Sitting in a British classroom in July brings with it a certain kind of misery. The windows hardly open at all. The blinds are partially damaged. In Year 8, someone has passed out. As the thermometer nudges 34 degrees, the teacher, red-faced and silently enraged, tries to explain fractions. These days, it occurs every summer. Nevertheless, a UK school is still not required by law to close or even pause at a certain temperature. It’s not a mistake. It’s a decision, and a contentious one at that.
To assist schools in managing extreme weather, the Met Office and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) issue tiered Heat-Health Alerts. Vulnerable people are alerted to danger by yellow alerts. Amber alerts extend that worry to students and employees in general. A thorough evaluation of the setting’s heat management is prompted by red alerts. These alerts are really helpful, particularly for school administrators who need to make decisions quickly without much institutional support. They are not, however, legal thresholds. When a school receives a Red Alert, it can stay open and continue to teach as usual.
As of right now, the Department of Education believes that schools should stay open in hot weather. They contend that attendance is too crucial to be affected by heat, which can typically be controlled with reasonable modifications. On paper, it’s a reasonable position. Teachers and unions have been resisting for years, citing instances in which students are clearly struggling, perspiring during class, and occasionally losing consciousness. Both the Trades Union Congress and the Climate Change Committee have advocated for a legal maximum temperature of 25 to 26 degrees Celsius, claiming that this would compel investments in appropriate heat-resilient infrastructure, such as ventilation systems and, when needed, air conditioning.
The government claims to be “carefully considering” those suggestions. That phrase has been around for some time.
Individual schools are making do in the interim. Teachers encourage students to wear light-colored clothing, change into PE kits, and take off blazers and jumpers as part of the uniform rules. Children are instructed to bring water bottles, avoid strenuous outdoor activities on the hottest days, and stay in shaded areas during breaks. Strenuous physical activity is inappropriate during periods of extreme heat, according to the Department of Health and Social Care. The majority of schools appear to have accepted that advice with little opposition.
The more technical changes are made at the building level. In order to allow stored heat to escape before children arrive, UKHSA guidelines advise opening windows and doors as soon as possible, preferably overnight if security conditions permit. Those windows should close when the outside temperature rises above that of the interior. As long as they don’t obstruct ventilation, blinds and curtains can aid in blocking solar heat. Reduce the amount of electric lighting you use; equipment that is left on standby produces more heat than most people realize. When temperatures remain below 35 degrees, mechanical fans can be helpful; however, above that point, they may actually hasten rather than stop dehydration.
It’s important to keep in mind that children are more susceptible than adults to heat-related illness. Subtle signs of heat stress include irritability, disorientation, and darker urine in younger children. Dizziness, nausea, pale skin, and excessive perspiration are more obvious signs of heat exhaustion. The advice is clear: call NHS 111 if cooling techniques and cool water don’t immediately alleviate those symptoms. It is advised to call 999 right away and start cooling the child while you wait for assistance if the child exhibits symptoms of heatstroke, which can include confusion, seizures, loss of consciousness, or a body temperature above 40 degrees.
Reading through that guidance and being aware of its existence is unsettling because, in recent years, classrooms have evolved into settings where those protocols are utilized.
The UK’s current school temperature regulations are essentially unenforceable. They are suggestions, warnings, and expert assessments. It seems like an open question that parents, educators, and eventually legislators will need to address as summers get longer and hotter.
