UK weather: snow and ice warnings in force as Arctic air sweeps in for new year

By Friday, rain, sleet and snowfall will spread across Northern Ireland, Wales, parts of North West England, the Midlands and southern England.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for most of England and Wales from midnight Friday until 12:00 GMT on 2 January.

A separate yellow warning is in place for Northern Ireland between midnight and 10am on Friday.

Snowfall may last several hours; There may be 1-2cm of snow at low levels and up to 5cm in high parts of Wales and the southern Pennines, which may disrupt New Year’s travel.

Meanwhile, frequent snowfall will continue in the north of Scotland until the weekend.

Strong winds will cause blizzards and snow drifts on Saturday; The north-west Highlands and Grampians are likely to see up to 60cm of snow by the end of the week.

An additional Met Office yellow warning is in force for northern and western Scotland, covering the whole weekend.

Temperatures will be around 3-5C at best, with some parts of Scotland and northern England experiencing ‘icy days’ where temperatures will not rise above freezing.

These low temperatures are expected to continue next week, with widespread overnight frosts.

Keep up to date with the latest forecasts on the BBC Weather website or app as details are likely to change.