UK braces for coldest night of winter season with temperatures to drop to -15C

The UK is bracing for its coldest night of the winter season with temperatures set to drop to -15C in some places.

A “cold plunge of Arctic air” has moved south across the whole country over the past few days, making it 5C-6C lower than usual for this time of year, the Met Office said.

The forecaster has issued yellow warnings for snow and ice covering large swathes of the northern half of the country until Thursday.

Northern and eastern parts of Scotland saw the “bulk of the snow” on Monday, with 15cm on the ground at Aberdeen Airport by the evening.

However, Met Office forecaster Craig Snell said by Tuesday there could be a “persistent band of snow” over three to six hours across Scotland, Northern Ireland and parts of northern England and Wales.

He went on: “In the early hours of the morning we’re looking at temperatures getting down to -12C in a few spots, Tuesday night possibly down to -15C.

“So certainly a very cold spell into Wednesday.”

More widely in towns and cities temperatures will sit around -2C and -5C overnight, Mr Snell said.

It comes as the Government confirmed thousands of households in England and Wales are eligible for cold weather payments.

They are made to vulnerable people, including pensioners, to help them pay for heating when the temperature dips below freezing.

It goes to those living in an area where the average temperature is recorded as, or forecast to be, 0C or below over seven consecutive days.

Payments will be made to homes across Cumbria, Oxfordshire, Yorkshire, Northumberland, Norfolk, Staffordshire and Powys in Wales.

The UK Health Security Agency has issued a Cold-Health Alert, which warns of possible impacts for the health and social care sector.

National Highways has put in place a severe weather alert for snow affecting the North West on Tuesday, with road users advised to plan ahead, and some rural communities warned they could be temporarily cut off.

Amy Fellows, national network manager at National Highways, said: “Freezing conditions bring so many hazards such as snow and ice, so take every possible step to understand your journey in advance and allow lots of extra time when travelling to prepare for the unexpected.”

National Rail has warned the wintry weather could affect train journeys all week.

Around 200 schools across Aberdeenshire, Moray and Shetland were closed due to snow on Monday.

Met Office chief meteorologist, Andy Page, said: “There will be widespread frost this week and we could see some fairly deep laying snow in parts of northern UK and strong winds could result in drifting or blizzard conditions at times.

“The snow and ice will be disruptive and could potentially impact travel plans, make driving dangerous and pavements slippery.”