A YELLOW weather warning for snow has been issued for much of England and Wales later this week.

A period of snowfall could bring some disruption on Thursday, February 8, into the early hours of Friday, February 9, the Met Office has said.

The affected area stretches from Newcastle in the North East of England to Hereford in the South West.

The entire breadth of North and Mid Wales falls within the warning zone.

Met Office forecasters say "cold air" is already exerting its influence in the far north of Scotland and will sink southwards through the week. This will bring further rain to Wales on Tuesday.

The initial band of rain will clear on Wednesday and temperatures will drop below the early February average in the UK. There will be an ongoing chance of overnight ice.

The snow warning means there is a small chance of power cuts with other disruptions to services like mobile phone coverage and there is a slight chance some rural communities could become “cut off”.

There is a small chance of travel delays on roads with some stranded vehicles and passengers along with delayed or cancelled rail services and flights.

The Met Office warning has a very low likelihood and a medium impact, though these ratings - and the location of the warning zone - are subject to change.

Deputy chief meteorologist Chris Almond said: “While the early part of this week will see some rain, at times heavy, gradually sinking southwards, there’s an increased signal for wintry hazards as we move through the week as cold air from the north moves over the UK.

“It’s from Thursday that the snow risk becomes more potentially impactful, as mild air attempts to move back in from the south, bumping into the cold air and increasing the chance of snow developing on the leading edge.

"While there are still lots of details to work out, the initial snow risk looks highest in northern England and Wales from Thursday. 1-2cm is possible to low levels, with 10-20cm possible over the highest ground within the warning area. This snow will likely gradually transition to sleet and rain later on from the south.”

Areas in Wales affected by the snow warning

  • Carmarthenshire
  • Ceredigion
  • Conwy
  • Denbighshire
  • Flintshire
  • Gwynedd
  • Isle of Anglesey
  • Powys
  • Wrexham