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Published 30 July 2026
Main points
° During the May and June 2026 heat events:
§ there were an estimated total of 2,877 heat-associated deaths
§ an estimated 753 heat-associated deaths occurred during the May heat episode
§ an estimated 2,124 heat-associated deaths occurred during the June heat episode
§ the mortality burden is already close to the highest annual totals previously recorded by UKHSA
What you need to know about this report
° This interim report focuses on total heat-associated mortality estimates for the May and June 2026 heat episodes.
° Detailed demographic, geographic and cause-specific analyses, and comparisons with UKHSA modelled estimates, are outside the scope of this publication.
° Final figures of heat-associated deaths during heat episodes in 2026 will be published early in 2027.
Reason for this interim report
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) produces the annual heat mortality monitoring report. These are official statistics that provide estimates of heat-associated mortality during heat episodes in England. These estimates support understanding of the public health impacts of hot weather and inform future preparedness and response activities.
During summer 2026, England experienced 2 notable heat events, one in May and the other in June, both of which were exceptional for different reasons.
The May heat event occurred unusually early in the season, with record-breaking temperatures following a period of unseasonably cool weather.
The June event was characterised by its intensity and formed part of a broader period of sustained hot weather across Europe. Given the public health significance of these events, and the considerable interest from policymakers, partners and the public, UKHSA has produced this interim report to provide an early assessment of heat-associated mortality. Such early assessments will only be undertaken following extraordinary periods of heat and would not normally be produced for routine heat events.
Although this report has been produced using the same data sources, analytical methods and quality assurance processes as the annual heat mortality monitoring report, the estimates should be regarded as preliminary and operational in nature.
At the time of analysis, mortality data remains incomplete because of routine delays in death registration. Also, estimates for the June heat event are subject to additional uncertainty due to limited availability of non-heat period days for baseline comparison. The definitive assessment of mortality associated with these events will be published in the annual official statistics report in early 2027.
This interim report focuses on headline estimates of heat-associated mortality. Detailed breakdowns by age, sex, geography, place of death and cause of death are not included because the analysis is based on provisional death registration data that has been adjusted for reporting delays.
Registration delays can vary between population groups, causes of death and geographical areas, and applying appropriate delay corrections across all breakdowns would introduce additional complexity and uncertainty into the estimates.
In addition, this report does not include comparisons between observed heat-associated mortality and UKHSA modelled mortality estimates. These assessments require more comprehensive analysis and are therefore reserved for the annual publication. More detailed analyses will be provided in the annual official statistics publication once more complete mortality datais available.
The estimates presented in this report are therefore expected to differ from final numbers as additional death registrations are received and processed in the annual heat mortality monitoring report.
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