A second major blast of snow is set to strike 55 specific areas across the United Kingdom from Monday, following a weekend of continued wintry showers. The Met Office has issued a detailed forecast warning of significant accumulations, with some higher regions potentially seeing up to 30 centimetres of fresh snowfall.
Weekend Freeze Sets Stage for Further Disruption
The Met Office states that snow showers are expected to persist throughout the weekend, driven well inland by strong northerly winds. Temperatures are likely to remain below freezing in many inland areas, preventing any thaw of existing snow. While winds may ease slightly by Sunday, the cold snap is firmly entrenched.
From the weekend into Monday morning, forecasters predict a further 2 to 5 centimetres of snow in low-lying areas, with the possibility of 10-15cm in some localised spots. The most severe accumulations are expected above 200 metres, particularly in the northwest Highlands and Grampians, where 15-30cm could build up.
Full List of 55 Affected Areas
The following regions across England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland have been identified for the upcoming snow event:
- Derbyshire, Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Greater Manchester
- Cornwall, Devon, Somerset
- Multiple Welsh counties including Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Gwynedd, Merthyr Tydfil, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire, Powys, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Swansea, Wrexham
- Shropshire, Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Telford and Wrekin
- Durham, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, Stockton-on-Tees
- Norfolk, Lincolnshire, East Riding of Yorkshire, North East Lincolnshire, North Yorkshire
- All of Northern Ireland: County Antrim, County Armagh, County Down, County Londonderry, County Tyrone
- Scottish areas including Angus, Dundee, Perth and Kinross, Stirling, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray, Na h-Eileanan Siar, Highland, Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands, Argyll and Bute, Inverclyde, West Dunbartonshire
Health Alerts and Extended Cold Spell
In response to the severe conditions, the UK Health Security Agency has an amber cold health alert in force until 9 January. Sub-zero overnight temperatures are anticipated widely, posing increased risks to health.
Looking further ahead, the BBC Weather forecast for the week beginning 5 January suggests little immediate respite. While a slight increase in temperatures closer to the January average is possible by the week's end, the overall pattern remains cold and unsettled. The forecast indicates that wintry showers will continue to affect windward areas, with the potential for another band of snow, sleet, or rain to push across inland regions.
Meteorologists note that a potential shift in atmospheric conditions by the end of the week has low confidence attached to it. The current cold pattern could persist until mid or late January. Any eventual change to milder, wetter conditions from the west may initially bring a risk of more widespread snow before turning to rain.
