Met Office predicts spring warmth to return next week

Britain’s run of cold, unsettled spring weather is set to ease, but not before the Met Office keeps a close eye on more showers, thunder and hail across the country. Simon King said the pattern has been driven by a persistent northerly airflow, with lower pressure nearby and the jet stream steering colder air south across the United Kingdom.

That setup has kept temperatures below average for May and brought frequent showers, some of them heavy. The Met Office says there is little sign of a sustained warm-up through the rest of the week, and some places will continue to feel a noticeable chill in the wind. In the national outlook, forecasters said further showers are likely, although not as heavy as on Thursday, with conditions feeling less cold than in recent days.

The longer-range signal is more encouraging for anyone hoping for more settled outdoor weather. The Met Office says temperatures are expected to rise closer to, and potentially above, average later next week. Some areas could turn warmer than average as the bank-holiday weekend approaches, and the clearest signs of a stronger lift are for southern parts of the UK.

London and South East England are forecast to sit near or slightly above average overall, with warm weather possible at times. That should offer a more usable window for travel, commutes and outdoor plans after a stretch of changeable skies, though the outlook still points to day-to-day swings rather than a clean break into summer-like stability. People planning trips will need to keep checking conditions, especially where showers can arrive quickly and disrupt journeys or outdoor schedules.

The volatility follows an earlier spring in which the Met Office reported a very warm spell with temperatures reaching 26C in parts of the UK before cooler conditions returned. That sharp swing from warmth to cold, then back toward spring warmth again, underlines how unsettled the season has been. For allergy sufferers, the return of milder air may also bring more pollen activity on brighter days, even as showers continue to clear the air in the short term.

The message from forecasters is clear: the cold snap is not the new normal, but neither is a straight line into summer. Next week should bring a step back toward average, with the best chance of warmer weather in the south and into the bank-holiday weekend.