The Met Office has warned that "widespread snow" will fall in the UK on Sunday. The agency issued the warning as it predicted a cold weekend, with temperatures set to drop after a mild week.

A Met Office forecast for Saturday to Monday said: "Bright skies with sunny spells on Saturday but feeling much colder than in recent days. Turning wetter on Sunday with widespread snow likely across the north. Unsettled into next week." They warned that an "Arctic Maritime air mass" will gradually introduce colder conditions from the north of Scotland southwards during the remainder of this week.

They added: "This shift in conditions will be accompanied by outbreaks of rain on Thursday and early Friday, turning increasingly to sleet and snow initially over higher levels but then to lower elevations too for a time."

Jason Kelly is a Met Office chief forecaster and warned that many areas of the UK could see significant snow.

He said: "Any settling snow will mainly be confined to high ground. Locations of above 200 metres in Scotland and northern England may see 2-5cm of snow, but those locations above 300 metres may see double those amounts, up to 10cm.

"As the rain and snow clears south, temperatures will fall quickly under the clear skies which could lead to ice forming on untreated surfaces."

The Met Office often warns that predicting snow more than a few days in advance is difficult.

It said: "In many temperate countries such as the UK, a small amount of snow can cause all sorts of disruption.

"But it can also be very challenging to predict. There are lots of factors involved in determining whether rain or snow will be falling from the sky, such as elevation, distance from the coast and precipitation intensity".

Despite the cold temperatures, the Met Office did predict good news, with the possibility of a break from incessant rain across the weekend.

They added: "The forecast for Saturday suggests that high pressure will remain largely in charge of the conditions, leading to a rainless day for many with the prospect of sunshine.

"From Sunday, there is an anticipated return to more Atlantic-dominated conditions as a weather front sweeps in from the west, bringing rain, strong winds and snow across some northern areas."