Overview
- A Met Office yellow wind warning covers the South West and much of Wales until 11:59pm on Christmas Day, with gusts widely at 45–55 mph and up to 55–65 mph on exposed coasts and hills, raising risks to transport, power supplies and coastal areas.
- The UK Health Security Agency has a yellow cold-health alert in force for South West England until midday on 27 December, signaling increased demand on health and social care and heightened risks for vulnerable people.
- Forecasters expect a mostly dry day with some sunshine, daytime highs around 6–7C, a sharp wind chill near freezing, and overnight lows falling to about −5C in northern Scotland with frost into Boxing Day.
- Only a very small chance of a localized dusting exists in the far South West, including Dartmoor and parts of Devon and Cornwall, as showers brush in later, with widespread Christmas snow ruled out.
- Private model guidance points to a possible heavier snow event around the New Year across parts of the UK, a scenario forecasters stress remains uncertain and model-dependent.