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British Airways has faced a “difficult” summer of flying, with nearly half its flights hit by the air traffic control delays that have dogged European aviation, senior bosses have told staff.

The latest disruption to hit the airline came this week, when BA was forced to cancel 59 flights to and from London’s Heathrow airport on Thursday and Friday because of air traffic control delays caused by bad weather. Its other flights from the airport suffered lengthy delays.

Writing to staff on Friday morning in an email sent to reassure staff after one of BA’s “toughest [recent] days”, two of the airline’s senior executives said the disruption added to a frustrating period for the airline.

“Sadly, last night follows what has been a difficult summer for you all, as a result of some of the external challenges we have faced,” René de Groot, chief operating officer, Andy Best, and chief technical officer, wrote in the email seen by the Financial Times.

In all, 42 per cent of BA’s flights this year have been disrupted by air traffic control restrictions, up from 24 per cent in 2019, the last year of flying before the coronavirus pandemic disrupted aviation, they said.

The executives also warned that BA would be forced to “make a number of cancellations” to flights operated by its fleet of Boeing 787 aircraft over the next 10 days because of “continued . . . delays to the delivery of engines and parts from Rolls-Royce”.

Rolls-Royce said it was working with BA and other customers to minimise the impact of limited availability of spares due to supply chain constraints. “Unfortunately, this is an issue affecting the whole aerospace industry,” it said.

Airlines across Europe have complained about disruption from air traffic control all summer, as bad weather, the closure of airspace because of the war in Ukraine and a shortage of controllers have combined to challenge the industry’s resilience.

In the email to staff, BA said it would work with the UK’s National Air Traffic Services (Nats), which manages the country’s airspace to improve resilience.

Nats said restrictions are only applied for safety reasons, and it would work with BA “to minimise disruption during challenging operational days”.

BA has also faced years of scrutiny for its poor operational performance since the pandemic, after more than 10,000 staff were cut in 2020.

The carrier has long suffered from creaking technology, operational complexity and exposure to London’s Heathrow airport, which operates at full capacity, and its owner has unveiled a £7bn investment programme to raise standards at the airline.

The air traffic control issues highlight how BA’s senior management are increasingly frustrated that external issues are damaging its reputation.

Sean Doyle, BA chief executive, has prioritised rebuilding the airline’s reputation since he took over at the height of the pandemic in late 2020. The £7bn investment from owner IAG includes new aircraft, lounges, website and app.

Senior bosses at IAG, an airline conglomerate that also owns carriers including Iberia and Aer Lingus, are supportive but have acknowledged the airline needs to improve its reputation.

BA declined to comment.

A SINGLE mum of six was left without heating and hot water for MONTHS but was saved by a little-known grant scheme.

Mandeep, 41, from Birmingham, was left living in the dark ages after her boiler broke down forcing her family to use a kettle every time they wanted showers.

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She spent seven gruelling months using water from the kettle to fill buckets of water so her six girls, aged between two years-old and 17, were clean for school.

The family were also unable to heat their home, spending cold nights in bed with just a duvet to keep warm.

As Mandeep owns her own home, the responsibility fell on her to fix it, but with no cash to afford a new one, she believed she’d have to make do without for good.

National Energy Action charity estimates that 5.6million people just like her across the UK are living in fuel poverty.

Factors such as the cost of living crisis have meant a greater number of households are struggling to heat their homes or find money for repairs.

Mandeep, who is unemployed, said that she did not ask neighbours or friends for support because she felt too proud.

Speaking to The Sun she said: “I would not want any other family to go through what I did.”

“It was really hard for me and my kids to go through all this, [we had] no [hot] water, no heat and were not able to keep warm [or] able to wash.”

It was only when a healthcare worker visited that Mandeep discovered a little-known scheme that could help her out – and she’s urging others to reach out too.

Help was on hand

The mum-of-six was advised to contact the Direct Access to Wellbeing Services Team (DAWS).

It is a new service set up by gas supplier Cadent and the Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Charity.

The pair are offering £2.4million worth of grants to help 100,000 vulnerable healthcare users with financial support over the next two years.

It is currently only available to NHS patients in Birmingham but if the project is successful then it may be rolled out across the wider UK.

And it’s just one example of thousands of little-known schemes across the country that are helping people out.

Households can not apply directly for this support – they need to be referred by their health worker GP, health visitor or nurse.

When the DAWS team receives a referral, an advisor will work through their details in a consultation.

From there, they will know which services they will need support with. This can include:

• Energy efficiency improvements around the home
• White goods like fridges or cookers
• Boiler checks
• Helping people get the benefits they are entitled to
• Support to maximise their income

In some instances, referrals have been actioned within 48 hours but this may not be the case everytime.

Patients and their families can ask about the support by speaking to their health professional.

Mandeep met the criteria to be provided with range of support and was given a new boiler alongside other financial aid totalling around £4,500. That included:

• A slow cooker to make food for £70
• Energy vouchers to heat her home for £70
• A new boiler worth £4k and £120 for the service to be installed
• An electric blanket worth to keep warm
• Food vouchers for shopping worth £100

Mandeep said that after being approved for the scheme she received her boiler within three days and it was also installed in her home free of charge.

It was a weight lifted off her shoulders and has helped transform her family’s life.

She said: “My life is better now..any other family going through this should speak out and not suffer in silence.”

“The DAWS team was amazing and they helped me through the situation”.

How to unlock cash grants

If you are struggling it is worth being aware of online tools which can help you access grants.

For example, Turn2Us has an online tool which checks your elibiglty for over 1,400 grants.

All of the grants do not need to be paid back and the tool will search through the grants and let you know if you qualify.

Each grant is different but they can provide support for a range of different necessities like groceries and even kitchen appliances.

For example, Macmillan Cancer Support offers, one-off grants to people living with cancer who have low incomes and savings. 

The Teaching Staff Trust also offers cash grants to those who work in the education sector and face financial difficulty.

The Sun spoke to one mum who used to scheme and was given £1,000 in vouchers to spend at Amazon and the big supermarkets.

Other grants have specific requirements for spending for example a business grant may need to be spent on business expenses.

How to use the grant search tool

First, go to the Turn2Us website and type in Grant Search.

Then look for what’s available specifically in your area by entering your postcode.

You will be asked to give details about yourself, such as your name and gender.

You can also go into more depth by telling Turn2Us about your current health and employment situation.

Once you’ve found a grant you think you’re eligible for, you can put in an inquiry through Turn2Us.

Other grants and schemes

Energy grants

Many gas and energy suppliers offer grants and schemes for customers who are struggling.

For example, British Gas has a fund open to pre-payment meter and credit customers who have found themselves in debt worth up to £1,700.

The Individual and Families Fund was first set up in 2021 to help households struggling with energy debt.

This scheme’s support is available to British Gas and non-British Gas customers.

However, if your provider is Ovo Energy, E.ON Next, EDF Energy, Scottish Power, Octopus Energy or Utilita it asks your go to them for assistance first.

You can check out your eligibility for the scheme here.

Elsewhere, EDF has a customer support fund which on average wipes £1,250 off customers’ bills. 

It is available to vulnerable customers experiencing hardship. 

To apply, visit EDF’s website and make sure you have details of your account number (find it on your energy bills or EDF emails) and the current debt balance on all EDF accounts you have.

Meanwhile, Octopus Energy offers a range of support, including cash from its Octopus Energy Assist Fund.

It could also include loaning a thermal imagery camera to find heat leaks in your home, which you can fix to reduce energy usage and your bill.

It also conducts home energy visits to discuss how households can reduce their usage and gives out free electric blankets.

Local welfare assistance schemes

Most councils also have local welfare assistance schemes designed to help families in severe financial hardship.

Again, the eligibility criteria varies by council, and how much you can get will depend on your specific circumstances.

Most councils say they will prioritise families who need urgent access to food.

The support you get could be money, vouchers, or referrals to other organisations such as food banks.

Household support fund

You might be able to get help with essential costs from your local council through a programme called the Household Support Fund (HSF).

The funding is designed to help people who are vulnerable or can’t afford to pay for necessities like energy bills, water bills, and food.

Some councils offer food vouchers to families during the school holidays, as well through the scheme.

Eligibility criteria varies by council, so you need to check your local authority’s website to see what’s available and how to apply.

Fuel vouchers

If you’re having difficulty paying your energy bills and use a prepayment meter, or if you use alternative heating sources such as oil, LPG, coal, or wood, you may be eligible for a fuel voucher from your local council.

A fuel voucher gives you credit for your gas and electricity supply without having to pay in advance.

You’ll receive a code in a letter, text message or email which you can use to add the credit.

You can use a fuel voucher at a Post Office, a shop signed up to Payzone or a shop signed up to PayPoint. You’ll need to take the code and a form of ID.

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Paris might be on a high after the Olympics, but the luxury industry is still experiencing a slowdown. And now French prime minister Michel Barnier has stated that in an effort to reduce the country’s widening budget deficit he may introduce tax rises for businesses and the rich, saying “I cannot exclude the wealthiest from the national effort to rectify the situation.”

How this will play out remains to be seen, but luxury brands may need to make a stronger case as to why customers should buy expensive inessential things.

During the first half of Paris Fashion Week it felt like heritage labels were leaning into their history particularly heavily, as well as to their house codes.

After the Chloé show, designer Chemena Kamali discussed the balance between being inspired by the label’s past and ensuring her designs “speak to the new generation.” It’s a juggling act for any designer at a heritage house. Rely too much on the past and you risk becoming a relic. But there is an emotional connection to be made through nostalgia and a sense of authenticity.

When Kamali made her show debut at the Richemont-owned label last February her breezy, cool-girl take on the ’70s was hailed as a sign that boho was back. For her second show, she revisited the decade, saying that “there is a real natural femininity to the 1970s, a lot you can take from this era and make it your own. I ask myself in fittings ‘do I believe this girl? Does it feel right? Does it feel real?’ There is so much fantasy at Chloé but the reality is very important.”

In many shows summer and winter clothes have been indistinguishable, but this collection radiated sunshine with oversized sunglasses, swimsuits — one frilled, one with a flamingo design — jelly shoes and laced flats with shells and fish charms. Kamali said “this is about how summer makes you feel, this moment in the year where we all start disconnecting.”

And so there were knickerbocker trousers, ruffled blouses, little camisole tops and tiered dresses in guipure lace or silk charmeuse, which had a lingerie feel to them. The colours, as Kamali put it, were “sun washed” with apricot, blush, faded mint and lemon, while billowing silk dresses with rolled hems came in a Chloé floral print from the late 1970s. Perhaps this show tipped slightly too much into fantasy — I’m not sure how wearable sheer lace knickerbockers are — but the soft-focus, carefree Chloé world is an appealing one.

Freedom and lightness were also a focus at the Dries Van Noten show, the first since the departure of the label’s namesake founder. Created by the design team in Antwerp, the melange of colours and textures such as a purple striped shirt teamed with fuchsia Bermuda shorts with fil coupé fringe, and matt sequins printed to resemble snakeskin on coats and dresses was in the spirit of Van Noten himself. However it didn’t quite have his special alchemy that made unexpected clashes sing.

Rabanne also combined a free-spirited mood with a strong house identity. Designer Julien Dossena has managed to move away from the space-age aesthetic created by founder Paco Rabanne in the 1960s creating something a bit more hippy luxe and eclectic while keeping the brand’s signature chain mail and metal discs. Watched by singers Cardi B and Camila Cabello, this show featured gold chainmail boots and a mini dress made of metal spheres, but overall it was a mix of oversized tailoring, athleisure and partywear, sometimes all in one outfit. A pale grey blazer over a striped shirt and silver dress felt like a fresh way to do metallics.

There was also a move upmarket via new artisan bags, one of which was made of 18-carat gold discs in collaboration with French jeweller Arthus Bertrand that will cost €250,000.

Statement bags in the shape of fragrance bottles appeared on the catwalk at Balmain, where Olivier Rousteing was marking the recent launch of the brand’s new fragrance line and an upcoming move into beauty. It was certainly literal: shoes had lipstick heels while minidresses with peplums and pointed shoulders featured images of red lips and nails created with hundreds of thousands of beads. Rousteing said he wanted to look back at his “Balmain icons” from his early days at the brand, namely tailoring and sharp tuxedo jackets featuring exaggerated shoulders.

It wasn’t subtle, but Balmain’s customers aren’t looking to whisper their tastes, and the same goes for Schiaparelli, where the collection included matching Zebra print trousers and a jacket with an almost Tudor silhouette and gold buttons.

Rousteing said, “the longevity of me being here is because I kept believing in my own DNA . . . I think the recipe of fashion is not to be trendy, it’s to be you.”

One label with a strong sense of self is Loewe, and the new collection felt on brand without being boring thanks to a mix of luxurious leather pieces, tailoring, sculptural shapes and a splash of quirkiness. In leather there were cape-shaped jackets, ultra roomy trousers and belted macs with the hem curved upwards. Tailored suit trousers were connected to jersey tops with a gold bobble detail and a wide legged navy pinstripe suit looked sharp and easy to wear. On the more experimental front, floral silk dresses stretched over crinoline hoops and trousers covered in (by-product) feathers gave the model the look of a stylish rare-breed chicken. A yellow T-shirt with a print of Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” explored the way in which famous art has almost become low brow through overexposure. Call it fridge-magnet chic.

The Row, too, knows what it stands for. Synonymous with quiet luxury, it’s always impeccably on brand, even down to another ban on phones at shows in favour of pencils and notebooks. Presumably to produce more quiet content.

Wide cotton workwear trousers in shades of white and stone were teamed with simple sleeveless tops with just a twist or drape of the material by way of detailing. Many pieces were roomy — such as a white poplin shirt with raglan sleeves and a poncho parka with a V-shaped back. The Row has a cult following for its flat shoes and this season showcased soft leather ballet slippers, pumps and slides. As ever it was chic, but I was hoping to see more of the eccentric art-collector style hats and humorous touches such as hotel slippers that have featured recently.

This week the US brand opened its first Paris store, shortly after it was revealed that investment funds controlled by the families of Chanel’s Wertheimer brothers and L’Oréal’s Françoise Bettencourt Meyers have bought a minority stake. Unlike some brands which aim to make more of a splash when they have something new on the horizon, The Row’s collection doubled down on what it’s known for, namely very expensive simplicity.

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In this week’s Weekend Essay, Dan Cooper takes a look at the growing trend of football clubs partnering with high-risk CFD trading firms. Are clubs prioritising profit over fans? Should there be better regulation to protect supporters from risky financial products? Dan explores the dark side of the beautiful game and its sponsorship deals.

I have just seen two versions of our gardening future. They are in Essex. One is planted with “future-proof plants”, according to its signboard. The other is billed as a “modern take on a country garden”. They strike me in different ways. Both are at Hyde Hall near Rettendon, Chelmsford, the most easterly of the Royal Horticultural Society’s public gardens.

To my relief I have never gardened in Essex. East of London, it has some fine gardens whose roses thrive in clay, but Essex clay becomes hard after a few sunny days. Hyde Hall is an example, with the complication of ice-cold winds across its hillsides in winter. Nonetheless, for nearly 40 years, beginning in 1955, a garden of 24 acres was built there by Dick and Helen Robinson, who also farmed the surrounding land.

Helen, who died in 2004, was especially famous for her knowledge of roses, a prime feature of the garden. I first met her at an RHS Autumn Show when those happy events were still held in the Society’s two halls in central London. When I asked her how to control black spot on rose leaves, she told me to start spraying early in March and to use the disinfectant Jeyes Fluid. The spraying, she said, must be repeated every three weeks. Aptly, she is commemorated by a fine namesake, the pink Helen Robinson Rose, bred and marketed by Harkness roses since 2006. It is a tall hybrid tea rose with big double flowers, well shaped in an excellent pale pink. I much recommend it and its strong scent.

In 1992, just before we met, the Robinsons donated farmland and their garden to the RHS. In the Financial Times, Arthur Hellyer applauded the gift and what it could become, a view he emphasised to me repeatedly. When the RHS changed presidents, the incoming Simon Hornby and some of his committee were less enthusiastic, even telling me that the acceptance of Hyde Hall had been an error. Its garden sits in open landscape, part of which leads up to a low hilltop with a view of Essex’s flatness beyond. Most of it lacks natural advantages but the RHS is no stranger to difficult sites. Its main garden at Wisley is one example, Harlow Carr near Harrogate another. The RHS is not just a patron of dreamy country house settings.

Contrary to Hellyer’s high hopes, Hyde Hall went on to the back burner during Hornby’s presidency. I avoided it despite Helen’s invitation but, in the new millennium, matters changed. The gardens were enlarged, gaining a long avenue of oaks. New subdivisions were introduced: a new Winter Garden, an Australia and New Zealand Garden, which looks a bit weird, and even a Queen Mother’s Garden, which looks a bit weird too. The latest initiative is a planting of 120 Japanese cherries to mark “the continuing friendship” with Japan. Only three varieties of prunus have been used: Beni-yutaka, Tai-haku and Somei-yoshino.

Vindicating Hellyer’s optimism, visitors now flock to the site, about 425,000 yearly. Twenty-nine full-time gardeners look after it with 89 volunteers. They do a fine job even if black spot has hit some of the bush roses in autumn: I doubt if Helen Robinson and Jeyes Fluid would have kept it all out. I looked closely at most of the subsections and failed to notice a single weed.

Up a main vista after entry, visitors reach big curved beds of salvias, sedums, yellow-flowered rudbeckias and so forth on the slopes of a once-bare hillside. I headed on past them to the Dry Garden, installed in 2001. Even in Essex, this sloping area is not irrigated. The beds on it are covered with pebbles about two inches wide, bigger than ordinary gravel. When I scratched them away, the soil underneath was hard and slightly sandy.

In it, a huge range of plants is surviving, sometimes flourishing, and I learned from the surprises. In my garden I follow advice in books and plant the excellent thistly-flowered Morina longifolia in rich soil, whereupon it dies. At Hyde Hall it is thriving in a hard dry mix. So are tulbaghias, various colchicums and the blue-flowered Veronica Crater Lake Blue. Even love-in-a-mist, though stunted, flowers too. Bigger shrubs are a backdrop to the sloping plantings, including an olive tree, a spiny colletia, that neglected garden plant, and a fine Acacia longifolia. The frosts in 2022-23 did not kill them.

Between the stones, the star turns are mostly grey and silver plants, especially the under-appreciated sea kale, Crambe maritima; a grey-leaved red hot poker, Kniphofia caulescens; and various euphorbias, especially the low-growing Euphorbia myrsinites, which is steely grey and robust in the dry soil. I will imitate this discovery at home.

Dry Essex may be a good intimation of Britain’s likeliest future weather. Hyde Hall’s Dry Garden is excellently contoured and repays close study. The overall effect is only marred by two choices, each easily rectified. There are far too many plants of drab dry grasses; stipas and pampas grasses predominating. Britain does not have vistas of dried-up bush or veld and there is no need to try to simulate them. Eighty per cent of the grasses should be taken out. So should the feeble sculptures of animals on oddly spaced pillars that purport to represent characters in Aesop’s fables. The RHS’s distinguished acronym could sometimes be taken to read Really Hideous Sculpture. Take it all out too. Children do not need it. If they play they hide or enjoy the ducks on the pond up by the Hall.

Why do ‘modern takes’ have to be so drab? Clipped pyramids of yew with tousled grey-leaved pear trees look all wrong

Nearer the entrance, a rectangular area presents “a modern take on a country garden”, promising “sleek lines, perpetual structure and a minimal palette”. What a dreary bore it is, short on flowers, full of long runs of repeated grasses, edged by frightful purple-leaved berberis and devoid of just about everything that makes a rural garden in autumn such a joy. (Go this weekend to the garden of daisies and golden rod at Old Court Nurseries, Colwall, near Malvern and see what I mean.) Why do “modern takes” have to be so drab? Colour, scent, roses and informal planting in formal settings are traditional but infinitely variable building blocks. Clipped pyramids of yew with tousled grey-leaved pear trees look all wrong.

For a different take, go up to the old Hall itself and enjoy the area of herbaceous borders against yew hedging. It mixes two familiar tricks. Buttresses of clipped yew, six in all, break up its length into smaller sections. In each, the colours are themed and limited, from hot orange and red at one end to pale pink and white at the other. I have never seen theming and subdividing combined. The dahlias in each section are superb, yellow Ruskin Limelight and white BJ Beauty to the fore. From white snapdragons to hot Chrysanthemum Royal Command, the planting is densely banked but thriving.  

My take-homes for the future are many more types of plant for dry, sparse living and the idea of theming section by section in subdivided beds. Modernity and the future do not have to be dull and colourless. More is more, not less.

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