Our letter to the Health Secretary: Act now to save lives next summer
Dear Secretary of State for Health and Social Care,
Act now to save lives next summer
Temperatures this year have been record-breaking. Tragically, so have heat-related deaths.
When the temperature rises, the most vulnerable are hit hardest. The Epilepsy Society is at the forefront of research into the health impacts of climate change and they are clear: extreme heat is a medical emergency for people with neurological conditions.
For those in residential care and for those receiving care at home, heat can be fatal. In summer 2025, 45% of all heat-associated deaths occurred in care homes. And this is only getting worse. Heat-related deaths for May and June 2026 are already almost double the total for the entirety of summer 2025.
There is a Warm Homes Plan to protect the vulnerable during cold winters. But where is the Cool Homes Plan? Sadly, winter is no longer the only life-threatening season.
Recently, there was an announcement of welcome investment in projects to cool hospitals. But what happens when a vulnerable person is discharged from hospital to a care facility that is dangerously hot?
We need to act now. We need to Keep Care Cool.
- Establish a Cool Homes Plan with dedicated grants for essential cooling adaptations and retrofitting to protect those most at risk of extreme heat.
- Introduce and enforce standards and regulations to encourage cooling measures in all social care settings and public buildings, including instructions to the CQC to ensure that care home providers keep people at safe temperatures.
- Form a cross-social care sector working group to develop and promote guidance on good practice for all care environments during heatwaves.
By next summer, it will be too late. We urge you to meet with us to discuss how we can work to protect vulnerable people before the next heatwave.
Yours sincerely,
