The UK Health Security Agency has expanded its amber cold-health alert to every region of England from 8pm on Wednesday 31 December 2025 until 10am on Tuesday 6 January 2026. The alert signals likely impacts across health and social care and a higher risk for older people, those with heart and lung conditions, and people sleeping rough. UKHSA advises checking on anyone who may struggle in the cold.

An amber alert under the joint UKHSA–Met Office Weather-Health Alerting system means cold conditions could affect the whole population, not only those already at higher risk, and that services should coordinate their response. Separate Met Office weather warnings for snow and ice may be issued at short notice, so it’s worth monitoring updates.

Why this matters goes beyond comfort. Cold air raises blood pressure and thickens the blood, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes; it can also aggravate respiratory illness. UKHSA expects increased use of health services during this spell.

Practical steps help. NHS and UKHSA-backed winter advice is to keep regularly used rooms at a minimum of 18°C, close bedroom windows at night, wear several thin layers, and keep warm drinks and meals coming. If someone feels unwell, they should seek advice promptly.

The ability to follow that advice isn’t equal. Fuel poverty remains widespread. National Energy Action reports 2.73 million households in fuel poverty in England under the LILEE metric in 2024, with a slight rise projected in 2025; over a third of households spent more than 10% of income (after housing costs) on energy in 2024.

Community solutions are stepping up. Councils, libraries, faith groups and charities are again running warm spaces this winter-free, welcoming places to spend time in the warm and get support. Examples include city-wide library offers in Manchester, council-backed hubs in Northumberland and East Suffolk, and hundreds of Church of England venues signed up to the Warm Welcome campaign.

If you or someone you support needs extra help with energy, ask to join your supplier’s Priority Services Register; this provides free, tailored support such as priority updates in an outage, accessible communications and help with meter readings. Similar registers exist for water companies.

Medium-term fixes can cut bills for good. Grants of £7,500 remain available in England and Wales through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme for air- and ground‑source heat pumps, with confirmed budgets into 2025/26. Insulation support under the Great British Insulation Scheme continues until 31 March 2026, with the government referral service now closed but supplier routes still open.

Cold snaps still happen in a warming climate. The Met Office notes that while severe cold events are becoming less frequent and less intense overall, occasional regional cold extremes will still occur and demand preparedness. Recent peer‑reviewed research reaches similar conclusions for Europe.

For daily decisions, combine national alerts with local action. Check the Met Office for any snow and ice warnings, follow UKHSA guidance, and look in on neighbours who may be at risk. Keeping homes warm, accessing community support, and planning upgrades can turn a hazardous week into a safer one.