UK looks more like Lapland after widespread snow – and there’s more to come

This is Buxton, Derbyshire, pictured today: not a ski resort in Finland (Picture: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Snowy scenes like this in England never used to be much to write home about, with children building snowmen every winter.

But winters have been getting warmer and wetter, and big dumps of snow spaced further between over the past decades.

Today saw plenty of the white stuff, however, with even London seeing some flurries in the morning rush hour.

Elsewhere, there were proper piles of it, sprinkling roofs like icing sugar on a cake (unless anyone was up to no good), making perfect slides for tobogganing, or on a less welcome note, causing widespread travel disruption.

Nottingham saw 12cm, while Leek in Staffordshire and Powys in Wales saw 8cam and 9am respectively.

It’s not over, either, with the Met Office forecasting more snow and ice in places.

Weather warnings remain in place in the east coast, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, and will not lift until between midnight and 12pm tomorrow depending on the area.

The Met Office said wintry showers would be ‘skirting the coasts and more widely across northern Scotland’ with ‘rain and sleet’ in places across the south.

Here’s how the first snow of winter looked today.

A bemused-looking snowman wraps up warm in the Derbyshire village of Edensor (Picture: Getty)

A bus and several cars got stuck in snow in Leicester this morning (Picture: Stephen Huntley/HVC)

Spot the fish? Muckle Troot Loch near Inverurie, Aberdeenshire (Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire)

Harvey Haswell and Olivia Miles, 20, enjoy the snow in pyjamas and crocs in Sheffield (Picture: Ioannis Alexopoulos/LNP)

A sign in Glossop, Derbyshire, showing that the A57 main road called Snake Pass is closed following heavy snowfall (Picture: Danny Lawson/PA Wire)

There was enough snow for frolicking in Rotherham, South Yorkshire (Picture: Ryan Browne/Shutterstock)

But not all were happy: Cars were abandoned as heavy snow hit in Nottinghamshire (Picture: Tom Maddick/SWNS)

Snow seen on rooftops in Keele, Staffordshire (Picture: Getty)

Two men push a stuck car in Nottingham (Picture: Tom Maddick/SWNS)

Buxton Crescent in Buxton, northern England (Picture: Getty)

Residents of Crook in County Durham woke up to icy streets today (Picture: North News)

People work in the snow in Keele (Picture: Getty)

Molly the dog was happy in Crook, Durham (Picture: North News & Pictures Ltd)

St John’s Parish Church in Keele, Staffordshire (Picture: Getty)

A Northern Rail train travels past snow in Buxton, northern England (Picture: Getty)

A dog walker crosses a snow covered park in Newcastle-Under-Lyme (Picture: Reuters)

The first snowfall of winter in Leeds, West Yorkshire (Picture: SWNS)

Lots of people were enjoying the snow (Picture: Anita Maric/SWNS)

Even the ducks didn’t seem too concerned in Buxton, Derbyshire (Picture: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Snow covered buildings in the early morning light after the overnight snowfall in Buxton (Picture: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

A Christmas tree lights up the overnight snow in the centre of Buxton, Derbyshire (Picture: Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

People push a car stuck on a hill in the snow in Sheffield (Picture: Ioannis Alexopoulos/LNP)

Tree surgeons clear roads after snow caused trees to fall near Buxton overnight (Picture: Tom Maddick/SWNS)

Students enjoy the snow in Sheffield city centre (Picture: Ioannis Alexopoulos/LNP)

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued the first amber cold weather health alert of the season, warning conditions could be dangerous for vulnerable people, including the elderly.

It covers the east and north of England, the Midlands, and Yorkshire and the Humber, while yellow alerts are in place for the South East, South West and London, all lasting until 6pm on Saturday.

National Rail warned the cold climate would affect various routes on northern train services until at least 2pm today.

Met Office weather warnings in place today (Picture: Met Office/Metro)

Met Office Chief Meteorologist Neil Armstrong said: ‘With cold Arctic air firmly in place over the UK, continued winter hazards are likely through much of this week, with further updates to warnings likely in the coming days.

‘The current focus for upcoming snow and ice risk is from later on Tuesday and overnight into Wednesday, with snow showers likely moving in off windward coasts in the north and east, as well as drifting into parts of Northern Ireland and Wales.

‘In excess of 10cm of snow is possible over higher ground within the warning areas, with 1-2cm possibly settling at lower levels, which has the potential to lead to some travel disruption. Ice is an additional hazard and is likely to form quickly on untreated surfaces.’

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