The short answer
- Sign up for the heat-health alertsUKHSA and the Met Office issue yellow, amber and red alerts from June to September. Anyone can register to get them by email.
- Keep the heat out in the day, let it out at nightCurtains closed on sunny windows during the day, windows open once the air outside is cooler, and a cool room to sleep in.
- Heatstroke is an emergencyIf someone is still unwell after 30 minutes of cooling, or is confused, has hot dry skin or a fit, the NHS says call 999.
- Check every day while it lastsSomeone who lives alone, or who has dementia, may not notice they are thirsty or too hot, or be able to say so.
This page is general information for families, taken from NHS and UKHSA guidance as it stood in September 2026. It is not medical advice. If you are worried about someone, call NHS 111, or 999 in an emergency. Carers on PrimeCarers charge £18 to £25 an hour with our fee included.
This guide is part of our health conditions section. The cold months have their own guide, surviving winter, and this page covers the summer.
Who is at risk
Why an older person is more at risk in the heat
Anyone can become unwell in a heatwave. The NHS and UKHSA both name the groups who are more likely to, and an older parent may be in more than one of them.
Age
65 and over
Long-term conditions
Named by the NHS
Several medicines
Ask the pharmacist
Living alone
Especially if care is needed
Already unwell
Diarrhoea or vomiting
The NHS heatwave page (reviewed June 2026) says the main risks of a heatwave are not drinking enough, overheating, which can make heart or breathing problems worse, and heat exhaustion and heatstroke. UKHSA's Beat the heat guidance (updated July 2026) is the fuller version. If your relative has heart failure, COPD or kidney disease, ask their team what to watch for in hot weather. For MS, see heat sensitivity and MS.
Medicines in hot weatherSection titled Medicines%20in%20hot%20weather
UKHSA explains that some medicines for long-term conditions, and it names diuretics (water tablets), beta-blockers and some medicines for mental health, can change the body's ability to cool itself or hold on to fluid. UKHSA's advice is to keep taking prescribed medicines unless a doctor says otherwise. Before summer, take a list of everything your relative takes to the pharmacist and ask whether any of it matters in the heat. Some medicines must be stored below 25°C or in the fridge, so check the packets. Medicines in later life covers reviewing a long list of tablets, and can carers give medication? explains what a carer may do.
Heat-health alerts
Heat-health alerts: what the colours mean and how to get them
UKHSA and the Met Office issue Heat-Health Alerts for each region of England when hot weather is likely to affect health. They give you a few days to get ready.
| What UKHSA says it means | What to do for your relative | |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Heat unlikely to affect most people, but people who are particularly vulnerable, such as older people with several conditions and on several medicines, are likely to struggle. | Take it seriously. Start the day plan below, stock up on drinks and arrange a daily check. |
| Amber | Impacts likely across the whole health service, with the whole population potentially at risk. | Everything for yellow, with a daily check that you are sure will happen. |
| Red | Significant risk to life, even for people who are healthy. | Check in more than once a day and follow official advice on the news. |
Yellow
- What UKHSA says it means
- Heat unlikely to affect most people, but people who are particularly vulnerable, such as older people with several conditions and on several medicines, are likely to struggle.
- What to do for your relative
- Take it seriously. Start the day plan below, stock up on drinks and arrange a daily check.
Amber
- What UKHSA says it means
- Impacts likely across the whole health service, with the whole population potentially at risk.
- What to do for your relative
- Everything for yellow, with a daily check that you are sure will happen.
Red
- What UKHSA says it means
- Significant risk to life, even for people who are healthy.
- What to do for your relative
- Check in more than once a day and follow official advice on the news.
Source: UKHSA Weather-Health Alerting System user guide, May 2026. Alerts run from 1 June to 30 September, with an extraordinary alert if heat comes outside those dates.
The system is called the Weather-Health Alerting System. Anyone can register on that page to receive the alerts by email, and the current alert for each region is on the UKHSA heat-health alerts dashboard. UKHSA says heat does not have to be extreme to be dangerous, so a yellow alert is worth acting on for an older parent.
On the day
Keeping them and the home cool through a hot day
UKHSA says homes can overheat in warm weather, particularly at night when someone is trying to sleep. Much of what helps is about timing: keeping the sun out in the morning and letting cooler air in later.
A heatwave day plan, from morning to night
What to do about the home, drinks and checking in at each part of a hot day. Print it or keep it by the phone.
Early morning
Before the heat builds
- The home
- Close curtains and blinds on the rooms the sun will reach. Once it is warmer outside than in, close those windows too.
- Drinks and food
- A cold drink with breakfast, and a full jug or bottle left within reach for the day.
- Check on them
- Look at the room thermometer in the rooms they use. Any walk or errand is best done now, while it is cooler.
11am to 3pm
The hottest part of the day
- The home
- Stay indoors in the coolest room. A fan can help if the air is below 35°C, but not aimed straight at them. Turn off lights and equipment that are not in use.
- Drinks and food
- Regular cold drinks and cold food. Avoid alcohol, caffeine and hot drinks.
- Check on them
- Ring or call in. Ask how they feel and look for tiredness, dizziness, headache or heavy sweating.
Late afternoon and evening
When the air outside starts to cool
- The home
- Open windows, if it is safe to, once the air outside feels cooler than inside. Opening windows on both sides of the home lets air flow through.
- Drinks and food
- A cold meal rather than a hot one, and another drink. Cook in the cooler part of the day if cooking is needed.
- Check on them
- A cool shower or a sponge down with cool water helps before bed. Check any medicines are being stored as the packet says.
Night
Sleeping in the heat
- The home
- Sleep in the coolest room, which is usually the lowest one. A lighter duvet or light cotton sheets, and loose cotton night clothes.
- Drinks and food
- A cool glass of water beside the bed.
- Check on them
- Check the bedroom temperature before they settle, and check that any heating is off.
Sources: NHS, Heatwave: how to cope in hot weather (reviewed June 2026); UKHSA, Beat the heat: staying safe in hot weather (updated July 2026); Age UK, How to keep cool in hot weather (updated June 2026).
The NHS says to check the temperature of rooms, especially where people at higher risk live and sleep, so a room thermometer in the sitting room and bedroom is worth having. UKHSA says a fan aimed directly at the body can lead to dehydration, and that public buildings such as libraries may be cooler than home.
UKHSA advises drinking regularly through the day, enough that urine is a pale straw colour. Our guide to elderly hydration explains why older people drink less than they need, and getting them to drink more has practical ways to help.
Warning signs
Heat exhaustion and heatstroke: the signs and what to do
Heat exhaustion can usually be treated at home if the person cools down within 30 minutes. Heatstroke is a medical emergency. The NHS signs are below.
| Heat exhaustion | Heatstroke | |
|---|---|---|
| Signs | Tiredness, dizziness, headache, feeling or being sick, heavy sweating with pale clammy skin, cramps, a high temperature, being very thirsty, feeling irritable. | A very high temperature, hot skin that is not sweating, fast breathing and heartbeat, confusion and restlessness, a fit, loss of consciousness. |
| What to do | Move them somewhere cool, take off unnecessary clothing, give plenty of water, and cool their skin with a spray or sponge and a fan. Stay with them. | Call 999. While you wait, wrap them in a cool wet sheet, or fan them and sponge them down with cold water. |
| Who to call | NHS 111 if you are struggling to treat it or want advice. | 999, or if they are still unwell after 30 minutes of cooling and fluids. |
Signs
- Heat exhaustion
- Tiredness, dizziness, headache, feeling or being sick, heavy sweating with pale clammy skin, cramps, a high temperature, being very thirsty, feeling irritable.
- Heatstroke
- A very high temperature, hot skin that is not sweating, fast breathing and heartbeat, confusion and restlessness, a fit, loss of consciousness.
What to do
- Heat exhaustion
- Move them somewhere cool, take off unnecessary clothing, give plenty of water, and cool their skin with a spray or sponge and a fan. Stay with them.
- Heatstroke
- Call 999. While you wait, wrap them in a cool wet sheet, or fan them and sponge them down with cold water.
Who to call
- Heat exhaustion
- NHS 111 if you are struggling to treat it or want advice.
- Heatstroke
- 999, or if they are still unwell after 30 minutes of cooling and fluids.
Source: NHS, Heat exhaustion and heatstroke, reviewed May 2026. A change in skin colour can be harder to see on brown or black skin.
The NHS page on heat exhaustion and heatstroke says someone with heat exhaustion should feel better within 30 minutes. If they do not, treat it as heatstroke. The NHS also says not to drive yourself to A&E.
Confusion has other causes too, and sudden confusion explains delirium, but on a hot day the NHS treats it as a sign of heatstroke.
Checking in
Checking on someone who lives alone or has dementia
UKHSA asks everyone to check on family, friends and neighbours at higher risk. For a parent who lives alone, a check every day while an alert is in place is a sensible plan.
- 1
Agree who checks, and when
Before the heat arrivesShare the days between family, a neighbour or a carer, so nobody assumes someone else has rung. A call or visit around the middle of the day covers the hottest hours. - 2
Ask about the rooms
Each checkAre the curtains shut on the sunny side, is any heating off, and what does the thermometer say in the rooms they use and sleep in? - 3
Ask about drinks
Each checkHow much have they drunk since the last call? On a visit, look at the jug or bottle left out in the morning. - 4
Listen for change
Each checkTiredness, dizziness, a headache or a muddled conversation can be early heat exhaustion. Use the table above to decide what to do.
The NHS says people with dementia may not drink enough because they do not realise they are thirsty. Dementia UK's advice on hot weather adds that the person may find it hard to say they are thirsty or hot, and may choose warm clothes because they do not recognise that they are too hot. So offer drinks rather than waiting to be asked, lay out light clothes, and look for the signs yourself. Our dementia care guide covers the wider picture.
Care for someone who lives alone explains how visits fit around a parent's independence, and pendant alarms give them a way to call for help.
What a carer can do in a heatwaveSection titled What%20a%20carer%20can%20do%20in%20a%20heatwave
A carer who already visits can close the curtains in the morning, leave drinks within reach, make a cold lunch, help with a cool sponge down, and notice if your relative seems more tired or muddled than usual. You can also ask the carer for an extra visit around the middle of the day, agreed directly with them. If nobody visits yet and you want someone to check on a parent who lives alone during a heatwave, you can search for carers near you and compare their rates.
Every carer on PrimeCarers has had their identity and right to work checked, holds an enhanced DBS (or PVG in Scotland, Access NI in Northern Ireland) issued within the last 18 months, and has been interviewed online. Every visit booked through PrimeCarers is insured, by the carer's own policy or by cover PrimeCarers arranges where they do not hold one. We do not check qualifications, training or references, so a carer's experience is their own account on their profile, for you to ask about. PrimeCarers is an introductory service, not an agency or a care provider: carers are self-employed, and you agree the visits and the rate with them directly.
Questions
Questions families ask about older people in hot weather
Register on the Weather-Health Alerting System page on GOV.UK and UKHSA will email you the alerts when they are issued. The core season for heat alerts runs from 1 June to 30 September.
UKHSA advises drinking regularly throughout the day, enough that urine is a pale straw colour, and names water, diluted squash and lower fat milks as good choices. The NHS advises avoiding alcohol, caffeine and hot drinks in the heat. If she has been told to limit fluids, for example for heart failure, ask her GP or nurse before changing how much she drinks.
No, not without advice. UKHSA says to keep taking prescribed medicines unless a medical professional says otherwise. Some medicines affect how the body copes with heat, so ask his GP or pharmacist whether any of his need extra care, and check the packets for storage below 25°C.
Heat exhaustion causes tiredness, dizziness, headache, sickness, heavy sweating and thirst, and usually gets better within 30 minutes of cooling down and drinking. Heatstroke is when the body can no longer cool itself: a very high temperature, hot skin that is not sweating, fast breathing, confusion, a fit or loss of consciousness. The NHS says heatstroke is a medical emergency, so call 999.