Oxford News
June temperature record for UK broken after 50 years
The record was broken when provisional temperatures reached 36°C in Wisley, Surrey, and Gosport, Hampshire, today (Wednesday, June 24), the Met Office said.
It follows provisional temperatures reaching 35.7°C in Charlwood, Surrey, and 35.8°C at Wiggonholt, West Sussex, earlier on in the day.
Wednesday’s highs break the previous top temperature of 35.6°C in 1976 and 1957, the forecaster said.
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It comes as much of England and Wales swelters in exceptionally hot and humid conditions, which have prompted a rare red warning from the Met Office for extreme heat.
The heatwave, which has led to health warnings, school closures and transport disruption, is driven by a “heat-dome” settling over western Europe that has brought extreme conditions across the continent.
The 50-year-old record has fallen as climate change, mostly the result of burning fossil fuels, is driving increasingly frequent and intense heatwaves, which experts say the UK is not prepared for.
Figures are currently provisional and would be verified at the end of the heatwave to check if it is a new national record.
Met Office science manager Amy Doherty said: “If confirmed, a new June daily temperature record would be significant, especially following on the heels of the recent records set in May.
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“The new record provides further evidence that temperatures previously considered extreme are becoming increasingly common as a result of human-induced climate change.”
Temperatures could rise even higher on Thursday, the Met Office said.
If they hit 39°C, that would make it the second-hottest day in the UK on record and the hottest June day on record. If 38°C is recorded, that is still in the top five days ever recorded and still hotter than any day of the 20th century.
The record comes amid a sweltering heatwave, with the Met Office issuing a rare red warning for extreme heat for Wednesday and Thursday for an area from London and the south coast to Swansea, Somerset and Birmingham.
Red heat health alerts have also been issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) for the East of England, East Midlands, London, the South East, the South West and the West Midlands, and amber heat health alerts for the North East, North West, and Yorkshire and the Humber.
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These alerts are in place from 4pm on Wednesday to 11pm on Friday, and mean “adverse temperatures are likely to impact on the health and well-being of the population”.
The Met Office has also issued an amber warning for heat on Friday, covering much of England, while a yellow warning for thunderstorms is in place for the South West on Thursday evening.
And with the extreme heat set to linger in some parts of the country into the weekend, the Met Office has issued an amber warning for extreme heat covering parts of east and south-east England on Saturday.
At least 1,000 schools and nurseries will either be closed or partially closed in England and Wales over the next two days.
Some have brought in early finishing times or relaxed uniform rules, while transport services have been disrupted, and people are being urged to stay inside, close windows and curtains and stay hydrated to beat the heat.
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Night-time temperatures have also been unusually high, staying above 20°C in many places, with Brize Norton in Oxfordshire not dipping below 22.3°C and Heathrow, west London, not dipping below 22.1 °C, the Met Office said.
These “tropical nights” make it hard to sleep and for people to recover from the heat of the day, experts warned.
More than 100 schools will be at least partly closed in Bristol, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Hampshire. In Somerset, more than 200 schools will be shut or operating on more limited opening hours.
Children at some schools have been told they can wear a PE kit rather than a full school uniform, which can involve long trousers and blazers.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has said parents should send children to school if they remain open, saying schools were taking steps to help pupils cope with the heat, and absences had a cost.
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“I know hot weather can be a struggle. But my message to families is simple: if your child’s school is open, you should keep sending them into school,” she said.
Transport bosses have urged people to avoid travelling on Wednesday and Thursday and are warning those who do to “prepare for a disrupted journey”.
Travel into central London in the past few days was down on last week as workers heeded advice to stay at home during the heatwave, while there were disruptions on a raft of rail lines.
The heatwave has prompted new calls for the Government to take more action to protect the UK from increasingly extreme heat – a feature of the changing climate – including cooling for hospitals, schools and care homes.
The Met Office said the frequency and intensity of heatwaves have increased worldwide.
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Professor Stephen Belcher, Met Office chief scientist, said: “Human-induced climate change has made events like this more likely and more intense. To see temperatures like this in the UK in June is sobering.
“Events like this bring home the implications of climate change, with very high temperatures and humidity bringing significant health implications from heat stress, as well as impacts to a range of sectors such as transport, energy and water supply.”
In Hampshire, Testwood Lakes, near Totton, Southampton, have been closed off to the public as police marine units join other emergency services in the search for a 15-year-old boy who was reported missing after last being seen swimming at 1.35pm on Wednesday.
Police marine units have joined emergency services in the search for a 15-year-old boy who was reported missing at 1.35pm on Wednesday after last being seen swimming at Testwood Lakes, near Totton, Southampton.
A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: “We have deployed the marine units to aid in the search, alongside colleagues from NPAS, South Central Ambulance Service, and Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire Service.”
On Wednesday, September 2, it was the Concours judging and private viewings to dominate the agenda for the day.
Twelve Concours classes were held across almost a century of motoring, including The Golden Age of Motoring, 100 Years of Carrrozzeria Touring, La Dolce Vita, 60 Years of the Lamborghini Miura and Passione Ferrari.
Two new classes also made their debut for 2026, Rare Breeds of the Digital Age and Hypercar Heaven, which recognise the growing importance of contemporary performance cars within the international collector market.
Judging will take place across Wednesday and Thursday, with the show field bringing together a 70-strong collection of classics, supercars and hypercars from around the world.
Some of the cars include Aa Maserati 8C 3000, Alfa Romeo Sprint Berlinetta, a one-off Maserati 3500GT Spyder Prototipo by Vignale, a very early Porsche 356 Split Window Coupé, Aston Martin DB3S, Lamborghini Miura P400S, Bizzarrini 5300GT, Ferrari 250 GT Series 1 Cabriolet, Bugatti EB110 Prototype, Aston Martin Valiant Prototype and the extraordinary Bugatti Bolide, one of just 40 produced worldwide.
Helen Pike has decided to step down as Master of Magdalen College School at the end of the 2026/27 academic year, the school in east Oxford announced in March.
MCS is one of the top performing schools in the country, ranking in the top 20 independent secondary schools in The Sunday Times Parent Power Schools Guide 2026.
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The new academic year will start next week, with Ms Pike preparing for one more year in charge before she hands over to her successor, who will take over in September 2027.
The first female Master at MCS, Ms Pike guided the board of governors to one of the most significant decisions in the school’s history, to become fully co-educational from 2027.
While there has been a co-educational sixth form at the school for 15 years, the school last month announced it will become fully co-educational over the coming decade.
Ms Pike said earlier: “I love MCS, and it is a perennial privilege to lead this remarkable school.
“Being Master of MCS is a brilliant job, and I am declaring my intention early in order to give MCS the very best opportunity to find the right Master for September 2027. I shall continue to do all in my power to further the fortunes of this wonderful school until then.
“I look forward to a new phase in my own professional life, one that builds on all that I have enjoyed and achieved in my career during the past 30 years.
“Having encouraged many cohorts of pupils to take sensible risks and to do something creative and different when the time feels right, I am doing just that.”
During Ms Pike’s tenure, MCS has been recognised as a Top 20 Independent School and South East School of the Year by the Sunday Times and won Independent School of the Year for Social Mobility.
Thanking her in his letter to the school community, chair of governors, Bob Price, said earlier this year: “Helen is an outstanding leader and will go with our sincere gratitude and warm thanks for her exceptional headship.
“She will leave the school in excellent shape for her successor.”
Recruitment for a replacement for Ms Pike is now under way.
Last month, Ms Pike congratulated pupils on their “outstanding success” in this year’s A-Level exams, after more than a quarter of pupils (43) achieved three A*s or more and 25 secured all A*s.
In total, 39 pupils from the 2026 cohort are heading to Oxbridge, while 22 have secured places to study medicine.
As part of the school’s expansion plans, MCS is preparing to build a new Science, Library and Partnerships building.
A spokeswoman said the new building will offer an exciting opportunity to reimagine the senior school site as staff look ahead to full co-education.
She added earlier: “With a vision to create a sector-leading science building in the centre of Oxford, the development will enable us to support an ambitious and forward-looking science curriculum, expanding to the emerging and rapidly advancing areas of robotics, AI and Big Data.”
Holding banners which read ‘For f**k’s sake, just stop oil’, the demonstrators took to the road in Parliament Square at noon today (Wednesday, September 2).
This was as Andy Burnham faced his first Prime Minister’s Questions, and many of the protestors glued themselves to the road.
The group demanded that the UK government stop approving all further oil and gas developments, and sign a Fossil Fuel Treaty to stop oil and gas extraction.
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Just Stop Oil say that the police are expected to arrest all those blocking the road, and that one lane has been left free of glued-on action takers to permit access for emergency vehicles.
Andy Burnham is due to make a decision on whether to allow more drilling for oil and gas in the North Sea.
Reverend James Crote, a Baptist Minister and grandfather from Chesterton near Bicester, said: “Today is my grandson’s first birthday. I have to take action for the sake of his future.
The 69-year-old added: “The government has been dilly-dallying about whether to say yes or no to the Rosebank oil field but, if we want a future for our children, there is no choice – it has to say ‘no’.
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“I am here as a Christian Minister because the Church has to speak out and demand that the government stops approving further oil and gas developments now. It’s time for us all to say ‘For God’s sake, Just Stop Oil’.”
Data from the Met Office indicates that 2026 was the hottest summer in UK recorded history, beating 2025, which was the previous hottest summer on record.
2026 was also one of the driest summers on record, delivering record-low food harvests.
Climbing temperatures have triggered wildfires across the country, and national fire chiefs said the wildfire risk facing the UK is “like nothing we have seen before”.
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Taking action, grandmother Victoria Ann Lynch-Staunton from Leamington Spa, said: “What is happening is beyond a tragedy.”
The 71-year-old added: “I beg everyone to join Just Stop Oil or governments will continue to prioritise endless growth and corporate profit over billions of lives – yours and your children.
“Wake up and smell the coffin. It is the responsibility of all of us to act now!”
A Just Stop Oil spokesperson said today: “We are all Just Stop Oil.
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“Every single person who fears deadly wildfires, devastating droughts, and spiralling food shortages is Just Stop Oil.
“The first duty of government is to keep the public safe – but by greenlighting oil and gas drilling, they endanger our survival while corporates and billionaires laugh their way to the bank.
“Every one of us feels alone and powerless in the face of this insanity, but we know there is massive political and public support for our demand.
“So we’re inviting everyone to join us at an online call on 3rd October 2026 – because it’s when we work together that we are powerful and win.”
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