Storm Pedro map: Where snow and ice will hit UK this week

Snowy and icy conditions are expected in parts of England with yellow weather warnings issued

The UK is bracing for a cold and wintry few days as Storm Pedro brings rain, ice, and snow across the country.

A yellow ice weather warning covering much of Wales is in force on Thursday morning and will be lifted at 10am. A rain warning is issued until 8am for southern parts of England, as wet weather is forecast to batter coastal areas.

Met Office experts have warned that spells of heavy rain and a period of snow could lead to some flooding and disruption to travel. Storm Pedro was named by Meteo France, the country’s equivalent of the Met Office.

Some 10 to 20mm of rain is expected to fall widely, though areas near the south coast could see up to 30mm of rain, while Dartmoor, Devon, could be battered with as much as 50mm.

A yellow weather warning for snow has been issued by the Met Office (Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)

Forecasters said there is “potential” for an area of rain and snow to affect parts of Wales, central England and into the southern Pennines, which will continue through to Thursday morning.

Most of the snow is expected to accumulate on hills, with 2 to 5cm anticipated “widely “above 150 to 200m. The Met Office said as much as 10 to 15cm is possible above 250 to 300m in mid- and south-east Wales, as well as Herefordshire, Shropshire and the southern Pennines.

It added lower elevations may see some small accumulations of snow of less than 2cm into the early hours of Thursday morning.

There are 74 flood warnings in place for England, where flooding is expected, and 212 flood alerts, where it is possible.

A number of weather warnings are in place on Thursday morning (Met Office)

Icy weather could also cause disruption in parts of Wales and south-west England, with forecasters warning of slips and falls on untreated surfaces.

Numerous places across Britain have been hit by flooding this year thanks to repeated heavy downpours.

Last month, Storm Chandra forced schools to close and disrupted everyday life.

Further cold weather alerts have been issued by the UK Health Security Agency across parts of England.

The agency said the weather was likely to lead to higher demand on healthcare services by vulnerable people, as well as a greater risk to life of vulnerable people.

Strong winds will accompany the wet weather, which could exacerbate the effects in places, the Met Office said.

Windy weather should ease later on Thursday (PA)

Deputy chief forecaster Steven Keates said: “Initially, we may see some snow over the highest parts of southern England, such as Dartmoor, but the main chance of snow will be across higher parts of the Midlands and mid- and southeast Wales.”

The UK Health Security Agency yellow cold health alert, issued for the East Midlands, West Midlands, North East, North West, South West, east of England and Yorkshire and the Humber, is in place from 6pm on Tuesday until 6pm on Friday.

Senior Met Office meteorologist Craig Snell said: “By the time we get into the late part of the day on Thursday, by that stage, the winds should be clearing away and Thursday will just be a slow improvement day.

“It’s all change after that, by the weekend it will be feeling much, much milder with temperatures reaching the low-to-mid teens, if we see some sunshine.

“There will be further spells of wind and rain but most of us will certainly see an uplift of temperatures as we go into the weekend.”