City Hall has issued a high air pollution alert for London, Bromley included, for Tuesday 10 November. Wood smoke is a quarter of the borough's fine particles.

Air pollution across London, Bromley included, is forecast to reach “high” levels on Tuesday 10 November. The Mayor of London has issued an alert asking anyone vulnerable to look after themselves and everyone else to burn and drive less. It is the fourth high pollution alert in the capital this year, City Hall said on Monday.

The problem is fine particles, and in Bromley that points straight at the living room. The council’s own draft air quality plan, published in September, puts around a quarter of the borough’s PM2.5 down to wood burning in homes, second only to road traffic (our report on the plan).

City Hall said dense fog and very light winds let particle pollution build up over the weekend, and it was still hanging over the city on Monday morning. Smoke from Bonfire Night and Diwali fireworks, and from wood burning, “is likely to have contributed”.

Who should take care

Forecasters at Imperial College London advised the Mayor to issue the alert. Their forecasts are checked against airTEXT, the Met Office and London Air before an alert goes out.

The “moderate” and “high” thresholds come from Defra’s national Daily Air Quality Index. City Hall said both are well above the World Health Organization’s guideline values and mark the levels at which short-term health effects may occur, “particularly for people with pre-existing conditions such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).”

Since 2024 the alerts have also gone to NHS GPs and emergency department consultants, and City Hall said the details of this one have been shared with GPs and emergency departments across London so they can advise vulnerable patients. Schools and the London boroughs, Bromley Council among them, are sent the alert too, and it appears on every bus stop countdown sign in London and on the Underground.

Bromley High Street with shops, pedestrians and a few parked cars under a cloudy sky
Bromley High Street, part of the town centre Air Quality Focus Area. Photo: Bromley High Street by Mike Pennington (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons

The Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy, Mete Coban, said: “Toxic air is responsible for thousands of premature deaths in London each year, which is why the Mayor has done everything in his power to tackle it, which includes launching the world’s largest clean air zone.

“It is really important we all do our bit to protect those who are most vulnerable as we continue working to build a safer and greener London for all.”

What City Hall is asking

The Mayor’s office asks Londoners to:

  • walk, cycle and use public transport more, and avoid the busiest roads when you can
  • drive less, and when you do drive, car share if you can, switch the engine off when you are not moving and keep the vehicle well maintained
  • compost garden waste or take it to a refuse centre rather than burning it
  • avoid unnecessary burning at home, such as a wood burner or open fire

City Hall also points out that particle pollution does not stop at borders. Concentrations depend heavily on the weather, on background levels and on sources outside London, including on the continent, as well as on local emissions.

Why Bromley’s particles have stopped falling

Bromley’s draft Air Quality Action Plan 2027 to 2031 records a split. Nitrogen dioxide, mostly from exhausts, has fallen by 46.7% since 2016. PM2.5, the finest particles and the kind behind Tuesday’s alert, has plateaued since 2020 and in 2025 “returned to levels observed prior to 2020”. The plan projects the borough will still be above the WHO guideline for PM2.5 in 2030.

Using the 2025 London Atmospheric Emissions Inventory, the plan gives road transport about 34% of Bromley’s PM2.5 and domestic wood burning about 25%: stoves, open fires and other solid fuel appliances in homes. The plan’s two pollution hotspots are the town centre (Tweedy Road, the High Street and Widmore Road) and Croydon Road around Elmers End.

What it means for you

  • If you or someone you care for has asthma or COPD, City Hall’s message is to look after yourselves on Tuesday; GP practices have been sent the details of this alert.
  • If you have a wood burner or open fire you do not need for heat, Tuesday is a day to leave it unlit.
  • Garden leaves should not go on a bonfire. Waldo Road tip stays shut until it reopens, booking only, on 23 November, the council’s site page said on 9 November. Until then Churchfields Road in Beckenham takes garden waste free by booking, and Norman Park runs a Saturday garden waste site until 28 November; our leaves guide has the details.
  • City Hall explains how its alerts and forecasts work on its air pollution monitoring and forecasting page.

Sources