In July 2022, a national emergency was declared in the United Kingdom (UK) following the Met Office’s first-ever red extreme heat warning. As temperatures reached 40.3 °C, thousands of excess deaths were recorded. Based on 38 expert interviews and 4 focus groups with key decision-makers and stakeholders working on the frontline of the 2022 UK heatwaves, we found that the country is not prepared for extreme heat because: (1) policies and planning prioritise coping over resilience; (2) insufficient preventative actions were taken; and (3) a range of barriers hinder effective short and longer-term measures. We argue that whilst the UK coped with the heatwaves in 2022, it lacks the resilience needed to deal with persistent and prolonged heat events.