UK weather forecast: Freezing temperatures to return by the weekend after days of snow and ice

Patrick Grafton-Green13 December 2017

Freezing temperatures will return to the UK after a milder few days, with the mercury expected to plummet to -7C in some places by the weekend.

It comes after days of snow and ice caused widespread travel disruption and resulted in the closure of dozens of schools across Britain.

Temperatures dropped as low as -13C (8.6F) in Shawbury, Shropshire, on Monday night – but the mercury only fell to around -1.9C (29F) at its lowest on Tuesday evening.

A yellow weather warning for ice is still in place across most of the country – with the exception of London, the South East and South West – and will remain in force until 11am on Wednesday.

UK Snowfall: December 2017 - In pictures

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Scores of primary and secondary schools cancelled lessons on Monday and Tuesday owing to the weather – citing concerns about untreated roads and problems with staff making their way into work – and 26 will be closed in Herefordshire, 14 in Shropshire, 10 in Worcestershire and at least 24 across Wales on Wednesday.

For Wednesday, forecasters said temperatures should be higher after a comparatively milder night, when lows of 0.2C (32F) were recorded in Kew Gardens and -0.3C (31F) in High Beach, north east of London.

Craig Snell, a forecaster at the Met Office said: “This morning in London it will be a milder start than what we have had, around 2C and above, in some places around 5 or 6C.

“Rain is knocking on the door, moving up from the south and will arrive this morning. It will be a cloudy picture with outbreaks of rain, some on the heavy side.

“Temperatures will peak at around 9C or 10C, but there will be a keen wind which will take the edge off so it will feel quite cold.

“A band of showers will move in tonight and we could get sleet in some places, but this is mainly expected in the high land north of London, around the Chilterns.”

Stunning sunset in London after day of sleet and snow

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Elsewhere, by rush hour on Wednesday snow may fall again in Northern Ireland and Scotland, even on lower levels, experts say.

Mr Snell added: “Tomorrow there will be sunshine, some showers, but overall a drier day, feeling a tad cooler, temperatures of around 6 or 7C.

“Friday will be similar to Thursday, feeling distinctly cold again, and that will set us up for a cold start to Saturday.

“By the weekend temperatures will drop to around -1 or -2C, a few places just outside it could fall to -3 or -4C

“It will be a frosty start to the weekend, but by the end temperatures will rise again as rain arrives.”

Further afield temperatures could drop as low as -7C at the weekend, with conditions described as a “bit of a rollercoaster” over the coming days.

Air and rail services – which were disrupted earlier this week by the weather – appear to be returning back to normal, with the Eurotunnel running on time and flights operating as normal out of Heathrow.

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