UK weather: Britain to bask in 17C sunshine today on hottest day of the year so far

24 February 2021, 10:05 | Updated: 24 February 2021, 10:12

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

The Met Office has predicted temperatures in the UK are set to reach 17C this week.

It’s time to get out the garden furniture, because the UK will enjoy some beautiful Spring weather this week.

Parts of England are even set to be hotter than holiday hotspots such as Barcelona and Rome, as temperatures hit 17C.

Met Office spokesperson Oli Claydon told The Sun: "A few days of milder temperatures are forecast...

“It will be a noticeable change from what we've had in recent weeks."

Norfolk and Cambridgeshire will see the mercury hit 17C today, with the South East of England also seeing highs of 16C.

The North of England will see a cooler range of around 10C, and most parts of Scotland will peak at 9C.

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There are still severe weather warnings in place for rain in Wales, with experts bracing the country for flooding.

The Met Office said: "Rain will become heavy and persistent leading to a risk of disruption.

"Spray and flooding on roads probably making journey times longer, with bus and train services probably affected.

"Flooding of a few homes and businesses is likely.

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"Rain across north Wales will become heavier later this morning and persist until later on Wednesday, leading to 30-50 mm quite widely across the warning area, and locally 80-90 mm across Snowdonia.”

But forecasters have said milder temperatures will be felt across most of the UK, making it feel more like May than February.

Meanwhile, as we head into the weekend, there is even more sun in store for the South East of England, with temperatures again creeping up to 15C.

Mr Claydon added: "It will feel more like Spring, especially in the sunshine."

The predicted highs are above the average maximum temperature for February in the UK, which stands at 6.6C.

The highest temperature for the month was recorded in 2019 at 21.2C.

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