Londoners have been left sweltering in the past few weekends, with the capital recently seeing its third heatwave of the year.
2025 has been a warm one, which has seen highs of gone 30C before July even hit.
And it is not just London - the rest of the UK has also seen higher than normal temperatures, and the heat has left many wondering - could these extreme temperatures be something we need to start getting used to? According to the Met Office, yes.
What is the average temperature in the UK over summer months now?
This past month has seen some bouts of rain thunderstorms but overall, it has been extremely hot.
The Met Office said this was England’s warmest June on record, with a mean temperature of 16.9C across the month - which is 2.5C above the long-term average.
Across the country, the UK saw its second warmest June ever, while Wales saw its third warmest.
A spokesman said: “30C was reached and exceeded on several occasions in parts of central, southern and eastern England. Areas of southeastern England saw provisional mean temperatures over 3C above average, and many counties including Greater London, Essex and Kent recorded the warmest June on record.”
Global temperatures have risen by over 1.3C since the industrial revolution as humans continue to release carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere at an unprecedented rate.
Experts warn this equates to an increase of 3 to 4C rise during times of heatwaves.
The rest of the summer is set to stay warm at present, according to forecasters.
Will it stay hot in the UK all summer for 2025?
The heatwave is expected to persist into the coming weekend - July 19 and 20 - and into the start of next week, but by Tuesday (July 22) there are signs that temperatures may get slightly cooler, particularly in the north.
But the reprieve is set to be shortlived.
Warmer and drier weather is expected to make a comeback and temperatures are forecast to remain above average for much of the rest of the month, especially in the south-east, including London.
By the end of July and into at least the start of August, there are indications of another brief period of cooler weather, but longer range weather forecasts looking at the next three months suggest temperatures should be at least average through the rest of summer and into early autumn, and well above average in southern England.
There is a less clear signal for rainfall, but it is most likely to be drier than normal in the south-east and wetter in the far north. September is most likely to see a return to wetter conditions.
Climate projections from the Met Office indicate that "hot spells will become more frequent in our future climate, particularly over the southeast of the UK. Temperatures are projected to rise in all seasons, but the heat would be most intense in summer."
How much has the average temperature risen in recent years?
Statistics from the Met Office show that on average, temperatures do seem to be climbing year on year.
Looking at just June for the past few years, the temperatures do appear to be gradually increasing. The mean temperatures in recent years are:
- 2025: 16.9C
- 2024: 16.1C
- 2023: 15.8C
- 2022: 13.9C
- 2021: 14.2C
- 2020: 14C
- 2019: 13.2C
- 2018: 14.8C
And the Met Office’s most recent annual report State of the UK Climate states that they are seeing increasing temperatures year on year.
It reads: “Since the 1980s the UK climate has been warming at a rate of approximately 0.25°C per decade. The last three years have all been in the UK’s top five warmest on record.”
It continues: “Extremes are increasing: Over recent decades, temperature extremes have increased, becoming more frequent and more intense. For example, the hottest summer days have warmed around twice as much as average summer days in some UK areas when comparing the latest decade to 1961-1990.
“Sea level rise is also accelerating: UK sea levels have risen 19.5cm since 1901 with the last three years the three highest on record for annual mean sea level.”
