates in the first chart.
Show the numbers
| Label | deaths a year | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Baseline (2019) | 2,000 | |
| 2050, no action | 5,000 | |
| 2050, with population growth | 7,000 | Highest projection |
Cooler homes are one lever. How often homes overheat is on the overheating chart page, and low-cost cooling steps set out what UKHSA and the NHS advise at home.
Questions this data raises
Are heat deaths in England counted from death certificates?
No. UKHSA estimates them statistically by comparing deaths during heat episodes with the number expected from recent patterns, so each total comes with a confidence interval.
Why does the 2022 figure differ between UKHSA pages?
The 2022 monitoring report gives 2,985 all-cause excess deaths at all ages, while UKHSA's public advice page gives 2,803 deaths among people aged 65 and over. They are different measures, so they should not be swapped for each other.
Should I call 111 or 999 for heat illness?
The NHS says call 111 if you are struggling to treat heat exhaustion or need advice. Call 999 for any sign of heatstroke, including someone still unwell after 30 minutes of cooling, hot dry skin, confusion, a seizure or collapse.
When will the full 2026 heat death figure be published?
UKHSA says final figures for 2026 will be published early in 2027. Until then only the May–June interim estimate of 2,877 is available.
Sources for this page
- UKHSA, Heat mortality monitoring reports gov.uk
- 2022 monitoring report gov.uk
- 2025 report gov.uk
- interim report for May and June 2026 gov.uk
- Heat-Health Alerts gov.uk
- NHS heat exhaustion and heatstroke page nhs.uk
- Climate Change Committee, UK housing: Fit for the future? theccc.org.uk
All checked 29 October 2026. How we choose and read sources: Methods & sources.