Le Corbusier’s social housing was meant to be the dream. In a summer of extreme heat, it is a nightmare | Anna Richards

On the top of a hill, however, stands Firminy’s pride: l’Unité d’Habitation, an imposing tower of concrete designed by Le Corbusier. “I slept on the floor because it was the only place I could stay cool,” says Aurélie Mohamed, who has lived in l’Unité d’Habitation for five years. “My godmother was one of the original residents of Le Corbusier, and I can remember coming here aged nine,” Chantal Hospital tells me. This class element is even more apparent in Firminy, where the Le Corbusier site, including parts of l’Unité d’Habitation, is also a tourist attraction. But the Fondation Le Corbusier only discussed the increasing impact of heatwaves on the various Le Corbusier sites this year, one board member said.