Will it snow across the UK this weekend?

It’s that time of year again when the weather is getting colder, the knitted jumpers are coming out, and the nation is dreaming about a “white Christmas”.

But those hoping for some snowflakes to fall from the sky may have to wait a bit longer, as widespread snow is unlikely, according to the Met Office.

Instead, we can expect to see heavy rain move eastwards across parts of England and Wales on Saturday, accompanied by strong winds, while up in Scotland “some sleet and snow is quite likely”. It will also be brighter for Northern Ireland, and the overall outlook is looking “drier, brighter but also chillier” on Sunday.

The Met Office told The Independent: “A developing low-pressure system pushing across the south on Saturday will bring some rain, strong winds and even a bit of hill snow. Sunday looks drier and brighter for most before more unsettled weather arrives in time for the start of Advent.

“We are going to possibly see a bit of sleet and snow over the high ground, particularly around the South Pennines.”

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The forecaster added: “There is still a bit of uncertainty as to the exact track and how deep that low pressure is going to get. Potentially it stays a little bit shallower, stays further south, and so we have wetter weather towards the south and are less likely to see anything wintry.

“There is potential as well that it could go a bit further north. And if it does so, then there’s a greater risk of seeing some sleet or snow, mainly over higher ground, but it could just be modest higher ground over northern parts of England, perhaps even southern Scotland.”

Last week, there was snow across parts of the UK, with as much as 25cm of snowfall and an amber weather warning on Thursday in some regions.

The Met Office told The Independent: “It’s too early to speculate if we’ll see a white Christmas this year.”

It’s not until the week before Christmas that forecasters usually start to have a clear idea about the chances of seeing any flurries on the big day.

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The threshold for a “white Christmas”, the Met Office said, requires just a single snowflake to be observed falling on Christmas Day, anywhere in the UK.

Last year, the Met Office predicted a “grey Christmas”, with patches of rain and cloud coupled with mild temperatures.

The last time there was technically a white Christmas in the UK was in 2023, when 11 per cent of weather stations recorded snow falling, but none reported any settled snow on the ground.

The last time there was widespread settled snow at Christmas was back in 2010. That was the UK’s whitest Christmas on record, with 83 per cent of stations recording snow on the ground.

More than half of all Christmas Days since 1960 have met the threshold, with around half of those years seeing at least 5 per cent of weather stations reporting snow falling on the big day.

However, the chances of the snow actually settling are slim: that has only occurred four times, in 1981, 1995, 2009 and 2010.