Let’s face it. Usually, the most exciting part of the British summer is the brief relief from the lukewarm rain that makes a couple of hours at the seaside look so enticing. But the bonus of that has always been that we’ve been able to keep calm and carry when others bask in the heat. So what do we do when we’re faced with similar conditions?

The recent heatwave has shown us the extreme reaches of the summer weather abroad could become more mainstream here. There had never been a red weather warning for heat in UK history before lockdown. Now, there’s been two in the last four years! While some of our European counterparts are well versed in operating in furnace-like conditions, we rarely have to deal with it here. But one business in Abergavenny offered a glimpse into what working life could look like through summer here in years to come when they altered their opening hours from Monday to Thursday.

Shepherd’s, which is widely recognised as one of the best ice cream shops in the UK, closed during the middle of the day for four days last week in order to protect its staff. They’ve been doing things the ‘Italian way’.

If anything stops in Britain usually, it’s the rain halting play during the afternoon session at the cricket. But for the majority of folk at work, the only reprieve they would get would be their 30 minute lunch break. 9-5, right? During the summer in Italy, as in other European countries, the day is broken up into early morning and evening spells to avoid the middle of the day, when the sun is at its strongest.

That’s exactly what the store on Market Street has been doing - opening in the morning at 10am for three hours, before closing again at 1pm. It then stays closed until 4pm to encourage everyone to protect themselves before opening again until 7pm. The Spanish would just say they’re off for a siesta, the Greeks finish their office days in the early afternoon and the French have their own tradition - Les Grandes Vacances - where the country divides its summer holidays into two main groups: the Juilletistes (who take their leave in July) and the Aoûtiens (who holiday in August). It’s normal in many places.

Meanwhile, back in Blighty, we’ve just plodded on through the day because we could do so quite comfortably. But that ‘business as usual’ attitude seems to disappear when we face similar conditions. On the rare occasion it happens, the country is sent into meltdown and nobody is quite sure how to react. It would appear there is plenty to learn from the European way of life, and perhaps businesses here are waking up to the fact their patterns might have to change as a matter of routine rather than a one-off reaction.

Others around town have said they will be operating reduced menus, while offices, independent shops and those working outdoors have scaled back their operations.

So are the school closures, rail cancellations and changes to business hours just a knee-jerk reaction, or is slowing down the pace of life the right call when temperatures climb?