It’s been a mild start to March across much of the UK since last weekend, with the warmest day of the year so far on Thursday, with 19.2C reached at Northolt. Scotland and Wales also recorded their warmest days of the year so far this week - with 15.9C reached at Charterhall in the Scottish Borders and 17.8C at Porthmadog in NW Wales. The mean Central England Temperature, a series of temperature records that goes back as far as 1659, is, up to the 7th, 2,9C above the 1961-1990 average. Colder conditions did move in across northern areas to end the week though, with some hill snow across Scotland and northern England on Friday.
It’s also been rather dry across parts of the UK since the start of the month, with large areas of central and eastern England recording just 1mm. But the coming new week will bring a change to more unsettled conditions with a few spells of rain or showers for most at times during the week and it will become windier too.
Becoming windier through the coming week, as low pressure moves in close to the north
High pressure which moved across the UK during the week and then remained close to the east, drawing warm air north and keeping many places dry and settled, will be lose its influence over the UK to low pressure systems moving east close to the north, with frontal systems crossing the UK at times, bringing rain, while isobars will also tighten to bring windier conditions across many areas. The wettest and windiest areas will be across the north and west. It will turn colder briefly too from Thursday, as colder Polar maritime air sweeps east across all parts, with hill snow possible across the north and a risk of frost overnight in the north and west where skies clear.
Rain for all this coming week, wettest in the northwest.
For now, a quiet Sunday in store for most, rather grey and dull across England and Wales, with milder but moist air spreading north, cloud perhaps thick enough to bring patchy drizzle or light rain across Wales and NW England, though it may brighter up towards the far southeast later. Best of the sunshine across eastern N. Ireland, southern and eastern Scotland, cloud and patchy rain moving in across the far northwest. Milder than yesterday, especially for the south, temperatures reaching 10-14C.
Generally cloudy and mild on Monday, with a light southerly flow, with some patchy light rain or drizzle in places. Cloud may break up in places to allow some bright or sunny spells, more especially away from the west, but this may trigger a few heavy showers in SE England. Where the sun comes out, feeling quite pleasant, temperatures reaching 12-15C, perhaps 16C in the southeast.
Tuesday’s looking largely dry again, perhaps another cloudy start, but cloud should more readily break up to allow some sunshine, wind picking up and cloud thickening across the north and west in the afternoon and evening, heralding a change to more unsettled conditions, with rain arriving across the west in the evening, heavy in the northwest.
Windy with a band of rain spreading east from the early hours and through Wednesday morning, clearing SE England and East Anglia by early afternoon. Cooler and brighter conditions with winds easing following from the west, with scattered mainly light showers across western coastal areas.
Looks like southern, central and eastern areas of England staying mostly dry, sunny and breezy on Thursday, wet and windy conditions moving in across northern and western areas, before reaching all parts later in the evening. Colder but showery conditions following across the north, showers turning wintry over higher ground, with hill snow..
Risk of hill snow increasing in the north and west later this week, as colder Polar maritime air establishes.
Rain clearing SE England & East Anglia sometime Friday morning, followed by colder and sunnier conditions from the west, still windy everywhere with showers blowing in across northern and western areas, which will be wintry over high ground, with hill snow. Widespread frost likely to follow Friday night where skies clear.
Perhaps becoming mostly dry across southern and eastern areas next weekend, further showers across northern and western areas due the northwesterly wind, which will be wintry over higher ground initially. Risk of widespread frost at night where skies clear in the polar maritime flow.
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