Weather warning for ice in UK with snow in some parts

Britain could be set for January snowfall with a yellow weather warning in place for most of the country on Wednesday.

The Met Office has issued a snow and ice alert for the north of Scotland and an ice warning for the rest of the UK.

The fall in temperature follows a spell of unseasonably mild weather, and is expected to bring widespread frost and icy patches on roads and pavements.

The Met Office's weather warning, which is in place for 24 hours from midday Wednesday, states there will be "snow showers, with strong winds and icy conditions".

It adds that the fall in temperature will make "travelling difficult, especially over the hills and in northern coastal areas".

Forecasters have said that road and rail journeys could become longer because of the adverse conditions, which also bring the risk of slips and falls for pedestrians.

Northern parts of Scotland and the east of England could see some snow showers over the course of Wednesday, but it is unlikely to settle.

Temperatures of 6C have been forecast for parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland on Wednesday, while England and Wales will experience temperatures between 8C and 9C.

The mercury will drop overnight to bring temperatures of 1C to Scotland, Northern Ireland and England on Thursday.

Sky News weather producer Chris England said: "There'll be some snow over the next few days, mainly over the north of Scotland and hills over around 200m, but perhaps to lower levels over central Britain for a time on Friday night, although any accumulations there will be slight.

"If anything, icy stretches are likely to be more of a problem over the next few days, especially in the North."

Met Office meteorologist Marco Petagna said: "Things are turning colder, but it is just more typical winter conditions.

"It has been so mild this winter that it will be a bit of a shock to the system even though temperatures will be average for this time of year or just below."

He continued: "Certainly we could start to see some sleet and snow showers across the higher ground of Scotland.

"It's nothing unusual, but it's the first wintry weather that some parts of the UK have seen for a while.

"There won't be too much in the way of snow accumulation, although some of the higher ground of Scotland could see several centimetres,"

Things could get even colder at the beginning of next week.

Mr Petagna added: "There's quite a lot of uncertainty about how things will play out."