Cold snap brings first snow to the South East

Snow falls on the University of Surrey campus in Guildford, flakes dropping gently around a large fir tree, as a person walks past.Image source, Sam Dixon-French/BBC
Image caption,

Heavy snow has been falling on the University of Surrey's Guildford campus

  • Published

The cold snap has brought the first snowfall of the season to the South East.

It began to fall in Surrey at about 09:00 GMT after temperatures plunged across the UK on Saturday.

Snow has also been reported in Sussex and West Kent.

On Monday, a cold health alert was issued for the whole of the South East and runs until 08:00 GMT on Saturday.

People walking through Calverley Park in Tunbridge Wells holding umbrellas as snow falls around them.Image source, Jack Valpy/BBC
Image caption,

People walking in Calverley Park in Tunbridge Wells found themselves in a flurry of snow

Heavy snow started falling in Guildford about 09:15, although it had turned to rain by 10:30.

Snow has also been falling in Thames Ditton, Fittleworth near Pulborough, Haywards Heath, Horsham, and Brighton.

There have also been some flurries in Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells.

The UKHSA has warned of potentially "significant" impacts on health and social care services during the cold snap, including a rise in deaths.

Kent County Council has advised older people to try to heat the rooms they use most to 18C (64F).

The steel statue of a stag in the centre of Guildford's University of Surrey campus and the lawn and path around it is decorated with a light flurry of snow.Image source, Sam Dixon-French/BBC
Image caption,

The snow began falling just after 09:00 in Guildford

Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, external, on X, external. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk , external or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.