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Designing a British House for 35°C Summers AND -5°C Winters

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  Designing a British House for 35°C Summers AND -5°C Winters The British house of the future needs to keep heat out in August — and keep it in during January For generations, the central challenge of British house design was fairly straightforward: how do we keep warm? We insulated lofts, fitted double glazing, sealed draughts and installed increasingly efficient heating systems. Much of that was sensible, and it remains sensible. But the problem is changing. The Met Office reported in July 2026 that in parts of south-east England we are increasingly coming to expect temperatures around 35°C during hot spells . The most recent decade, 2016–2025, was 1.33°C warmer than 1961–1990, while the hottest day of the year has warmed by more than 4.5°C across parts of south-east and eastern England. Yet Britain has not suddenly become southern Spain. We can still wake to frost, ice, freezing fog and temperatures below zero in winter. We still need heating. We still need insulation. We...
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Creating a Mediterranean Garden for Britain's Hotter Summers

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  Creating a Mediterranean Garden for Britain's Hotter Summers Perhaps the answer to a brown summer garden isn't more water—but different plants. There is something slightly dispiriting about looking out across a British garden in the middle of a hot, dry summer. The lawn has turned from green to straw. Hanging baskets need watering almost every day. Plants that looked magnificent in May are drooping by the afternoon, and every trip around the garden seems to involve another watering can or hosepipe. The traditional response has been simple: add more water . But perhaps we need to ask a different question. What if we changed the garden instead? Not by trying to turn Hertfordshire, Kent, Yorkshire or anywhere else in Britain into Provence, but by borrowing some of the principles that make Mediterranean gardens work: drought-tolerant planting, shade, gravel, aromatic plants, less lawn, careful use of water and, above all, putting the right plant in the right place. That distincti...
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Tinder-Dry Britain: Why One BBQ Could Start a Major Fire

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  Tinder-Dry Britain: Why One BBQ Could Start a Major Fire That brown grass isn't just dead-looking — it may be fuel waiting for a spark. Across Britain, we have become very familiar with the sight of brown lawns, dusty verges and fields that have changed from lush green to something resembling straw. It is tempting to think of this simply as a gardening problem. The lawn looks terrible. The plants need watering. The countryside could do with some rain. But there is another consequence of prolonged hot, dry weather that deserves much more attention: fire. During summer 2026, prolonged warm and dry conditions have repeatedly increased wildfire risk across parts of Britain. The Met Office has highlighted the combination of dry ground, heat and wind as particularly significant because a fire that begins very small can spread surprisingly quickly. And this is one environmental problem where individual behaviour really does matter. A discarded cigarette. A disposable barbecue. A fire pi...
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