Dorset Citizens’ Climate Panel - final report March 2026

Dorset Citizens’ Climate Panel was made up of twenty residents from across the Dorset Council area. Members were selected through a democratic lottery to reflect Dorset’s population. They met for four whole-day meetings to explore the impacts of climate change on Dorset, and answer the questions:

What do you imagine Dorset would look like if it was ready for climate change? How can we make that happen in a way that is fair to people and nature?

Panel members produced three key outputs in response to these questions: 

• a vision for a Dorset that is ready for climate change
• guidelines for navigating difficult trade-offs that Dorset may face in preparing for climate change
• a set of ambitions for how Dorset should prepare for climate change in the four areas that panel members identified as being of greatest concern to them: (1) buildings (homes), (2) food supply, (3)  farmers’ land management, and (4) water quality & supply. Panel members were also highly concerned about impacts on nature, and considered these impacts under all four topics.

What happens next 

The panel’s recommendations will help shape Dorset’s forthcoming Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy, including the wider stakeholder engagement process that will inform its development. 
 

Project origins

Why climate adaptation? Climate change is already affecting Dorset through more common extreme weather, flooding and coastal erosion. To respond effectively to these growing impacts, Dorset needs a robust response - one that not only addresses the risks but also reflects the values, priorities and experiences of its residents. 

Dorset Council called the Dorset Citizens’ Climate Panel to help shape the development of their Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy: a plan that will set out how Dorset can respond to climate impacts and build a fairer, more resilient future for everyone. 

Dorset Council will continue strategy development next year, including engaging with a wider group of stakeholders and specialists from across Dorset. The panel is an important early step in this process, ensuring it is grounded in the concerns, views and preferences of Dorset’s residents from the beginning. 

Who was in the panel?

The Dorset Citizens’ Climate Panel was made up of twenty people from across the Dorset Council area. 

Panel members were selected via democratic lottery to reflect Dorset’s population in terms of their demographics, where they live, and relevant attitudes. Measures were taken to make the panel accessible, including compensation for panel members’ time and expenses. 

Panel members met for four whole-day sessions, to answer the questions: What do you imagine Dorset would look like if it was ready for climate change? How can we make that happen in a way that is fair to people and nature?

The panel was delivered by the public participation charity Involve, as part of Innovate UK’s Net Zero Living Programme.

Involve used a citizen visioning approach to put people’s experiences and knowledge at the centre of the panel. Citizen visioning engages the public meaningfully, by meeting them where they already were.

The panel sessions began with what matters most to panel members - their experiences of living in Dorset. They then stepped back to look at the wide range of impacts that climate change may have on Dorset, and used their knowledge to imagine how we could respond to these impacts.

What did the panel create?

Together, they created a:

• vision for a Dorset ready for climate change
• guidelines for how to address the trade-offs Dorset may face in preparing for climate change
• ambitions for how they think Dorset should respond to the climate impacts they are most concerned about

This report shares the panel’s recommendations, which will now be used to help shape Dorset’s forthcoming Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy.

Advisory Panel

The Advisory Group guided the panel’s design and content. It included local organisations and specialists in climate adaptation, nature and water. 

Over its three meetings, the Advisory Group helped ensure the written information (posters) presented to the panel was accurate and comprehensive. It also made recommendations on specialists / speakers to address the panel and the questions those speakers should respond to. Finally, it advised on the template panel members used to create their recommendations on ‘ambitions’ (see Appendix One). 

At its final meeting, the Group reviewed the panel’s recommendations and discussed what should happen next, including how to engage stakeholders and panel members in the wider development process for the Climate Resilience and Adaptation Strategy.

Thank you to our advisory panel:

• Toni Powell, Dorset Coast Forum
• Amy Smith, Local Nature Recovery Officer, Dorset Council
• Mike Bennett, Dorset Youth
• Jonathan Burke, Dorset Race Equality Council
• Bob Ward, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics
• Nick Day, Environment Agency
• Nicki Schantz, Met Office
• Tom Munro, Dorset National Landscapes
• Giles Watts, Dorset Climate Action Network
• Marie Waterman, Volunteering Dorset
• Rachel Partridge, Deputy Director of Public Health and Prevention, Dorset Council
• Sarah Williams, Wessex Water
• Rupert Lloyd, Senior Health Programme Advisor, Public Health and Prevention, Dorset Council
• Maria Clarke, Dorset Local Nature Partnership
• Deborah Haynes, Dorset Local Resilience Forum

The questions

What do you imagine Dorset would look like if it was ready for climate change?

How can we make that happen in a way that is fair to people and nature?

We recruited 22 people to broadly reflect Dorset’s population using a democratic lottery (also known as sortition). The initial three-step process was led by our partners the Sortition Foundation:

• Sortition Foundation sent 6,600 invitation letters to randomly selected residential addresses Dorset-wide.
• people signed up online and by phone, answering questions about their demographics, postcode and relevant attitudes as they did so
• Sortition Foundation used a computer algorithm to select a group of 22 people, from everyone who had responded, who together reflected Dorset’s population. The criteria used for this selection were agreed with Dorset Council 

All panel members received a gift of thanks for taking part to help ensure the panel was as accessible as possible, and to recognise their time. We also covered travel and care expenses. Two panel members withdrew due to illness, one before the first meeting and one after two meetings. 

How were participants selected?

We selected panel members to be broadly reflective of the Dorset council area population in terms of their:

• gender 
• ethnicity
• disability status 
• views on climate change
• occupation (e.g. service, professional, student)

We also selected for a spread of people in terms of:

• age
• where in Dorset they live

This meant the panel included a higher percentage of younger people than Dorset’s population, because they will experience worsening climate impacts over their lifetimes. Similarly, because climate impacts vary by location (e.g. inland versus coastal), we wanted to ensure the panel included people from less populated areas of Dorset.

Recruitment detail

For the final 20 panel members who finished the process.

 

Climate views

Climate views	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
Not at all concerned	6%,	1 to 2	0	0%
Not very concerned	15.3%	3 to 4	3	15%
Fairly concerned	41.5%	9 to 10	10	50%
Very concerned	35.4%	7 to 8	6	30%
Don’t know	1.8%	0 to 1	1	5%

 

Age

Age	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
16 to 21	20%	4 to 5	1	5%
25 to 34	20%	4 to 5	4	20%
35 to 44	20%	4 to 5	5	25%
45 to 64	20%	4 to 5	5	25%
65+	20%	4 to 5	5	25%

 

Geography

Geography	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
Dorset East	16.7%	3 to 4	5	25%
Dorset North	16.7%	3 to 4	5	25%
Dorset South	16.7%	3 to 4	3	15%
Dorset West	16.7%	3 to 4	2	10%
Mid Dorset	16.7%	3 to 4	3	15%
South East Dorset	16.7%	3 to 4	2	10%

 

Gender

Gender	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
Female	51.3%	10 to 11	11	55%
Male	48.5%	9 to 10	9	45%
Non-binary or other	0.2%	0 to 1	0	0%

 

Disability

Disability	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
Yes	19.8%	3 to 4	5	25%
No	80.2%	16 to 17	15	75%

 

Occupation

Occupation	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
Not in the labour force - Retired	34.1%	6 to 7	8	40%
Not in the labour force - other	9.5%	1 to 2	2	10%
Operator or elementary occupation	8.1%	1 to 2	0	0%
Professional occupation	23.6%	4 to 5	5	25%
Service occupation	14.2%	2 to 3	4	20%
Skilled trade	7.4%	1 to 2	0	0%
Student	3.1%	0 to 1	1	5%

 

Ethnicity

Ethnicity	Target percentage	Target number	Group number	Group percentage
Asian or Asian British	1.1%	0 to 1	1	5%
Black or African or Caribbean or Black British	0.3%	0 to 1	1	5%
Mixed or Multiple Ethnic Groups	1.2%	0 to 1	1	5%
White British	93.9	18 to 19	16	80%
White Other	3.2%	0 to 1	1	5%
Other Ethnic Group	0.4%	0 to 1	0	0%

Overview of Citizen Visioning

Learning

Panel members learnt about the topic from a range of speakers. Topics covered at the first two panel sessions included an introduction to climate change and information about the range of current and potential climate change impacts in Dorset. At the final two sessions, learning focused on the climate risks panel members were most concerned about, exploring what Dorset being ready for these impacts might involve. 

Deliberation

Panel members discussed the information they had heard and their own ideas, views and experiences. 

Decision making

Panel members worked together to review all they had heard and written. They then drafted and agreed on:

• a vision for Dorset
• guidelines
• ambitions for Dorset

What we did

Panel members met four times over two months. Sessions combined individual reflection, group discussion, information sessions and Q&A sessions with specialists.

Meeting One and Two: Building the foundation

Getting started panel members began by hearing how the panel would work. They also heard from Catherine Howe, Chief Executive of Dorset Council, about the importance of the panel and how the council would respond to it.

They then got to know one another, and collectively agreed conversation guidelines for how they wanted to work together.

Experiences of living in Dorset

The panel started their discussions by talking about what it is like to live in Dorset. They spoke about what they liked about living in Dorset, and what could be improved (You can see the results of this discussion in Appendix Two).

Climate change and its impacts

Afterwards, there was an introduction to climate change; the panel learnt what climate change is and why it’s happening through a series of interactive activities (a role play, quiz, and presentation with a Q&A from Franziska Schrodt, Professor of Earth System Sciences, University of Nottingham). 

Following this introduction, the panel reflected on what they had heard and created a list of climate impacts they had already noticed in Dorset. Having made this list, they began to think about which impacts were particularly concerning to them and why (See Appendix Three). 

Information about impacts in Dorset 

Panel members then examined and discussed a series of posters (See Appendix Five), and asked questions to local specialists about the effects of climate change on people, plants and animals in Dorset - now and in the future.

They heard about climate impacts on:

• health and health services
• buildings and public spaces
• transport and utilities
• nature
• food and land use
• the economy

Information on the coast-specific impacts of climate change was woven throughout all topics, with a specialist from Dorset Coast Forum on-hand to introduce the idea of coastal impacts to the panel and answer questions.

After looking at each topic, panel members recorded which impacts concerned them most. This process, and the previous discussion about impacts panel members had already noticed,  created a long list of the impacts of greatest concern to panel members. 

Choosing the most concerning impacts

Panel members then began prioritising this long list in small groups, with each group identifying their top 5-10 concerns. This produced a shortlist of 16 impacts of most concern to panel members. 

To finish this part of meeting two, the panel as a whole voted on the shortlist. Each panel member voted for the three impacts they were most concerned about. The vote captured panel members’ priorities, and the facilitators also used it to determine the focus of panel meetings three and four. You can find the shortlist of 16 topics and vote results in Appendix Six.

Tricky situations

Towards the end of Meeting Two, the panel explored some of the trade-offs Dorset may face in responding to climate change. To do this they used hypothetical scenarios, which illustrated potential tensions between, for example, heritage preservation and adaptation, and personal freedom and risk prevention. 

The scenarios were created for the purposes of the exercise only, and do not represent measures the council is actually considering. The discussion focused less on how the panel would resolve each example, and more on the panel’s reasoning and the principles behind their thinking. 

(You can see details of scenarios in Appendix Seven).

Between meetings two and three, the facilitators themed the insights from the tricky situation discussions, turning them into draft guidelines, which the panel reviewed, refined and finalised at their third meeting.

A vision for Dorset

At the very end of the second meeting, the facilitators asked panel members to imagine they were 50 years in the future, and Dorset had been made ready for climate change really successfully. 

Panel members drew pictures of what this might look like. They then shared their images in small groups and discussed them. 

The facilitators used the common themes that emerged from these conversations to draft a vision statement, which the panel reviewed, refined and finalised at its final meeting. 

Meetings three and four
Diving deeper into the most concerning impacts

Meetings Three and Four focused on the climate impacts the panel voted for as their greatest concerns. Facilitators grouped together the six impacts with the most votes into four topics, with one common thread throughout:

• buildings (homes)
• food supply
• farmers’ land management - nature and water quality
• water - quality and supply

Protecting and promoting nature was a common thread, considered across all four topics. 

The council and facilitators slightly expanded the first topic of ‘Building (homes)’ beyond panel members’ suggested focus on new build homes, to include flooding and overheating impacts on existing homes too. These impacts were also in the shortlist of priority concerns. The vast majority of homes in Dorset are not new builds, meaning the council wanted to also hear the panel’s views about homes that are already built. 

Thank you to all our speakers (written in order of appearance):

• Catherine Howe, CEO, Dorset Council
• Franziska Schrodt, University of Nottingham
• Owen Clark, Dorset Council
• Anthony Littlechild, Dorset Council
• Keziah Rookes, Dorset Council
• Matt Smith, Dorset Coast Forum
• Tom Munro, Dorset National Landscapes
• Jon Bird, Dorset Council
• Paul Nathanial, Chartered Geologist 
• Dougal Hosford, local farmer
• Barbara Cossins, Love Local Trust Local
• Caroline Morgan, Local Food Links
• Rachel Janes, Dorset National Landscapes
• Sarah Williams, Wessex Water
• Emma Teasdale, Litter Free Dorset
• Imogen Davenport, Dorset Wildlife Trust
• Paul Stanfield, Wessex Water

Recommendation development 

Panel members created ambitions for each of their four priority topics. 

For each topic, they began with their reflections, took part in a Q&A with relevant specialists and discussed their ideas. They then answered three questions:

• what should Dorset aim for? (a headline ambition)
• why is this issue important? (a rationale)
• what would success look like? (success criteria)

Time constraints mean the success criteria  include both completely new proposals and measures already happening (to be maintained, built on or strengthened). 

They also meant that panel members did not have time to consider the potential trade-offs between their criteria, and reach conclusions about their priorities. 

Where recommendations reflect small misunderstandings about current policy, we have retained the panel's original language to accurately reflect their views.

Letters to Loved Ones

At the very end of the final meeting, the panel were asked to write a letter to a loved one about the panel and why it was important. They didn’t actually send these - the exercise was to explore how the panel would talk about the topic to their peers (framing and language), in order to provide insights for communications activities. 

The Dorset Citizens' Climate Panel in numbers:

• 20 participants - broadly reflective of Dorset  in terms of their demographics and attitudes to climate change
• 1 vision and set of guidelines deliberated on, and agreed by panel members
• 4 topics prioritised by the panel as climate impacts of most concern 
• 410 person hours of learning, conversations, deliberation and writing recommendations
• 17 speakers provided information and evidence 
• 10 success criteria for each priority topic, describing what a Dorset ready for climate would be like
   

The citizens’ panel created:

1. A vision: The vision is an overarching idea of what the panel members thought a Dorset ready for climate change would be like. It is a positive statement about what they think Dorset should aim to achieve.
2. Guidelines: Panel members produced guidelines as a steer for Dorset on how they think it should navigate decisions on making itself ready for climate change. The guidelines set out panel members’ views on how to assess climate risks and potential solutions to them, and how panel members like Dorset to navigate some of the key trade-offs it may face. The guidelines are intended as a general guide that works across the breadth of climate adaptation issues.
3. Ambitions for Dorset: The ambitions are panel members’ recommendations for what they think Dorset should be aiming to achieve on the climate impacts they identified as of highest concern. 

The vision is an overarching idea of what the panel members thought a Dorset ready for climate change would be like. It is a positive statement about what they think Dorset should aim to achieve. 

At the very end of the second meeting, panel members were asked to imagine they were 50 years in the future, and that Dorset had been made ready for climate change really successfully. They drew pictures of what this might look like.

They then shared their images in small groups and discussed them. The facilitators used the common themes from these conversations to draft a vision statement, which the panel reviewed and refined at their final meeting. The statement is unanimous, except where stated otherwise. The following slides share this vision for Dorset.

"A Dorset that is ready for climate change is a Dorset where nature is thriving, and people are secure and happy. 

It is a Dorset where people have access to good quality, affordable and sustainable housing - housing that provides comfort and security. This is housing that is built, located and adapted with climate change and nature protection in mind. We also want to see people in Dorset benefit from better transport options. This includes: improved, protected and well-connected public transport; more, better-connected, shaded, and well-maintained footpaths; and greener cars. 

We would like to see Dorset produce more clean energy, without this involving significant changes in land use.  And we would like to see a greater emphasis on local food, with more market gardens, shops for local food, and education and information to support people to make informed food choices."

"We want our nature – wildlife and habitats – to be flourishing, diverse and cared for as our climate changes. We want to protect all species that are possible to protect. We would like to see our rivers, seas, beaches, green spaces and air made clean, and kept clean even in the face of greater challenges to come. We believe more trees and forests will be needed, including to provide shade.

We want to protect nature both for its own sake and because it benefits people. We want people in Dorset, now and in the future, to still be able to enjoy nature and to have greater access to green, open spaces. We would like to see more ecotourism*, and increased leisure and educational opportunities linked to our beautiful waterways and countryside. We want to see livelihoods that depend on nature, like fishing and farming, become sustainable and continue.

We would like to take the opportunity of preparing for climate change to make improvements where we feel Dorset could do better. And we want to protect and strengthen the qualities that make Dorset a fabulous place to live."  

Panel members produced guidelines as a steer for Dorset on how they think it should navigate decisions on making itself ready for climate change. The guidelines set out panel members’ views on how to assess climate risks and potential solutions to them, and how panel members like Dorset to navigate some of the key trade-offs it may face. The guidelines are intended as a general guide that works across the breadth of climate adaptation issues.

At the end of its second meeting, the panel examined a set hypothetical scenarios that highlighted some of the key trade-offs Dorset may face in preparing for climate change. The examples were created for the purposes of this exercise only, and do not represent measures the council is actually considering. 

Panel members’ discussion of the scenarios focused on their reasoning and the principles behind their thinking, rather than on exactly how panel members would respond to each situation. The facilitators used the common insights from these discussions to draft the  guidelines, which the panel then reviewed, refined and finalised at their third meeting. The guidelines were unanimously agreed by the panel. 

When looking at how to make Dorset ready for climate change, we think the relevant organisations should assess:

Impact on people: 

• how many people are affected (although a couple of panel members thought it was important not to deprioritise taking action because someone lives alone) 
• how dependent people are on something (e.g. only access road)
• how often a problem (e.g. flooding) occurs or is likely to occur
• how long a problem would last for 
• severity of the impact of the problem 

Impact on businesses: 

• whether, and how many, businesses are affected

Impact on nature.

Economics: 

• is it more expensive to prevent or repair? Or should it be abandoned (i.e. do nothing)

Timescales: 

• there may be a need for quick solutions, if the risk is imminent 

The potential solutions: To understand which is preferable for any given situation (this list is in no particular order)

Impact on nature: 

• how much damage to wildlife and habitats would they cause (e.g. severity, quantity or range of species affected)
• whether the damage to wildlife and habitats will be permanent (permanent damage is less okay) 
• whether the wildlife and habitats affected are rare, Sites of Special Scientific Interest, etc. 

Longevity: 

• long term solutions are better
• long lasting solutions are better 
• future proofed solutions are better (i.e. will they meet changing needs)
• it is better to get it right first time, even if this takes longer 

Costs: 

• cost of implementing the solution
• cost of maintaining the solution
• potential for economies of scale 

When looking at how to make Dorset ready for climate change, we think the relevant organisations should asses:

Their resource implications: 

• for example, the time needed to police restrictions  

Their effectiveness: 

• their ability to address the climate risk and how this compares to other available solutions 
• whether they are addressing the root cause of the problem (e.g. what is causing the flooding) 

Their co-benefits: 

• for nature (e.g. new or enhanced habitats) 
• for humans (e.g. alternative livelihoods, new public spaces, investment in community assets, awareness raising, improved water quality)
• potential to reduce demand on health services 

In general we tend to agree as a panel that:

Heritage preservation should not always take precedence 

All of us would be prepared to see some heritage properties make some changes to be ready for climate change. This is for a range of reasons including a concern that these properties would be lost anyway if not prepared for climate change (e.g. because they may become unusable and therefore derelict, or because they are damaged by climate change itself), and a concern for the people and businesses who use them. 

However many of us would expect any changes to be as sympathetic as possible (e.g. minimal changes to the facade), and some of us feel that decisions should be taken on a case by case basis so that they can take account of factors about the building (e.g. age, historic value, grade of listing etc).

Available support should target those who are most affected by climate change and least able to help themselves 

Where funding is available to support people to prepare for climate change (e.g. by making changes to their homes), we all think that this funding should be used, at least mostly, to help those who are both most affected and least able to pay. 

Some of us think that all of the money should be used in this way. Others think that some of the money should be available to everyone in order to encourage people in general to make changes.

It is particularly important to reduce risks due to climate change for people who are vulnerable (e.g. the elderly, children, people with disabilities) 

It is more important to bring everyone up to an okay level, than to support people to move from okay to amazing 

Restrictions on access to green spaces should be minimised 

If it was ever necessary to restrict access to green spaces, it would be important to minimise these restrictions by targeting them in terms of timing (only at the highest risk times) and places (only at the highest risk places and potentially even then only if there were protected species in the area). 

In general, panel members would want to see all other possible measures considered first before green spaces were closed. Some panel members believe a prominent warning system would be sufficient to protect spaces. Others disagree and believe some closures will be necessary to protect nature. 

The Council should not pay for everything that needs to be done through raising local taxes or cutting services 

The Council should look at a range of ways to fund measures beyond raising local taxes or cutting services, including: 

• whether those affected (e.g. people, businesses) are able to contribute, where they are wealthy
• the availability of national government grants
• the potential to borrow rather than raise local taxes

Some panel members noted that their willingness to help pay for solutions would be affected by: 

• whether they lived near or used an affected area
• whether businesses were affected, with some panel members more willing to help businesses because of their contribution to the economy
• not all businesses will need help (as with the public), and small businesses without the profits or access to finance to pay for solutions themselves should be prioritised. Larger businesses should at least contribute to the cost of solutions
   

The ambitions are panel members’ recommendations for what they think Dorset should be aiming to achieve on the climate impacts they identified as of highest concern. 

At the final two meetings, the panel explored their six priority topics in more depth. These were grouped together as follows:  

1. buildings (homes) - including the panel’s priority focus on new builds, plus overheating and flooding of existing homes 
2. food supply 
3. farmers’ land management - focusing on water pollution and nature promotion 
4. water quality and supply 

How to protect and promote nature was considered as part of all four topics. 

During the panel sessions, the panel heard from speakers about how climate change will affect each topic, current and future challenges in addressing climate impacts, and potential solutions. Panel members then answered three questions for each topic:

• what should Dorset aim for? (a headline ambition)
• why is this issue important? (a rationale)
• what would success look like? (success criteria)

Covering all four topics meant panel members did not have time to make a distinction between measures that are already (partially) in place (and which should be maintained, built on or strengthened), and completely new measures. The ambitions therefore contain a mixture of both. Limited time also meant panel members could not explore potential trade-offs between their recommendations or prioritise within them; recommendations are presented in no particular order. Some recommendations contain minor factual inaccuracies. We have retained these to ensure we accurately reflect the panel’s views.

What should Dorset aim for?

A Dorset ready for climate change is a Dorset where the housing stock meets local communities’ needs. It is a Dorset where new developments are built with appropriate climate adaptations already included, and where those new developments are located in sensible areas to minimise both climate risks and damage to nature. It is a Dorset where new developments are designed as sustainable “projects” not as “houses”, meaning they are nature-friendly, close to amenities and have good transport links. It is also a Dorset that provides help and proactive, good quality, impartial advice to the owners and tenants of existing homes; a Dorset that has found affordable and effective solutions for all.

Why this is important

1. Housing has a major impact on people’s quality of life. People will be negatively affected by living in homes that are not built or adapted for climate change. Vulnerable people are most at risk from the health impacts of poorly adapted housing. 
2. Homes need to be ready for extreme weather events. Extreme weather events are likely to increase. Being ready for them saves money further down the line. 
3. Homes need to be affordable to live in - and to live in comfortably. It is cheaper to build-in climate measures to homes from the start, rather than for people to add them later.  Hot weather solutions like air conditioning or air cooling systems are not affordable to all. 
4. New housing needs to be more ready for climate change than it is now. Dorset needs to do more to make sure that new homes are built in future-proof locations (e.g. not areas of high flood-risk) and that developers are giving greater consideration to the materials and processes they use.
5. New housing needs to be more nature-friendly than it is now. It should not cause negative and unnecessary impacts on nature. High density developments can destroy natural habitats and fail to connect green spaces.
6. Homes need to be affordable to buy. If homes are too expensive, people will not be able to afford climate adaptations. 
7. Building adaptations could be missold. We are concerned that vulnerable people in particular could suffer harm as a result of high pressure sales pitches or misinformation around building adaptations.

What would success look like?

1. New homes are built with appropriate climate adaptations already included. 
   This includes solar panels, air source heat pumps, insulation, green roofs, shaded areas, and water and energy saving measures (e.g. built in water recycling). 
2. Sites for new homes are chosen to minimise climate risks and damage to nature. 
   New homes are not built on land vulnerable to climate risks (e.g. to flooding). Developers use existing brownfield sites, rather than building on green fields.  
3. New homes are built well, using sustainable materials. 
   Materials and building processes are appropriate, low carbon, sustainable and nature-friendly. This could include non-traditional construction like in Scandinavia. The Council has enforcement over what materials are used.
4. Homes help to protect nature.
   New developments do not concrete over the natural environment, which also makes them more attractive. The Council provides advice to residents in both new homes and existing homes about how to promote nature, for example by discouraging lawn cutting at certain times of year. 
5. Developers are incentivised and held to account; rules are enforced. 
   Developers are incentivised to build sustainably. Development plans are stuck to, with rules, policies and commitments enforced. The Council holds developers to account to deliver. 
6. Dorset designs projects not houses. 
   New developments are designed to be sustainable, including being built close to local amenities (walking distance) and well-connected to transport. 
7. Dorset builds the homes its residents need.
   Dorset builds fewer “executive” homes –  big homes that take space from nature and humans. Dorset needs a good mix of home types.
8. Homes are affordable. 
   Homes are affordable for people in Dorset. 
9. Existing homes have been retrofitted, with help and advice offered to owners and tenants.
   Homes have been retrofitted using effective solutions, and this has been made affordable including to people who own Grade I & II listed homes. Good quality, impartial advice and guidance around retrofitting is available to all, giving people the confidence to make good choices. There are also Institute-appropriate trust schemes for consultants and installers of ecosystems and housing upgrades. 
10. There is good energy advice available for local people.
    People are able to stay in their homes as the result of good energy advice, when they might otherwise have had to move. There are also schemes for younger people to switch to eco-friendly energy and more information for people unaware of its benefits.

What should Dorset aim for?

A Dorset ready for climate change is a Dorset where nourishing food is affordable, accessible, and locally sourced wherever possible. It is a Dorset where people make informed decisions about their food choices, including their impact on Dorset, supported by better education, and more and better-publicised opportunities to buy local. It is a Dorset that offers a sustainable future for our food producers and supports them to create an abundant, sustainable, environment- and nature- friendly local food supply. 

Why is this important?

1. To ensure we can survive. Food is essential to life 
2. To avoid malnutrition. By ensuring a supply of healthy and sufficiently diverse food 
3. To maintain a choice of food. Enabling people to enjoy a varied diet 
4. To keep food prices down
5. To avoid civil unrest. Caused by high food prices and/or food shortages. We are only ever two missed meals away from civil unrest 
6. To provide clarity for farmers. About how much food we need and how best to produce it 
7. To protect farmers as the climate changes
8. To give us food security. So we are not reliant on other countries, not least given political volatility and the fact other countries are facing climate challenges too

What would success look like?

Note: Some success criteria relating to farmers are listed under ‘Farmers’ Land Management’ to avoid duplication. 

1. Dorset’s food supply is as local as possible.
   The aim is to have as much of Dorset’s food as possible produced in Dorset itself, not least in relation to basics like potatoes and tomatoes. Where it is not possible to produce food in Dorset, food should come from as close by as possible (i.e. from the South of England, followed by other parts of the UK). This would support local farmers and reduce climate risks (e.g. related to transport). 
2. Food in Dorset is affordable.
   Everyone needs to be able to eat. Keeping food prices down is therefore an important success criterion in and of itself. As part of that, people need to have the option to buy non-local food where that is more affordable for them. However Dorset’s aim should be for good quality, nourishing, local food to be affordable for everyone.
3. People in Dorset choose to buy local, healthy, seasonal food.
   We would like to see: 

• better education and information provision inside of school (primary through to colleges) and outside of school to give people the tools to make informed decisions about their food. We want people to understand their food choices, and the impacts they have, including in terms of: where food comes from (and the benefits of local), eating healthily and how to do that (including cooking skills), how food is produced (e.g. with or without pesticides), seasonal produce.

• more and better publicised opportunities to buy local so people know where to get local food. For example:

  • there could be an online, and hard copy, directory of local food producers and shops/markets, which is well-publicised
  • Dorset could embrace social media content creation, including getting content creators to work with local farmers. A lot of farmers are not social media savvy
  • supermarkets should do more to publicise local seasonal food, for example by having local food aisles and using local food labels
  • there could be more local farmers markets

These measures would support people to make good food choices, but would not remove people’s freedom of choice. It is important that people can still make their own decisions about what to buy, not least because of considerations around price. 

4. Farmers use sustainable farming practices and are supported to do so. For farmers this would involve, for example:

• working to maintain and regenerate good quality soil, including the use of year round crops
• doing more to harvest and capture water
• reversing changes to practices that have harmed nature and reduced sustainability (e.g. reducing field sizes)
• working to protect and promote nature through how food is produced, including working out how to deal with new pests as the climate changes.
  
  It needs to be possible and easier for farmers to make a living while taking these measures. Dorset should do what it can, including lobbying others where relevant, to: 
   
• reduce bureaucracy to make doing the right thing cheaper
• provide more investment and support for farmers
• educate farmers about sustainable farming practices, including how to promote biodiversity
• make more good farming practices obligatory
• do more to check that rules and regulations are being followed by everyone involved (e.g. farmers, suppliers, supermarkets.
  
  We would also like farmers to make greater use of solar and wind power to help reduce their overheads and thus make sustainable farming more feasible. 

5. Market gardening is supported (note: a market garden is a place where vegetables and fruit are grown for sale)
   Market gardens have a number of benefits: 

• they produce high quality, local fruit and vegetables
• they offer significant mental health benefits and opportunities for community initiatives working with vulnerable groups
• they offer local career paths
• they can help to regenerate the land
  
  Market gardens in Dorset should be better supported. For example, there could be more  opportunities to learn about rural studies and market gardening, and council farms could be split and turned into market gardens.

6. Food waste is kept to a minimum.
   Reducing food waste will help as the climate changes, because it means we won’t have to produce as much food to meet everyone’s needs. It is easier to produce less food. 
7. There is a plan in place ready for climate disasters.
   Dorset should have a plan in place for how to feed its population in the event of a climate disaster. This is to make sure that, in the event of an emergency, everyone gets enough to eat.
8. Diversification of land use in Dorset has been reversed. 
9. Dorset should retain its farmland for food growing, by reversing the diversification of land use. For example, solar panels should be put on new builds not farmland. 
10. Food suppliers (e.g. caterers) are flexible in what they use.

11. Food suppliers are flexible about what produce they use, in order to support local farmers, keep prices down and reduce food waste. 

12. Dorset is involved in lobbying national government, supermarkets and others to help push for policies and practices that support our vision 

13. For example, it would be helpful if: 

• the UK had the same standards for imported food as home grown food (e.g. on pesticide use)
• the UK made use of new technology, where it exists and is non-polluting, to support the goal of self-sufficiency
• the UK considered food swaps with other nations, where nations exchanged home grown, surplus food instead paying for it with money
   

What should Dorset aim for?

A Dorset ready for climate change is a Dorset where farmers use regenerative and sustainable agricultural practices that enhance food production, contribute to overall soil health, help improve water quality and supply, and support a flourishing natural world (on land and in water). It is a Dorset where farmers are supported to carry out these practices, including through education, funding, enforcement and a reduction in red tape. It is a Dorset where land is shared between food production and nature.

Why is this important?

1. To reduce flooding 
2. To ensure there’s enough water during droughts
3. To ensure a supply of clean water. Our groundwater mustn’t get more polluted. There needs to be enough clean water left for us
4. To avoid rivers running dry
5. To protect nature and biodiversity. There's only one planet; there's no Plan B. Chalk rivers are unique and should be protected
6. To be ready for more extreme weather. We will need greater water resilience meaning that water is clean and stored well. The rivers and waterways go into the sea, we need to not impact the sea as much
7. To ensure we have good quality food. How we produce our food affects our environment and people's wellbeing (we are what we eat) 
8. Because rivers are the lifeblood of the country. They feed everything.

What would success look like?

1. Dorset has diverse and thriving ecosystems. This includes flora and fauna. It also includes protecting heathlands.
2. Dorset’s rivers are healthy.
3. Dorset has a good water supply - there is enough water, and it is clean enough.
4. Farming is environmentally sustainable: Regenerative agriculture should be the norm. Farmers need to encourage soil health and have put in place natural flood management measures, including the use of defensive planting (to stop soil washing away and hold-up water in the land). Farmers use sustainable farming methods and share their land with nature, including through measures like wildflower strips and hedgerow planting. Farmers are using less pesticide and nitrates, and many have taken steps to reduce run-off and pollution including from livestock waste and chemicals. Farmers can prepare for winter floods in the summer, and capture water in the winter to help with summer droughts. The Council has policies in place to ensure farmers do their share of ditch cleaning to help with water flow and prevent flooding. 
5. Environmentally sustainable farming is financially sustainable.
   There is more information available for farmers about existing relevant grants that help fund sustainable practices. There is also more incentive-based funding for farmers to invest in climate adaptation. Dorset is doing what it can to hold supermarkets to account for soil quality and farming practices. Supermarkets should use their profits and buying practices to encourage sustainable farming
6. Dorset has made environmentally sustainable farming easier, through education and cutting red tape 
   Farmers share good practice with one another. There is also more education available for farmers about how to reduce run-off and increase water infiltration. Dorset Council has cut red tape around farmers putting in relevant measures. In particular, the Council’s approach to new pond creation and wetland management is fundamentally different and simpler, like that of other Councils. Farmers need an easy, streamlined process.
7. There is enforcement of regulations relating to farming.
   There is enforcement of relevant regulations and guidelines, for example around the control of waste and water pollution. But that enforcement comes with support for farmers.
8. There is enough food.
9. There is healthy food produced in Dorset. Healthy food means a healthier body for us all.
10. Measures are well-communicated. There is good communication about what is being done to, for example, reduce flooding and run-off, so residents know about it.

What should Dorset aim for?

A Dorset ready for climate change is a Dorset where there is enough water - and enough clean water - to meet the needs of people and nature. It is a Dorset where water is available at the right place, at the right time. 

It is a Dorset where everyone (residents, farmers, businesses) uses water in a sustainable and responsible way and does the utmost to prevent pollution of our waterways - supported by education, enforcement, and reductions in unnecessary red tape. 

It is a Dorset where natural measures are used to hold-up water in the land, and where new build properties are designed and located to allow water infiltration, enable water reuse and leave floodplains clear to flood. 

It is a Dorset where our water infrastructure is ready for climate change and there are no storm overflows.

Why is this important?

1. To ensure life and survival. Water is essential for people and for wildlife abundance and biodiversity (flora and fauna).
2. To ensure health. We need high enough quality water to drink safely.
3. To ensure wellbeing. We use water to wash, for some treatments (e.g hydrotherapy) and for leisure activities (e.g swimming indoors and in nature). These uses have important mental health benefits. 
4. To protect crops. Water supply affects the quantity and quality of crops.
5. To bring financial benefits. We can ensure water is clean(er) in the first place, so we don’t have to treat it (as much).
6. To avoid knock-on economic impacts. Consumers, businesses, manufacturing and the public sector would all suffer from water shortages and inconsistent supply.
7. To protect tourism. Dorset’s tourism depends on clean beaches and its natural beauty. Note: The panel later heard evidence that to-date downgrades in water quality have not (yet) affected tourism to beaches. 
8. To avoid knock-on environmental impacts. For example, plastic pollution from bottled water (if people can’t drink tap water).
9. To ensure a secure water supply for Dorset. And address disparities in water security.
10. To ensure we are prepared. We need to be ready for more extreme weather events.
11. Because water is very affected by climate change. Climate change can mean there is too much or too little of it, or that it’s in the wrong place.
12. Because water is a good indicator of how preparing for climate change is going. Water supply and quality reflect what progress has been made in other areas.

What would success look like?

Note: Some success criteria relating to farmers are listed under ‘Farmers’ Land Management’ to avoid duplication. 

1. Everyone in Dorset has access to clean water.
2. There is enough water to meet the demand of Dorset’s population, its businesses and its nature.
3. Water is in the place it's needed, when it's needed.  
   For example, there should be enough water for heathlands during hotter summers. Drinking water is available in public places: this will be needed as the weather gets hotter. 
4. Dorset makes better use of water This includes: 

• capturing and using water that falls on roofs (homes, industry, farms) and roads
• using innovative technology to recycle wastewater both domestically and industrially
• using the right water for the right thing - for example not using drinking water to wash cars
  Personal collection should mitigate for water companies being able to extract less from groundwater.

5. Dorset residents are informed and understand about responsible water use and steps they can take to improve water quality .
   Residents understand how much water they use and how to conserve water, so that water consumption is done with awareness and intent. This includes better promotion of what individuals can do to capture and reuse water (e.g. storm tanks, small measures people can take).
   There is better promotion of what individuals can do to hold-up water (e.g. garden wetlands, measures for front gardens like permeable paving that work alongside space to park). And  residents understand where surface water goes (i.e. into rivers). 
   There is education to stop people blocking drains with nappies, fat and personal products. People understand how this links to flooding and water quality (including for bathing water).
   Education starts in schools. Most panel members felt it should also cover older adults. A small number of panel members felt this was a waste of time because older people are too stuck in their ways. 
    
6. Dorset is using natural measures and better planning to hold-up water and thereby protect water quality.
   This includes holding up water in the land through: 

• Creating wetlands
• allowing land that’s meant to be wet to be wet
• reforestation (as well as holding up water this also has other benefits, for example carbon sequestration and oxygen supply);
  Introducing beavers
• not building on floodplains so that water has somewhere to go
• reducing hard surfaces around new builds, and instead using gravel or other permeable surfaces, and allowing more space for gardens and trees
  Dorset should also introduce a drains and soakaways programme for problem areas. 

7. Dorset’s sewage treatment systems and water infrastructure are ready for the future.
   Sewage treatment keeps up with increases in the population, tourism (due to climate change), and flooding sewage overflows are less frequent or don’t happen at all, including during storms. 
   There is more investment in water infrastructure including to counter a lack of investment to-date. Some panel members felt this should include building more reservoirs, including overcoming objections to them. They noted that this would bring benefits to wildlife and people (through leisure activities), as well as supporting water supply. 
8. Rules around water quality are better enforced.
   Self-regulation does not always work. Dorset should enforce regulations related to water quality, including for big companies; there was a perception amongst panel members that bigger companies are less frequently targeted by enforcement than smaller businesses. Dorset has tackled issues relating to car cleaning businesses and fleet clearing, including improving awareness amongst their staff and owners of the impact of what they do on water pollution. 
9. Dorset has a plan for what to do in the event of extreme weather events in order to ensure water supply and quality. For example, it has a plan for how to recharge water supplies after long, hot summers. 
10. Dorset’s water supply is sustainable in its own right.We are not stealing from / to the detriment of other areas.

At the last meeting, panel members wrote a ‘letter to a loved one’ about the topic the panel had been discussing and why it’s important. They were asked to write as if they were writing to a family member or friend. 

The letters were a way for panel members to reflect on their experience. But they also provide useful pointers about the language and ideas Dorset residents use to talk about what is technically termed “climate adaptation.” 

How do people talk about “climate adaptation”?

In the panel sessions themselves, the facilitators talked about “Dorset being ready for climate change” rather than about “climate adaptation.” Some panel members used the idea of “being ready” in their letters. Others talked about being “prepared”. Some used both “ready” and “prepared”, or used different descriptions entirely. 

Quotes from the letters that use the idea of being “ready”:

• “…[how] Dorset can be best made ready and enabled to meet the challenges that climate change is creating” 
• “...how Dorset can ready itself for all the climate changes beginning to hit our country”
• “...how it [climate change] might affect us in Dorset and what we can try and do as a community to be ready for how our world will change”
• “...how to be ready for climate change”

Quotes from the letters that use the idea of being “prepared”:

• “...how to prepare for the changes in the climate (weather patterns) that are happening now and are likely to happen (and become more extreme) in the future”
• “... how Dorset can prepare for climate change” 
• “... can be better prepared for the repercussions of climate change”
• “...the impact of climate change and how we, as a community, can be better prepared for the future”

How do people talk about “climate adaptation”

Quotes from the letters that use both “ready” and  “prepared”, or entirely different descriptions:

• “...the future impacts of climate change in Dorset and all the ways we would like to adapt so that we feel ready for the changes ahead. It’s so important for us to be prepared…”
• “...attempting to solve current and upcoming problems relating to climate change” 
• “...our planet seems to be changing to more stormy weather and [a] warmer future…. [...] [We’ve been looking at]...ideas to keep our Dorset a nice place to live and grow up”
• “...how climate change is going to affect Dorset and what Dorset and we can do about it”
• “Dorset is a wonderful place to live but …many people are worried that the climate is changing quickly and that this will impact our lives and the environment”

Why is “climate adaptation” important

Many panel members referred to future generations or the future when explaining why being ready for climate change is important. Some also mentioned the potential co-benefits of climate adaptation, such as cleaner water and local/good food. Several panel members mentioned the benefits to nature. Several mentioned the need to lessen climate changes’ impacts.

Examples include: 

• “I believe this is important not just for this generation but many more to come. Millions will benefit from cleaner water, more sustainable farming with an emphasis on locally produced food, not to mention the benefit to wildlife and nature”
• “We want to make sure that everyone has good sustainable houses, good food and clean water, as well as the chance to enjoy wonderful outdoor activities”
• “Such discussions are vitally important to ensure we are prepared for changes that are coming and mitigate the impacts on generations to come”
• “I am part of the younger generation and want my children to grow up in a society that’s treated climate change with the right attitude”
• “It is really important as this is something that will affect us all and also for those in the future. We need to lessen the impact of climate change and find a way to adapt things so we can continue to live our lives and also for nature and our county to survive and flourish.”
• “...our planet is precious and Dorset is part of that jigsaw”
• “...so we can all have a prosperous future”
• “...so people in Dorset can handle or be resilient to any challenges posed by climate change. … we can be prepared so that less people are affected.”
• “It’s so important for us to be prepared so that climate change impact doesn’t catch us by surprise but also so that we can adequately protect ourselves, wildlife and nature - they are depending upon us to act.”

Panel members completed surveys to track their views about (a) the panel and (b) climate change in Dorset at several points during the panel process:

• before the first panel session
• after the second panel session*
• after the third panel session* 
• after the final panel session. 

Panel members completed these surveys online and their responses were anonymous. Not all panel members completed all surveys. Please see Appendix Eight for more details.

*These surveys after panel session two and three were shorter and focused solely on collecting panel members’ feedback about the panel sessions themselves. They provided an anonymous way for panel members to share their views, supplementing the in-person discussions around how the panel was going that took place during panel session themselves.  

When asked how they felt about the panel after its final session, panel members said they felt optimistic, hopeful, and privileged to have taken part.

"It feels like our views, thoughts and knowledge of the area we live in matters … thus helping to shape future solutions."

"(I feel) privileged to have been a part of the panel and proud of the work we achieved as a group." 

"I found the most rewarding aspect was contributing my opinions directly to the future of my community. It felt empowering to know that my input, alongside that of my neighbours, would directly influence the council's climate action plans, turning a global challenge into a practical, local effort."

"I feel happy and excited [about] what Dorset will become in the future when we are ready for the Climate Change.”

Panel members rated their experience highly. On average they rated it 4.2/5 after meeting two, 4.3 after meeting three and 4.5 after the final meeting. While not all panel members filled out the relevant surveys (see Appendix Seven), these aligned with feedback collected from panel members during the sessions themselves. 

Panel members valued learning new information about climate change, from knowledgeable and diverse speakers. They also liked the facilitation, agenda and variety of activities at the first two meetings. Finally, they enjoyed active discussion with each other, and working together to shape the council’s work.

Areas panel members felt could be improved included: sound quality at the venue (despite facilitators’ best efforts to mitigate for this); and having more time in the final two meetings, particularly for the Q&A sessions. Some panel members also commented on a lack of detail in some answers from specialists, and the absence of a local planner in housing discussions due to scheduling constraints. 
 

In the final panel member survey, we asked panel members about the impacts they hoped to see from the citizens’ panel for themselves and for their local areas. 

Impacts for “me / my household”:

• one panel member said they hoped to use what they had learnt during the panel to prepare for climate change and reduce their environmental impact. Others said that they hoped the panel would lead to better education, more information and guidance (even a “toolkit”), and increased incentives to help them and other Dorset residents prepare for climate change
• some panel members mentioned specific policy changes that they wanted to see, for example around affordable housing. Others mentioned more general aspirations that the panel would lead to Dorset being “better equipped to withstand hotter summers and harsher winters”, ensuring it looks after its rural environments, and/or making (policy) changes to support their children’s future

Impacts for “my local area”

Panel members’ answers to this question tended to emphasise their wish to see their recommendation taken forward particularly around the ambitions. A small number also mentioned the need to encourage community action and create greater awareness of climate impacts and how to prepare for them. 

The template the panel members should use to create its recommendations on ‘ambitions’. This included for each topic:

• headline ambition – one or two sentences  that sum up what Dorset should be aiming to achieve  
• rationale – a list of  why it’s important / a priority 
• success criteria – a list of criteria for what success would look like (e.g. no new houses built on flood plain) and/or how to get there

You can find the headline ambitions in the main body of this report.

What we like about Dorset

Green spaces, nature and the countryside:

• open green spaces
• rural
• aature - tree hugging, sea
• green
• green rolling countryside
• hills
• forest and countryside

Outdoor activities (walking, cycling):

• love of countryside (walking, cycling)
• contrast of forest areas and trails for walking / hiking / cycling

Wildlife, plants and animals:

• animals - the birds, goats on a beach
• diverse nature (habitat)Wildlife that is able to live in Dorset
• love the amount of nature reserves

Beaches, the cost, sea and rivers:

• beaches - the number of them and variety of different spaces
• access to the coast
• beaches
• in Bere Regis the water is clear
• beach / sea
• sea / coast swimming
• beaches
• coast and seaside

Beauty:

• natural beauty
• it’s pretty
• beautiful countryside

Variety of places and types of nature (towns, seaside, woods/forest etc) and easy access to them:

• like the variety of environments
• countryside, town, seaside, woods/forest
• access to town and countryside
• diverse area, sea, cliffs, walks, countryside
• diverse nature (habitat)
• access to town and countryside
• ease of being outdoors

Quiet and peaceful:

• calm it's quiet
• less populated
• space to walk, live and enjoy

Villages and heritage:

• lovely villages
• village
• back in time

Community feel (welcoming, people know each other, family businesses):

• community feel, people know each other
• welcoming and friendly
• relaxed community
• local and family businesses, e.g. butchers
• welcoming (reasonably) some areas more than others

Other:

• sunshine
• council reactive, approachable
• stop Ketamine UK (based in Dorset)
• relatively crime free
• no motorways
• fabulous place to live
• theatres, arts
• mixed communities (feels real!) not just suburbs and tourism

What could be improved about living in Dorset

Issues with roads, cars and parking:

• high parking costs - e.g. market in Dorchester
• road infrastructure
• reduce speed limits to 20mph for safety
• could incentivise people to have smaller vehicles for emissions (for climate change)
• residents could do with incentives to go electric (car use). Reduced charging point
• remove cycle lanes (disagreement in the group on this)
• how they are going about it
• are cycle lanes appropriate where there are a lot of hills (safe areas only)
• are people using them
• too much traffic and congestion (East Dorset)
• potholes (some disagreement)
• school buses could be electric to reduce emissions

Lack of public transport, not least in rural areas and at weekends:

• public transport
• lack of transport at weekends - could be improved from Bere Regis
• public transport
• transportation
• more public transport
• improve public transport
• particularly in rural areas

River and sea pollution:

• water quality of beaches - less dumping of sewage by water companies
• water pollution from agricultural run off
• cut back on river and sea pollution

How homes are heated (eg lack of solar panels, oil heating):

• solar panels on more houses
• heating - houses use oil in older houses, difficult to replace

Lack of new / loss of small businesses and lack of variety in jobs:

• lots of care work, but not as much variety in jobs
• new businesses aren’t opening
• lots of small businesses and shops closing

Not always easy to walk (overgrown footpaths, pavements need repairs, lack of safe walking routes linking towns and stations):

• overgrown footpaths - could be kept open better
• safe walking routes would be good - linking towns and stations
• pavements need repair

Problems with SEND services:

• especially in East Dorset
• not enough people, not enough understanding towards people with SEND
• need training, recruitment and staff retention

New homes and building (e.g. too much, wrong place, impact on nature, wrong type of homes, lack of accompanying infrastructure):

• flexibility on multi-purpose licensing (on building infrastructure) needed
• too much building?
• building in the wrong places (flood plains)
• building on farmland and other green areas
• housing located inappropriately (on green land)
• wrong type of housing (executive not affordable)
• housing affects wildlife and destroys habitat for 2nd homes
• no infrastructure increase to go with it (new housing) (doctors, dentists, schools)
• consideration of facilities, hospitals and police etc.

Lack of genuinely affordable housing:

• unaffordable housing
• new people moving in increases costs
• young people move away
• London prices vs rural wages
• housing / affordability
• affordable housing
• needs to be genuinely affordable - problem with the definition
• less housing in certain areas

Drugs (e.g. drug culture, county lines):

• drug culture
• county lines (youth and drugs)
• divisive

Closure of police stations and certain types of crime  (e.g. against farmers, wildlife crime):

• crime against farmers
• wildlife crime
• rural crime
• antisocial behaviours in some areas (eg Bournemouth) eg hotspots
• closure of police stations

Lack of listening by Councils, including BCP:

• existence of BCP council (don’t listen)
• more listening by councils
• listening and following what people say

Other:

• lack of central government investment
• post in villages (we need more!)
• collaborative compost approach
• need to look after wildlife more
• mobile coverage
• social infrastructure and accessibility
• holiday homes
• access to landfills is difficult for businesses
• high costs and restrictions for businesses
• fly tipping
• high cost of living

At the first meeting, the panel members shared what impacts of climate change on Dorset they had already noticed in their lives (such as directly, or through a family member or friend).

Summary across tables:

• fires - forest, peatland, heathland 
• flooding
• making pollution worse or more noticeable
• cliff erosion
• variable weather
• train disruption
• risk of cancer due to heat / sun (i.e. skin cancer)
• food poverty and lack of affordability
• farmers - unpredictable harvests, lower tonnage from harvests
• heat stress
• hotter / heat at home

All impacts

Impacts marked as important by the panel are in bold. 

Table one:

• people moving to the area
• making pollution worse or more noticeable
• cliff erosion
• hot weather
• variable weather
• fires - forest, peatland
• drought
• wind and storms
• hot houses and homes
• flooding
• wildlife coming into urban areas
• food £ increases
• train disruption

Table two:

• different insects and habitat changes affecting species diversity and abundance
• coastal erosion
• flash flooding
• wildfires and fear of fires (after Holt Heath fires)
• risk of cancer due to heat / sun (i.e. skin cancer)
• food poverty and lack of affordability
• farmers - unpredictable harvests, lower tonnage from harvests

Table three:

• flooding - because it affects everything if under water destroys. Lose everything
  • roads
  • seafront
  • river (highest)
• Heat stress - because of crops + animals dying, terrifying, hard to stop, affects plants, animals, people, also food, can’t mitigate it (stop sun shining).
  • livestock (lack of food)
  • plants and trees
  • domestic animals
  • wild animals
• coastal erosion
  • paths collapsed on beach
  • coastal wildlife disappearing
• heathland wildfires - because of nature and environment, properties near heathland, homes
  • who is causing?    
  • wildlife and their habitat destruction
  • tree destruction
• hotter homes / heat at home - using more electricity and make problem worse:
  • fans on
  • in / out on sleep
  • window open at night
  • blinds shut
  • different homes and gardens affected differently
• seasons changing (eg autumn early, winter shorter:
  • plants (autumn leaves early)
  • plowering times
  • winters not so cold
  • warming oceans

At the first two meetings, the panel members generated lists of impacts that they had noticed, and that had stood out to them when learning more about the impacts of climate change. 

The next sections show this full list of ideas they created. 

You can see what they voted on in the main body.

Most important impacts from what they had already noticed:

• making pollution worse or more noticeable
• cliff erosion
• variable weather
• fires - forest, peatland
• flooding
• train disruption
• risk of cancer due to heat / sun (i.e. skin cancer)
• food poverty and lack of affordability
• farmers - unpredictable harvests, lower tonnage from harvests
• flooding
• heat stress
• heathland wildfires
• hotter homes / heat at home
• seasons changing (e.g. Autumn early, Winter shorter)

Most important impacts from information stations: Food & Land use:

• animal welfare 
• crops 
• food supply
• habitat disruption
• waste management
• food quality
• farmers’ land management
• protect farmland
• flytipping in local areas (waste management)
• lack of education for younger generation
• need for wider implementation and education of better farming practices
• challenge in balancing fishing sustainability and economic benefits
• responsibility + cost to farmers, eg. the funding, the training, having consistent funding and political support
• how to work with nature, eg. animal grazing, working together
• species change impact in farming and fishing, and on local species and ecosystem
• food supply - access,  including for people, owned animals and wild animals
• higher costs to buy food - also higher costs of better food, local food
• health of marine wildlife, including knock on effect on human health

Most important impacts from information stations: Economy

• increased cost to business and people
• cost of solutions
• feasibility of solutions
• loss of income for businesses and people
• increased tourism in coastal areas (mess)
• water scarcity
• farming and fishing
• level of housing affordability is too high
• lack of decent economic job opportunities
• more extreme weather (affecting crucial seasons of the year)
• additional waste + pressure from tourism - its good and bad
• flood risks to businesses and financial cost of it being flooded - methods for how they can continue operating during floods
• damage to infrastructure - roads and rail - for tourism, but also everything else / locals
• increased costs of living and to business, loss of job opportunities, taxes and tax base
• water scarcity - including businesses being educated on reduction, impact on businesses
• training people in new industries and jobs for adaptation, training people on adaptation and forward thinking
• public awareness of the need for adaptation

Most important impacts from information stations: Nature

• invasive species
• pollinators
• pollution of rivers and seas
• economy
• clean air, food and water
• landscape loss
• incentivising landowners
• creating corridors
• species going extinct
• food chain impacts from nature loss - including pollinators
• pollinator loss for nature
• sewage release from flooding
• managing impact from this and how humans use the environment
• soil quality
• impacts on nature from infrastructure and construction for adaptation
• wooden fencing on front gardens - fire risk and risk to wildlife, eg. hedgehogs wouldn’t be able to move, they are destroying birds nesting sites
• continuous building on green fields - leads to habitat loss (affecting animals and creatures and general ecology)
• build up of accelerated coastal erosion - permanently damages land and affects people's homes and local community hubs
• prioritising human needs (e.g. more housing_ - at the expense of nature and wildlife (e.g. loss/diversity of species of animals)

Most important impacts from information stations: Transport and Utilities:

• power outages
• flooding
• water quality
• water supply
• transport
• sewage
• power grids being affected by storms (also communications via internet)
• lack of investment about sewage infrastructure
• not enough footpaths between villages/towns encouraging people to walk
• waste collection being held up due to extreme weather - not healthy to have excessive waste around
• flooding and roads
• power outages - need to handle demand, stresses, increased demand
• sewage system not coping during floods and storms - overflows to sea
• road not  being maintained for emergency services -  emergency services not being able to travel
• damage to water supply and quality
• impact of drought on water supply when you need it
• train cancellations, especially where it is single tracks

Most important impacts from information stations: Buildings and Public Spaces

• flooding of schools and public services
• flooding (in general)
• flooding of homes
• flooding of businesses and workplaces
• overheating (homes and outdoor spaces)
• change in energy demand
• damage to homes
• overheating homes
• school and education being affected
• overheating at care homes and how it affects people’s health, eg people with dementia
• making sure new construction is eco-friendly and future proofed, it can withstand climate change
• people not having access to cool + shaded outdoor areas
• costs of moving if you have to leave due to coastal erosion, especially if you’re vulnerable
• overheating offices and businesses
• building on flood plains, it spreads flooding further, affects the people living in the neighbourhoods
• poor integrity on how / where coastal houses are built - huge safety risks
• dense population in South - more pollution

Most important impacts from information stations: Health and Wellbeing

• heatwaves
• mental health
• isolation
• air pollution
• disease
• increased demand on health services
• access for emergency services
• over reliance on support networks to access or travel during challenging events. This isn’t sustainable as issues become more severe yearly
• lack of preparation for crisis - drills / assigning volunteers (if so, this isn’t being communicated)
• isolation: stressed / anxious working about loved ones during heatwaves
• (lack of) access - generally
• how it affects travel infrastructure
• managing increased demand on healthcare
• hot hospitals and how it affects staff and patients
• stress from climate impacts and mental health
• new diseases and more disease, eg. Lyme
• medical equipment failure at home
   

Health and wellbeing

Physical health: 

1. Heatwaves: Heatwaves increase the risk of dehydration and heatstroke, and worsen existing health conditions affecting people’s breathing, heart and kidneys. In the summer of 2024, there were an estimated 32 additional deaths caused by heatwaves in Dorset, and a total 1,311 around the UK. 
2. Sun exposure: People may wear less clothing outdoors during hot weather, increasing their skin’s exposure to the sun. This can increase the likelihood of conditions such as skin cancer. 
3. Air pollution: Hotter, drier weather can increase air pollution and worsen air quality, especially near wildfires. This can negatively affect people with respiratory conditions, like asthma. 
4. Injuries: There is a risk of injury during floods, storms, wildfires, and rock falls. 
5. Disease: Warmer temperatures can increase our exposure to insects and ticks which spread diseases (e.g. Lyme disease). Flooding can also expose people to diseases through the flood water. 

Mental health and wellbeing:

1. Stress: Climate impacts (e.g. transport problems, power outages, flooding, loss of income) can be very stressful. 
2. Sleep loss and concentration: It can be hard to sleep in the heat, affecting people’s mood and ability to concentrate (e.g. at work, at school, during summer exams). 
3. Access to the outdoors, nature and wildlife: Extreme weather can restrict our access to the outdoors. It can also damage green spaces and wildlife, making them less accessible and visible. 
4. Isolation: Extreme weather may mean people are unable to leave home. Internet and phones lines may also be affected. 

Access to health and wellbeing services:

1. Storms, flooding, heat, wildfires and coastal erosion can all block roads and affect public transport. 
2. Emergency service access: Ambulances and other emergency services may not be able to reach people. Similarly, people may not be able to reach hospitals. 
3. Caring and community services: Care staff may not be able to get to people’s homes. Similarly, people may not be able to get to community services and events. 
4. Getting to appointments: People may not be able to get to health appointments. 

Impacts on health services:

1. Increased demand: More people seek help from hospitals and care services (e.g. because of heat-related conditions in summer, and/or from injuries caused by flooding in winter). 
2. Impacts on staff: Health and care staff may themselves be suffering from the effects of heat (e.g. lack of sleep, poor concentration) and other climate impacts (e.g. they may not be able to get to work due to transport disruption). 
3. Costs and provision: Climate change can increase the costs of running public- and community- services (e.g. higher electricity bills), which may affect which/how many services they can provide. 
4. Medical equipment: Medical equipment (at home and at medical facilities) can be affected by power outages and heat. 

Who is affected:

1. Everyone: Most of these impacts could affect anyone and everyone. 
2. People most at risk: Some people may be more at risk of certain impacts (e.g. people with some existing physical or mental health conditions or disabilities, the young and the elderly, outdoor workers, people living in high flood-risk areas, people living in poorly insulated housing, homeless people etc). Cooling systems like air conditioning are expensive and are unlikely to be affordable for everyone. 

Examples of solutions and potential improvements:

1. Cool public spaces: Give people cool places to go to during heatwaves by increasing the number of plants and trees in built up areas, and by setting up cool spaces in public buildings. 
2. Awareness about staying safe in the heat: Run public campaigns to help people stay safe in the heat. Train health and care staff to spot and treat heat-related illnesses. 
3. Reduce flood risk: Put in place measures that reduce flood risk. These could be nature-based measures (e.g. using nature to hold up or absorb water) or hard-engineering (like permeable paving and flood walls). 
4. Cooler hospitals and care homes: Make hospitals and care homes cooler with better ventilation. Some heat pumps can also be used for cooling in hot conditions. 
5. Mental health support: Offer mental health support to people affected by flooding. 

Transport and utilities

All journeys could be affected by disruption to transport; for example, commutes, school runs, travel to appointments, online/food deliveries and supply chain deliveries to businesses. Public services (e.g. schools), venues and businesses may need to close if staff cannot reach them. 

Transport: 

1. Flooding and storm damage: Floods, storms and storm surges (abnormal rises in sea levels caused by storms) can block, wash away or damage roads and railways, causing delays or entirely closing them for periods of time. 
2. Heat and wildfires: Long periods of heat can cause roads and railways to buckle or degrade, causing safety issues and meaning they need to close for repairs. Wildfires can also temporarily close roads. 
3. Bridges: Floods, storms and storm surges can wash away or damage bridges, causing delays or entirely closing them for periods of time. Bridges are very expensive to repair. 
4. Ground subsidence: Prolonged and extreme rainfall can weaken the ground and make it move. This can damage roads and railways and pose a danger to people travelling. 
5. Coastal erosion: The wearing away of the coastline can permanently close roads and railways as the land becomes unstable (and therefore unsafe) or falls into the sea. 

Sewage and waste:

1. Sewage leaks and overflows: Large amounts of water caused by prolonged heavy rain or flooding can be too much for the sewers, leading them to leak and overflow into the streets, waterways and environment, causing health risks for humans and polluting the environment. 
2. Waste collection services: Waste services (e.g. bin collections) may be delayed or suspended if extreme weather closes roads, landfills and/or recycling centres. The build-up of rubbish is unhygienic, potentially leading to more pests in the area which can spread diseases. 
3. Waste decomposition: Extreme weather, especially extreme heat, can cause waste to rot faster. This can make delays to waste collection services more of a problem. 
4. Landfill sites: Coastal erosion wears away the land. This can result in current or former landfill sites near the coast releasing waste into the sea. This is already happening at the disused landfill site at East Beach in West Dorset, for example. 

Water:

1. Water supply: Climate change will lead to less rainfall in the summer, which will reduce the amount of water available for households and businesses. This could lead to restrictions on water supply. 
2. Water quality: Climate change could impact access to clean water by increasing the risk of contamination of drinking water (e.g. if flooding overwhelms water treatment facilities). 

Power (electricity) and communications (telephone, internet):

1. Power outages: Damage to power lines, underground cables, substations, and other energy infrastructure can cause power outages. 
2. Phone lines: Damage to phone lines and telecommunications infrastructure can disrupt phone lines and mobile phone signals. 
3. Internet: Damage to internet towers and infrastructure can lead to internet outages. 
4. Overheating electrical devices: Equipment (like internet routers) may overheat and stop working during very hot weather 
5. Demand: Electricity networks can become strained during heatwaves, because air conditioning and cooling systems use a lot of electricity. This could result in power outages or rising electricity bills if there is not enough electricity to go round. 

Who is affected:

1. Everyone: Most of these impacts could affect anyone and everyone. 
2. People most at risk: Some people may be more at risk of certain impacts. For example, people who live in rural areas are more likely to be cut off by damage to roads and power / communication lines. Some people, for example those who live alone or are vulnerable (e.g. domestic abuse victims, young people, people with certain mental or physical health conditions or disabilities), may be worse affected by isolation and/or power and communication outages. 

Examples of solutions and potential improvements:

1. Reduce flood risk: Put in place measures that reduce flood risk. These could be nature-based measures (e.g. using nature to hold up or absorb water) or hard-engineering (like permeable paving and flood walls). 
2. Support local and community energy: Encourage individuals and communities to have their own energy supplies (e.g. solar panels) so that they are less reliant on overstressed networks during heatwaves. 
3. Upgrade the energy grid: The energy grid connects where energy is created, such as power stations and wind turbines, to where it is used, such as homes and businesses. It could be upgraded so it can handle increased electricity demand in hot weather, and to integrate renewable cooling technologies to make sure the grid itself does not overheat. 
4. Elevate and waterproof key infrastructure: Elevate (i.e. raise higher off the floor) and waterproof key infrastructure like electricity substations and telecom hubs. 
5. Ask residents to help: Encourage residents to report outages and support neighbours with backup communication plans. 

Buildings and public spaces 

Flooding: 

1. Flooding is one of the biggest climate risks in the UK, already affecting nearly 2 million people—and that number could double by the 2050s. Flooding can occur from rivers overflowing, excess surface water (from heavy rainfall) and coastal storm surges (abnormal rises in sea levels caused by storms). 
2. Homes: People’s homes and gardens could flood. They may lose sentimental items, furniture, carpets, clothes etc. In some cases extensive damage may mean needing to live elsewhere for a period of time. Some may be left homeless if they are not insured or if landlords serve eviction notices. Flooding and the clean-up that follows can be immensely stressful. 
3. Businesses and workplaces: Businesses can flood in the same way as homes. Again, this can be immensely stressful for their owners and employees because of, for example, damage to property and stock, and business interruption. It can also have knock on effects on, for example, on supply chains and customers. 
4. Cultural and community centres: Cultural and community centres could flood, with similar impacts to the above as well as cancelled events. As with everyone affected by flooding, these venues may also have high insurance premiums in future. 
5. Schools and public services: Schools and public service buildings can flood. This could result, for example, in temporary school closures or amended school timetables. 
6. Outdoor spaces: Flooding can make parks and nature areas inaccessible or unsafe for people to visit. 

Overheating:

1. Hotter summers and heatwaves are becoming more common in the UK, putting people’s health at risk. Heat-related deaths could triple by the 2050s, especially as many homes already get too hot—even when it’s not a heatwave. 
2. Homes: If homes are too hot, then people may find it difficult to fall asleep and have reduced sleep quality. People who are at home for longer (e.g. work from home, retired, young parent) may be uncomfortable or unsafe, depending on their health, whether they know how to / are able to cool themselves down, and how hot their home is. 
3. Schools, public services and workplaces: High temperatures and lack of ventilation may cause schools and workplaces to overheat, impacting how well people can concentrate at work, school, and during exams. 
4. Outdoor spaces: A lack of shade in gardens, playgrounds, parks and public spaces make them too hot, risking people’s health and limiting how much they can go outside. 
5. Summer and winter energy demand: As winters get warmer, homes will need less heating, which could help reduce winter fuel poverty. But hotter summers may mean more people need cooling, and some might struggle to afford it - leading to a new kind of ‘summer fuel poverty’ . 

The coast and coastal erosion: 

1. Land loss and relocation: As the coast wears away, some land, homes, and public buildings/spaces will ultimately become unsafe and then fall into the sea. Dorset will face questions about how to relocate relevant people, communities and public assets (e.g. toilets, car parks, beach access, community centres). 
2. Sea level rise & storms: As the sea level rises and weather gets stormier, there is a higher risk of buildings damaged by the sea, waves and storms. Coastal homes, business, public buildings and spaces, and cultural heritage sites could all be at risk of flooding and damage.

Other impacts:

1. Storm damage: Buildings and public spaces can be damaged by storms. For example, high winds can damage roofs, cause trees to fall on buildings and public spaces, and pick up and hurl other debris. This can affect all types of building. 
2. Damage to building fabric: Climate change can damage homes as well as affect the people living in them. Problems like damp, cracks, and structural damage from storms or droughts can harm health and be expensive to fix. 
3. Lift failures: Lifts in buildings can fail because of power outages. This particularly affects those who cannot use the stairs, have young children in pushchairs/prams, or who are moving heavy goods for example. 

Who is affected:

1. Everyone: Most of these impacts could affect anyone and everyone. 
2. People most at risk: Some people may be more at risk of certain impacts. For example, people who live by the coast, people who live or work in areas with higher flood risk, people living in poorly insulated homes, people who are more vulnerable (e.g. young people, people with certain mental or physical health conditions or disabilities). 

Examples of solutions and potential improvements:

1. Reduce flood risk: Put in place measures that reduce flood risk. These could be nature-based measures (e.g. using nature to hold up or absorb water) or hard-engineering (like permeable paving and flood walls). 
2. Ensure new buildings are built to cope: Ensure new homes, buildings and public spaces are built to be cooler in the heat, for example with lots of shade, green roofs, and reflective materials. 
3. Awareness about staying safe in the heat: Run public campaigns to help people stay safe in the heat, at home and outdoors. Train health and care staff to spot and treat heat-related illnesses. 
4. Plants and trees: Plant, or encourage communities to plant, trees and greenery to cool streets and public areas. 
5. Improving existing buildings: Encourage landlords and homeowners to adapt their home (e.g. adding insulation, shade, flood protection measures).  
6. Flood awareness campaigns: Run public campaigns to get people to check the risk of flooding where they live or work, sign up to flood alerts, make sure they are insured, and understand how to protect their properties. 
7. Financial support: Provide financial support to help people and small businesses prepare for floods and/or to cover costs if they are flooded. 
8. Work with communities at high risk of flooding: Support local groups to maintain flood defences and report issues like blocked drains. Work with communities to develop community flood plans (i.e. plans for what to do when there’s a flood alert or flood, and who does what).  

Nature

Species and habitat loss:

1. Climate change makes it harder for animals and plants to survive 
2. Habitat loss on land: Plants and animals all have natural environments where they usually live – their habitats. These can be affected by extreme weather, like being washed away or flooded by heavy rainfall, or burnt by wildfires. They can also be lost gradually through changing conditions, like warmer temperatures causing lower water levels in rivers. This could mean there is less food, water, shelter, and shade, which means species have to compete more for what’s left. 
3. Habitat loss offshore: The sea is getting warmer and more acidic because of climate change. Sea animals in UK waters are not used to these changes. This can affect how they eat, breed, and migrate. 
4. Invasive Species: Climate change can make life harder for UK plants and animals. But it may help non-native species that don’t belong here. These new species could take over and push native ones out. 
5. Habitat fragmentation: Flood walls and other measures put in place to help protect people from climate change can break up natural habitats, making it harder for species to move and survive. 
6. Habitat disturbance: Roads, railways, and power cables may need more repairs because of climate damage. Fixing them means people go into wild areas, which can disturb animals and plants living there. 
7. Food chain impacts: If some plants and animals like insects or shellfish disappear, the animals that eat them will struggle too. If pollinators like bees decline, plants that need them may also be affected. 
8. Disease: Species become more vulnerable to disease when they cannot access the food, water and shelter they need. Diseases also spread more easily in stagnant floodwater. And warmer temperatures may lead to more pests thriving in the UK that previously struggled with the colder climate. 
9. Reproduction: Changing weather conditions can make it harder for plants and animals to reproduce. Floods can damage nesting places, and heat can dry out eggs or harm newborns. 
10. Conservation: It will cost more to protect nature as climate change gets worse. Floods and wildfires will happen more often. There may not be enough money to help. Bad weather can also stop people from being able to do conservation work. 
11. Coastal erosion: can reduce the amount of natural habitat (like saltmarshes, sand dunes, and mudflats) available for coastal wildlife and plants. There may be even more habitat loss if humans build coastal defences, such as sea walls, to protect us from coastal erosion. 
12. Landscape loss: Climate change can permanently damage and change large areas of land. Hot weather and drought dry out peat bogs and heathlands, wildfires destroy wide areas of land, and coastal erosion reshapes shorelines. 

Impact on humans:

1. Climate change will reduce nature’s ability to give us what we need to survive and thrive 
2. Food, water and pollution: Nature plays a key role in providing us with clean air, clean water and the food we eat. As nature declines, it will be less able to play this role. 
3. Economy: Farming, fishing and tourism are vital to Dorset’s economy. They all rely on the natural world in different ways. Climate change will affect these industries and the livelihoods of the people who rely on them. 
4. Wellbeing: Access to green spaces and blue-green spaces (those that also include water) are proven to increase our wellbeing. Lots of people enjoy watching birds and wildlife, or taking part in outdoor activities like hiking, dog walking, and sports. But as plants and animals become rarer, these spaces and experiences may become harder to access. Entire habitats, such as saltwater marshes, could even disappear. 
5. Identity and culture: The natural landscapes in which we live and the activities they allow us to enjoy can form key parts of our identities and culture. We can feel lost and adrift without them. 
6. Learning how to interact with non-native species: Our changing climate will attract new creatures to our shores. We will need to learn how to interact with these new species. 
7. Pollinators: Many crops and gardens are dependent on pollinators, such as bees, butterflies and beetles. The effects of climate change on their habitats is reducing their populations, effecting how our crops, gardens and green spaces are pollinated. 

Nature-based solutions:

1. Climate change negatively affects the natural world. But we can also help nature and ourselves by choosing natural ways to adapt to our changing climate 
2. Natural flood management: There are lots of natural approaches to reducing flooding, like restoring natural buffers to absorb excess water or installing sustainable drainage systems to store and slow water runoff. Many of these measures also create or protect outdoor spaces for humans to enjoy and improve water quality by preventing floodwater from reaching our water supply. 
3. Shade and cooling: Restoring wetlands and woodlands, and adding more green spaces in towns and cities, can create more shade and help cool the air. This makes outdoor areas more comfortable and helps protect people from extreme heat. 
4. Carbon sequestration: Natural habitats like forests, peatland and seagrass remove greenhouse gases from the air. Improving and expanding these areas can help reduce the amount of carbon in our atmosphere and slow the effects of climate change. 
5. Air quality: Air quality is worsened by hotter and drier weather. Trees and vegetation can be used to improve air quality by absorbing air pollutants and releasing clean air into the atmosphere. 
6. Soil health: Climate change is affecting weather patterns, which can damage soil and make it harder to grow food. Adding trees and shrubs alongside to farmland can help protect and improve soil health. This also creates more space for pollinators and other wildlife to thrive. 

Solutions and potential improvements:

1. Nature corridors: Nature corridors are paths that connect fragmented habitats, like a bridge connecting two forests over a busy road or hedgerows over fields. More corridors for wildlife to move from one area to another can improve their access to food, water, shelter and breeding partners. 
2. Restoring and connecting wetlands: Water ecosystems can be improved by reconnecting rivers to floodplains, restoring wetlands, and creating river buffers. Sustainable farming, better wastewater treatment, and using sustainable drainage systems can also help. 
3. Green Infrastructure: Green infrastructure - like parks, green roofs, permeable pavements and rain gardens - helps provide more space for nature in towns and cities. It also helps cool urban areas and reduce flooding. 
4. Incentivising land managers: Lots of the natural environment is owned or managed by private individuals and businesses. We can work with land managers, advising them on sustainable practises and incentivising them to improve their land for nature. 
5. Citizen science and volunteering: Local people can help by monitoring things like wildlife, water quality or flood impacts, and by volunteering for conservation projects. 

Food and land use

Food:

1. Food supply: Floods, storms, and heatwaves can block roads and damage infrastructure, making it harder for shops and supermarkets to receive deliveries. This can lead to empty shelves and fewer food options. Further up the supply chain, farms, factories, and global trade routes are also affected, leading to shortages and less reliable access to diverse foods. This could lead to an increase in the cost of food and restrict access to certain foods entirely. 
2. Food waste: Extreme weather like heatwaves and floods can spoil crops before they’re harvested. It can also disrupt transport and storage, meaning food may not reach shops in a good condition. Once in stores or at home, food may go off more quickly if it has taken longer to arrive or hasn’t been kept in the right conditions. 
3. Food safety: Warmer weather can bring more pests and germs that spoil food during farming, storage, and transport. Hot temperatures can also affect fridges and hygiene, making food go bad faster and helping bacteria grow. 

Farming: 

1. Animal welfare: Wet conditions increase the risk of waterborne diseases among livestock. Hot weather causes heat stress, which can harm animals - especially pigs and poultry. Flooding also poses a risk to the safety of farm animals. 
2. Crops: Crops could be damaged or lost due to water logging, floods, drought and wildfires, reducing farmers’ income. The timing of flowering will also be disrupted by rising temperatures and shifting seasonal patterns, threatening the survival and effectiveness of key pollinators. 
3. Transport: Farm roads and tracks may become impassable. Wider transport disruption may also make it hard for agricultural support workers and vets to get to where they need to be. Transport disruption could create delays in transporting goods to market. For example, dairies rely on a daily collection of milk. Transport blockages could also affect waste collection, which could pose health risks. 
4. Damage to farm infrastructure and machinery: Extreme weather could damage barns, storage and waste facilities. Machinery may break down more often, for example overheating during the hottest hours of the day. 
5. Power and communications: Storms and flood can damage power lines and communication towers, which may stop phones and the internet from working. Energy systems and data centres could also be affected, causing power cuts and service problems. This is a big issue for modern farming equipment, which often needs satellite or internet connections to work properly. 
6. Waste management: High intensity rainfall can overwhelm farm drainage systems, leading to runoff, flooding and contamination of water sources. Grey water, such as wastewater from cleaning equipment or livestock areas, must be managed separately to avoid polluting nearby land or watercourses. 
7. Costs: Farmers may face rising costs for things like insulating buildings, veterinary care, repairs, energy (especially cooling), insurance, animal feed, and water for irrigation. These costs add pressure to already stretched budgets. 
8. Productivity: It may be hard or impossible to work outdoors during extreme weather, affecting farmers’ health and how much work they are able to get done. 

Fishing, shell fishing, aquaculture and farmed fishing:

1. Species health and survival: Rising water temperatures and changing salt levels increase stress and disease in fish and shellfish. Lower oxygen levels in warmer waters can also reduce survival rates and growth. 
2. Habitat disruption: Climate change alters marine and freshwater ecosystems. Some commercially valuable species may migrate away or decline, affecting catch volumes and aquaculture viability. 
3. Infrastructure vulnerability: Storms, flooding, and sea level rise can damage fishing vessels, aquaculture pens, harbours, and processing facilities. Warmer conditions may also accelerate wear and corrosion of equipment 
4. Operational disruption: Extreme weather can reduce safe fishing days and disrupt aquaculture operations. It can also cause transport delays and communication breakdowns, affecting supply chains and market access. 
5. Economic pressure: Fishing and aquaculture businesses may face rising costs for disease control, equipment maintenance, insurance, and energy - especially for cooling. Preventative measures like relocating farms or upgrading infrastructure will add further financial strain. 
6. Waste and pollution risks: Higher temperatures accelerate spoilage and increase organic waste, making disposal harder and raising the risk of pollution in rivers and seas. 
7. Workforce and productivity: Extreme conditions can affect worker safety and reduce how much they can get done, especially in outdoor or vessel-based operations. 
8. Livelihoods and community impact: Reduced catches, rising costs, and damaged infrastructure threaten the profitability of fishing and aquaculture, putting jobs and coastal economies at risk. 

Solutions and potential improvements:

1. Create local food networks and encourage local buying: Build stronger local food networks to help connect people with nearby producers. This will make it easier for people to access fresh food – especially during transport and supply disruptions caused by extreme weather. 
2. Community gardens: Support the growth of community gardens and allotments to provide people with access to locally grown food, reducing reliance on supply chains. 
3. Protect farmland: Improve land drainage and flood plain management to help protect farmland. And improve soil quality to help retain water during droughts. 
4. Provide training for farmers: Provide farmers with training, for example in effective soil management and crop choices. 
5. Encourage farmers to make changes: For example, encourage farmers to shift to drought resistant crops and improve irrigation. 

Economy

General impacts:

1. Increased costs to business and people: Climate change brings extra costs for businesses – like higher insurance premiums, bigger energy bills for cooling in summer, and the expenses of protecting buildings and operations from climate impacts. People living in Dorset face many of these costs too, which may leave them with less money to spend in the local economy. 
2. Loss of income for businesses and people: Climate change can reduce business income in many ways – such as supply chain disruptions, delivery delays, closures caused by extreme weather, power outages, and lower productivity (for example, when staff are affected by heat or can’t get to work). People’s income may also fall, especially if seasonal jobs are lost. When this happens, customers may have less money to spend, which affects the wider economy. 
3. Farming, fishing, shell fishing, aquaculture and coastal businesses: Some of Dorset’s key industries are likely to be particularly affected by climate change. This is true of the farming and fisheries sectors, which together employ around 13,000 people. Coastal businesses may be particularly affected, with some having to consider relocation due to coastal erosion or more frequent storms.  
4. Investment and insurance for business growth: Climate change is expected to increase risks to the UK’s financial stability. In the long term this could affect insurance which may no longer cover many losses, making it harder for businesses to get insurance or secure funding for growth.  
5. Risks to business from water scarcity: Businesses in England use around 1 billion litres of water every day for things like cooling, cleaning, and making products. Right now, water shortages are rare, but the risk of water scarcity could rise a lot over the next 30 years, affecting both public water supplies and direct use from rivers and other sources. 

Tourism:

1. Tourism is a major part of Dorset’s economy. Climate change could harm the sector in the long term, although warmer weather might bring short-term benefits. Coastal business is particularly vulnerable to changes in tourism behaviours. 
2. Infrastructure damage: Damage to roads and rail could make it harder for tourists to get to Dorset and visitor locations - especially to parts of the coast where erosion may make some roads unsafe. Many visitor sites may also face temporary closures due to heat, flooding, or strong winds. 
3. Changes in visitor behaviour: Hotter summers and more storms may affect how many people visit indoor or outdoor tourist spots. This could affect how much money local tourism businesses make. 
4. Extreme weather: Extreme heat may reduce the number of people visiting Dorset in what is normally peak tourist season. This would affect local businesses reliant on this tourist season and could have a knock-on effect on seasonal jobs. Flooding, storms and rainfall may also put off visitors at other times of year. 
5. Reduced nature-based tourism: Loss of natural landscapes and wildlife may mean fewer nature-seeking tourists choose to visit Dorset. 
6. Increased tourism in coastal areas: Hotter summers may attract more visitors to coastal areas. This could benefit local tourism businesses, but also lead to overcrowding at key locations and increase pressure on local services. 

Solutions and potential improvements:

1. Reduce flood risk: Put in place measures that reduce flood risk. These could be nature-based measures (like using nature to hold up or absorb water) or hard-engineering (like permeable paving and flood walls). 
2. Flood awareness campaigns: Encourage people to check if their home or workplace could flood, sign up for flood alerts, make sure they have insurance, and learn how to protect their property. Small businesses could also get advice that is tailored to suit their needs. 
3. Financial support: Provide financial support to help small businesses prepare for floods and to cover costs if they are flooded. 
4. Business advice around heat: Help small businesses plan for heatwaves so they can keep running smoothly. 
5. Make buildings more heat resilient: Help business owners make their buildings more resilient to hot weather. Ensure new buildings are designed to stay cool. 
6. Local supply chains: Encourage businesses to use local suppliers, which can reduce the impact of transport disruptions and make supply chains more resilient. 
7. Adapt tourism offer: Adapt tourism for hotter weather, creating shaded areas and heat-friendly activities. 

During its second meeting, panel members created a shortlist of the sixteen climate impacts that were of greatest concern to them in relation to Dorset. They then voted to narrow down this list further. Each panel member was able to vote for three topics. 

The results show which climate impacts were of highest concern to the panel. The facilitators also used the results to determine the focus of panel meetings three and four. 

For a detailed description of the process that led up to the vote, and the learning sessions that took place before it, please see page 20. 
 

Topics chosen as priorities

Topic	Votes
New buildings not being suitable (in terms of how and where they are built)	11
Food supply (including pollinators, crops, loss of viable land and education for farmers as a possible part of the solution)	10
Farmer’s land management (specifically impacts on nature, and river and sea pollution)	9
Sewage overflows and water quality	7
Nature (addressing the fact that human needs are being prioritised at the expense of nature and wildlife)	6
Water scarcity and supply	5

 

Vote results - other topics

Topic	Votes
Lack of skilled workforce for climate change  Caused by: lack of decent job opportunities, cost of housing	2
Emergency Planning Lack of preparation for crisis events (eg flooding and fire emergency response teams)	2
Train cancellations and disruption	2
Air polution (Panel members had heard that air pollution could be made worse by climate change	2
Overheating and human health	1
Flooding of buildings	1
Negative consequences of tourism (mess/cleanup) (**Panel members had heard that climate change could affect tourist numbers, either to increase or decrease them)	1
More demand on health services	1
Invasive species	1
Lack of public awareness and education Of climate impacts and what we can do.	1

 

Scenario Examples
 

Example one:

A coastal community in Dorset is considering raising roads (building up the embankments around them to make them higher) and improving drainage to prevent future flooding. The changes would provide greater protection for the community. However, the council would need to pay for the changes and they would be costly. 
This would impact funding for other council services, resulting in potentially higher taxes and reduced services for residents across Dorset. Should the council pay for the changes. Why? Why not?

Example two:

A village is at risk of flooding. One option is to build a concrete flood wall, but this would interfere with the natural ecosystem for marine wildlife. Another option is to restore a wetland upstream, which would reduce flooding but require relocating farmland and compensating affected residents and businesses. What should we do? Why?

Example three:

Dorset’s natural landscapes and characteristic buildings have made it a charming place to both live and visit. However, many listed buildings are vulnerable to extreme weather, and making them climate-ready could significantly change their character or break planning rules. Should planning rules be relaxed to allow climate adaptations, or should heritage preservation take precedence? Why?

Example four:

In order to help older homes cope with extreme temperatures, public funds have been set aside to insulate properties. Should this funding be used for a bigger impact in a smaller pool of properties (such as social houses already under the care of the local authority), or for a smaller impact in a wider pool of properties, such as all Dorset residents? Why?

Example five:

Heathlands are more likely to catch fire during periods of extreme heat. Often, wildfires are started by people visiting heathlands and accidentally leaving something that catches fire. We could restrict access to our green spaces, such as heathlands, to limit wildfires. Alternatively we could allow access and inform visitors of what (not) to do to prevent wildfires. This second approach is likely to result in more wildfires than if we restricted access. What should we do? Why?. 

Example six:

A landowner’s riverbank regularly floods, damaging nearby homes and infrastructure across the village. The council could intervene and carry out work to reduce the flood risk,  improving safety for the wider community. However, this would involve using public funds to manage privately owned land. Should the council intervene and do the work? Why? Why not?

Example seven:

To be prepared for climate impacts like extreme heat, new homes in Dorset must be built to high sustainability standards. However building homes so that they are ready for climate change may slow down housing development and require higher upfront investment. Should we slow development to meet these standards, or prioritise speed to address housing shortages? Why?

Example eight:

Homes and businesses in an urban area are at risk of flooding. Dorset Council could convert a riverside car park into a green space with permeable surfaces. This would reduce the risk of flooding by improving drainage, and help wildlife and plants. But it would also significantly reduce parking for local businesses and residents. Should the council convert the car park or not? Why?

In order to maximise time in panel sessions, we sent surveys to panel members by email. This meant that in practice not all panel members completed the surveys, limiting the conclusions that can be drawn from them.

The number of panel members completing the surveys were as follows: 

• before session one: 18 
• after session two: 14
• after session four: 12
   

Overall, how would you rate your experience of this weekend's panel meetings? (for the final session, this was the Dorset Citizens' Climate Panel)

Answer options	After meeting 2	After meeting 3	After meeting 4
1(poor)	0%	0%	0%
2	0%	0%	0%
3	0%	17%	8%
4	71%	33%	33%
5 (excellent)	29%	50%	58%
Average answer:	4.2	4.3	4.5

 

To what extent, if at all, do you agree with the following statement? I understand the purpose of this citizen engagement project

Answer options	Before	After meeting 2	After meeting 4
Strongly disagree	0%	0%	0%
Tend to disagree	0%	0%	0%
Neither agree nor disagree	0%	0%	0%
Tend to agree	44%	21%	0%
Strongly agree	56%	79%	100%

 

I am confident that my contributions to this process will be used by local authority decision-makers.

Answer options	Before the panel	After the panel
Strongly disagree	6%	0%
Tend to disagree	0%	8%
Neither agree nor disagree	50%	17%
Tend to agree	22%	33%
Strongly agree	22%	42%

 

I know what my local authority is doing to combat climate change/meet net zero

Answer options	Before the panel	After the panel
Strongly disagree	17%	0%
Tend to disagree	28%	0%
Neither agree nor disagree	28%	25%
Tend to agree	22%	42%
Strongly agree	6%	33%

 

How worried, if at all, are you about climate change?

Answer options	Before the panel	After the panel
Very worried	44%	17%
Slightly worried	39%	66%
Not very worried	17%	17%
Not worried at all	0%	0%
I don't know	0%	0%

 

To what extent do you feel you understand how climate change could affect your local community?

Answer options	Before the panel	After the panel
To great extent	17%	42%
Somewhat	72%	58%
Very little	11%	0%
Not at all	0%	0%

 

Do you believe you personally have a role to play in addressing the climate impacts affecting your community?

Answer options	Before the panel	After the panel
Yes definitely	28%	58%
Yes probably	39%	33%
Not sure	28%	8%
Probably not	6%	0%
Definitely not	0%	0%

Written by Frances Osborne and Sarah Allan in December 2025 on behalf of Involve for Dorset Council. 

Involve are the UK's public participation charity, with a mission to put people at the heart of decision-making.
www.involve.org.uk