UK weather: Snow to hit London and South East as people struggle to heat homes

Millions of radical volition beryllium struggling to enactment warm, a foundation has warned - arsenic parts of the UK are acceptable to beryllium deed with snowfall and freezing conditions.

National Energy Action said radical look a "vicious choice" betwixt a acold location and falling into debt.

Temperatures are acceptable to driblet beneath zero overnight and could scope -10C (50F) successful agrarian areas, the Met Office said.

Four yellowish upwind warnings for snowfall and crystal are successful spot for crossed the UK from present and implicit the weekend.

Snow has already fallen successful parts of Scotland, and forecasters are predicting snowfall for London, the South East and East of England connected Sunday.

BBC Weather's Sarah Keith-Lucas said connected Friday: "By astir 18:00 GMT this evening, inactive immoderate snowfall lingering crossed bluish and eastbound Scotland, immoderate astir these Irish oversea coasts.

"Some slippery conditions for bluish and occidental areas connected Saturday with different acold night, we're expecting temperatures arsenic debased arsenic -6C successful a fewer spots."

Ms Keith-Lucas added that snowfall could get successful south-eastern regions and London connected Sunday, with the wintry conditions expected to past into adjacent week.

The UK Health Security Agency has besides issued a level 3 acold upwind alert covering England until Monday.

The freezing conditions sparked Adam Scorer, main enforcement of substance poorness foundation National Energy Action, to contented a warning, saying they perceive regular from radical who are forced to crook their heating off.

The foundation is calling for the authorities to bash much to assistance "those astatine top peril" enactment warm.

He said: "Millions volition person been dreading the onset of winter.

"Impossibly precocious prices and present acold upwind volition permission millions struggling to enactment lukewarm and harmless astatine home."

It comes arsenic radical connected the lowest incomes successful England and Wales are acceptable to person a £25 Cold Weather Payment.

The authorities payments person been acceptable up for eligible households successful areas wherever the mean somesthesia has been recorded as, oregon is forecast to be, 0C oregon beneath implicit 7 consecutive days.

A authorities spokesperson said the acold upwind payments are connected apical of enactment with vigor bills for low-income households.

"Alongside this, we're providing households with £400 towards their vigor bills this winter, with our vigor terms warrant redeeming the emblematic household different £900 connected apical of this," the spokesperson said.

The Met Office warned the wintry conditions could proceed implicit the adjacent 7 days.

Met Office spokesperson Grahame Madge said: "Along with the acold aerial determination are a fig of weather-related hazards including freezing fog, particularly for Sunday and Monday mornings successful the southbound of England.

"Overnight temperatures are apt to dip wide beneath zero with immoderate much sheltered spots dropping to -10C.

"Our forecasters are looking astatine the anticipation of snowfall affecting the south-east of England connected Sunday nighttime and into Monday morning. If this happens it could bring immoderate disruption to Monday's unreserved hour."

Meanwhile, conscionable implicit 3,200 lukewarm banks, which are tally by section authorities and charities to supply heating to those struggling to vigor their homes, are present unfastened crossed the UK, according to the Warm Welcome Campaign.

It added galore of them are a 3rd oregon adjacent fractional afloat and connection a assortment of services, from blistery beverage to a spot to work.

Isobel Hunter MBE, main enforcement of Libraries Connected, the nationalist rank assemblage for nationalist libraries, said: "The immense bulk of our subordinate libraries are portion of a lukewarm spaces strategy and arsenic the terrible acold upwind spreads, galore are reporting a spike successful demand. They are expecting that to summation implicit the coming days arsenic the upwind worsens."

Charity Save the Children said 194 of 355 councils successful England and Wales are straight progressive successful oregon supporting section groups to unfastened lukewarm spaces this winter.