The Climate Change Committee published A Well-Adapted UK on 20 May 2026, a report setting out what it calls a comprehensive package of solutions to the impacts of climate change across the UK1. The Committee, which advises government under the Climate Change Act, identifies better cooling, flood protection and a more secure water supply as the most critical priorities against the three biggest risks it names: heat, flooding and drought1.
The report projects that by 2050, 92% of homes are likely to overheat, peak river flows will be up to 45% higher, and water supply shortfalls could exceed five billion litres per day1. It puts the investment needed at around £11 billion a year, split broadly evenly between public and private funding, and states that without adaptation the cost of climate change to public welfare is predicted to rise to between 1% and 5% of UK GDP by 2050 under a 2°C global warming level, equivalent to £60 to £260 billion per year1.
"Our lives, our landscapes and our homes are under increasing pressure from the changing climate. But we are not powerless. In an increasingly unstable world, being well adapted to climate change is fundamental to securing our food, energy, and economic security."
The Committee sets out eight areas for government action1:
| Area | Key measure cited |
|---|---|
| Protect people from heat | Invest in cooling, including air conditioning, heat pumps and green shading, across key public services; a national maximum temperature for workplaces |
| Manage flood risk | Annual flood risk investment rising to around £1.6 billion to £2.2 billion each year across the UK |
| Avoid water shortages | Scale up sustainable water storage, accelerate leakage reduction, cut demand; all new homes water efficient from the outset |
| Support nature to adapt | Increase public investment in nature restoration and modernise regulation |
| Keep farming viable | Skills, information and training, crop diversification and on-farm water storage |
| Understand food security risks | Make the Adaptation Reporting Power mandatory and extend it to large food companies; consider large-scale national food stockpiling |
| Maintain access to insurance | Urgent clarity on the future of flood reinsurance, including the Flood Re scheme, ahead of its current 2039 end date |
| Adapt infrastructure | Design transport, energy and telecommunications systems to operate safely under future climate conditions |
The report states that the 2039 end date for the Flood Re reinsurance scheme is already creating uncertainty in the property insurance market2. It also notes that in the nearly 20 years since the Climate Change Act was passed, the UK has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 42%, while progress on preparing for a changing climate has been limited2. The Committee says that for the first time it is offering advice on potential solutions to address these risks, alongside the CCRA4-IA Technical Report2.
Why it matters for households
The report treats the home as one of the places where climate risk lands first. Overheating in 92% of existing homes by 2050 is a projection about the housing stock as built, not about new homes alone, and the Committee's proposed cooling measures include heat pumps, which also supply heating1. Water shortfalls of more than five billion litres a day point to pressure on supply that household demand reduction and leakage work are intended to ease1. On insurance, the report flags the 2039 end of Flood Re as a source of uncertainty for property cover, which bears on the value and saleability of homes in flood-prone areas1. The Committee frames adaptation as part of energy security as well as food and economic security, and places energy infrastructure among the systems that must keep operating under future heat and flood conditions1. The report sits alongside the UK's existing carbon budgets and net zero targets, which the Committee also advises on, and forms part of the wider regulation and policy landscape for household energy.
What happens next
The Committee states it is now up to the UK Government to consider its advice and to lay a Climate Change Risk Assessment before Parliament by January 20272. The next set of national adaptation plans, covering the UK's four governments, is due around 20282. The report is aimed at the UK Government, the Northern Ireland Executive, the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government2. No government response to the report has been reported.