Signs of spring are appearing. The week ahead will become mild by day in a southerly flow, and the increase in daylight hours is already obvious. There were daffodils in bloom on March 1st for St David’s Day, and crocus, primrose and aconites adding to the spring colours.
We are now in meteorological spring, the three months of March, April and May used for statistical purposes. You might prefer astronomical spring, which starts on the vernal equinox, when day and night are roughly equal in length due to the tilt of the Earth. In 2026, the spring equinox will be on Friday, March 20th.
There is a cold front stretching across the UK on Monday morning. It extends from Shetland, along eastern Scotland, to Cumbria and Anglesey, to the Isles of Scilly, with patchy rain and blustery winds.
The cloud cover is broken over eastern England, allowing bright spells and ahead of the front, there has been a sunny start for SE England and East Anglia on Monday morning.
Clear skies and sunshine for SE Britain mid-morning on Monday with top temperatures of 12 or 13C at 10am
Over Central Europe, there is an area of high pressure which is slowing the progress of systems from the Atlantic. The frontal band will narrow and fade, with a few outbreaks of rain for inland Wales, maybe Manchester to the Yorkshire Dales by this afternoon. Southeastern Britain will be sunny and dry with temperatures of 12 to 15C, maybe up to 16C. There will be a light to moderate S/SW breeze. To the northwest of the cold front, there will also be clearer skies and sunshine but a cooler feel to the air. Scotland and Northern Ireland will be around 9 to 11C on Monday.
As the occluded front moves closer to western Scotland later in the afternoon, there will be freshening winds and showery outbreaks of rain. The Western Isles could see a lively line of heavy rain and strong gusts at teatime, which will head to the NW Highlands as the winds veer to a colder northwesterly.
Colder air will flow southwards over the UK as the frontal band pivots. Northern areas could see a frost in places, after the rain from the occlusion clears eastwards. The cold front over southern Britain will just bring more cloud and maybe a little patchy rain for Tuesday morning. The front fades as high pressure begins to build. Southern England and south Wales will still be in the milder air with temperatures depending on the amount of sunshine. It can feel very different when the sun appears and temperatures could reach 16 or perhaps 17C.
Further north, temperatures will be closer to average, it will be dry and sunny but there will be a chilly NE/E wind off the North Sea for Norfolk up to the Humber. The winds will be easing on a sunny Tuesday.
Mainland Scotland into NE England will have a chilly night, with frost in places. The centre of the High pressure will edge over the North Sea towards Denmark. This will allow a milder southerly flow to take hold over the UK.
By Wednesday, there will be some cloud in this mild flow with patchy rain over Northern Ireland and western Scotland. By the afternoon, much of the UK will feel mild. Quite a difference for those areas that have been north of the frontal boundary and in the cooler air. Southern England inland could again see 13 to 15C, but in any sunshine the temperatures could rise to 16 or 17C.
A new Atlantic front will be edging in from the west by Thursday, which will result in great contrasts west to east over the UK. Fine, sunny and very mild for England, eastern Wales and eastern Scotland until the cloud and rain arrives. Temperatures could be around 14 to 17 or even 18C. Further west, it will feel cooler, as the band of heavy rain and blustery winds edges in. Temperatures of only 7 to 10C.
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