Overview
- UKHSA’s yellow alert runs from 8am Monday to Friday for the East and West Midlands, North East, North West, and Yorkshire and the Humber, signalling pressure on health and social care.
- The Met Office says a northerly flow from the Arctic will bring a much colder week with widespread frosts, a marked wind chill and lows near -7C in places after recent warmth.
- Forecasts indicate the main wintry window is Tuesday into Wednesday, with snow starting in Scotland before pushing into Northern Ireland, northern England, Wales and parts of the Midlands.
- Model projections suggest significant accumulations on higher ground—up to about 18cm in parts of Scotland and around 9cm on English uplands such as the Pennines—while urban totals, if any, are likely to be small.
- Services are preparing for disruption, with the RAC expecting breakdowns to rise by around 10% and councils putting gritters on standby as forecasters flag the risk of ice on treated and untreated roads.