University arrangements following Met Office heat alerts

The Met Office has issued amber and red Heat-Health Alerts on Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 July for parts of England, which cover our Whiteknights, London Road and Greenlands campuses.

Our campuses and services will remain open and our graduation celebrations will go ahead, but it is important that you take care of yourself and others.

Follow the guidance on keeping safe

Our Director of Health and Safety Jenny McGrother says, “While these temperatures may be uncomfortable for those of us less used to them, our bodies have mechanisms to cool us if we follow the right guidance.”

“The official Met Office guidance includes things like making sure you drink plenty of water, avoiding excess alcohol, dressing to keep cool and generally taking things slower. You can also help by keeping curtains and blinds closed in rooms facing the sun.”

Subject to operational needs and in consultation with your line manager, you may also wish to work in cooler spaces if your usual work area is particularly warm.

To ensure our graduation celebrations can go ahead, additional measures will be in place including increased first aid provision, availability of comfortable indoor seating space, additional water and sunscreen stations, extra emergency water supplies, a relaxed dress code and provision of free ice lollies.

Advice for those at higher risk

The high temperatures may pose greater risks for those with significant relevant pre-existing health conditions. If this applies to you, you may wish to take advice from your medical practitioner. Please take extra care and talk to your line manager to make appropriate working arrangements, which may include working from home.

Where colleagues who typically undertake more strenuous work, particularly outdoors or in heavy PPE, team leads and managers are well-versed in measures to keep safe in high temperatures and have been provided with additional guidance and advice by our health and safety experts.

Other resources

Hydration map – find your nearest drinking water stop. 

UoR Health and Safety Services advice on Heat 

‘What science says about the best ways to cool down’, The Conversation, by Chloe Brimicombe, PhD researcher in Climate Change and Health (Walker Institute).