Manchester weather this week has pushed some schools in England into overheating, with one school in Hertfordshire recording temperatures of more than 40C. Harry Paticas, who runs Retrofit Action for Tomorrow, said the heat is exposing buildings that were never designed for current summer conditions.
He said the group has worked with 80 schools across England, and 68% reported overheating. More than a quarter described it as significant, and teachers reported pupils fainting or vomiting in class. Schools have closed, exams have been cancelled and study time has been missed when classrooms became too hot to use safely.
Harry Paticas and school heat
Paticas said some schools have too much glass and not enough shading or ventilation to keep out the sun’s heat. He also pointed to windows with built-in restrictors that stop them being opened too far or at all because of student safety concerns, which leaves classrooms with less air movement when temperatures climb.
He described some glass atriums in buildings constructed during the Building Schools for the Future programme in the early 2000s as “Kew hothouses”. In his account, the problem is not only the heat outside but the way some buildings hold it inside once it enters.
Victorian schools in Hertfordshire
Some Victorian school buildings were originally designed with passive cooling and cross ventilation in mind. Tall sash windows could be opened at the top and bottom to let warm air out while drawing cooler air in, and external shutters and awnings helped keep students comfortable during hot weather.
Paticas said many Victorian school buildings are overheating because those features have been removed. He also cited single glazing, which can let up to 37% more heat into a building than double glazing, and outdated heating systems and poorly insulated hot-water pipes that can radiate heat into classrooms.
England and next decade
Playgrounds covered in tarmac and devoid of trees can function as giant outdoor radiators, and hard surfaces can reach temperatures of up to 60C during heatwaves. Schools are also being asked to cope with flooding, water scarcity and more frequent extreme weather events over the next decade, adding another layer of pressure to buildings already struggling in hot weather.
The immediate question for schools is which buildings need quick changes first. The source points to fabric on window exteriors as one simple measure already used, while the rest of the problem sits in the design of glass-heavy modern schools and the altered cooling features of older ones.
