The sub-zero temperatures have triggered the highest amount of cold weather payments so far this winter.

According to the Department of Work and Pensions,, external £20.3 million is estimated to have been paid out by the government to 813,000 individuals in the seven days to February 23.

The government said it has paid out over £40m in cold weather payments this winter.

Cold weather payments are paid out when the temperature drops below zero. People who are getting certain benefits are eligible.

More than 12 million people will also have received winter fuel payments, which are automatically paid out to anyone aged 65 and over.

Durham Police have issued the following on the major roads affected by snow:

• One lane of the A68 between Tow Law and Castleside is now open and is passable with extreme caution
• The A1(M) northbound J61 – J62 is now open but drive with caution
• The A66 remains closed until further notice

BBC Weather

BBC weather presenter Matt Taylor is urging people in the "exceptionally rare" red weather warning area in Scotland to take action to avoid becoming stranded.

Here's the latest on airport disruption in the north of England and Scotland:

• Glasgow airport, which is possibly the worst-hit by snow, has now suspended all flights until 13:00 GMT, external. Flights arriving from elsewhere are either cancelled or diverted to Glasgow Prestwick airport or Edinburgh, while departures are cancelled
• All flights are grounded at Leeds Bradford airport as the airport's single runway is closed
• Manchester airport said six of its flights have been cancelled in total, but further delays are possible while aircraft are de-iced
• Edinburgh airport said it's very much "business as usual" and while a few flights have been cancelled or delayed, most are leaving as scheduled
• Liverpool airport is urging passengers to check with the airline, but many flights are taking off as planned
• After delays this morning at Newcastle airport while teams cleared the runway, most flights are now on schedule
• Birmingham airport has some delays and there are cancellations - mainly to Dublin or snow-hit Glasgow airport
• Aberdeen airport's runway is open but some flights will be delayed or cancelled

Heavy snow showers are expected in areas of Scotland from Wednesday afternoon until mid-morning Thursday.

The Met Office predicts that "roads will become blocked by deep snow, with many stranded vehicles and passengers".

"Some communities could be cut off for several days," the forecaster adds.

Delays and cancellations to bus, rail and air travel is expected.

The Met Office chief forecasters predict 5cm will fall within an hour overnight, leading to 20-30cm in areas with a red warning, and up to 40cm in some places.

Read more on the areas affected on the BBC Scotland live page.

Areas of Scotland will be upgraded to a red weather warning, the Met Office's most severe warning.

The red warning will be in place between Wednesday at 15:00 and Thursday 10:00 GMT.

The following areas are affected:

• Central, Tayside and Fife
• Southwest Scotland, Lothian Borders
• Strathclyde

A red warning means that risk to life, widespread damage, travel and power disruption is likely.

Image source, London Lifestyle

The snowfall in London has given photographers a chance to capture a different view of the capital.

See the whole picture gallery here.

Newsround

Snow descended at a pace on Tuesday evening in Peterborough, as the city's League One team were playing rivals Walsall.

Rather than calling the match off, players helped clear the lines on the pitch to get a 2-1 win.

Snow on the Isles of Scilly - which are off the coast of Cornwall - is an unusual sight.

But the temperature there is currently 1C and snow is falling.

At Heathrow, where the temperature is currently 0C, some outbound flights are delayed although others are running on time.

Other flights, including to Dublin, Washington DC and Brussels, have been cancelled.

The airport said, external: "Our teams have been clearing snow throughout the night and as a result our runways are open.

"We don't currently expect significant disruption today."

Meanwhile Gatwick airport said flights are taking off and landing as normal.

But according to its website, external, a handful of outbound flights have been delayed.

Radio 1 presenter Greg James is continuing with his five-day 'Gregathlon' in aid of Sport Relief, despite adverse weather conditions.

He has begun a sub-zero attempt to summit Scafell Pike in the Lake District.

On Tuesday the DJ cycled more than 100 miles and completed a grueling 12 hours in the saddle.

Manchester comedian Jason Manford has told fans his gigs are still on.

Image source, Reuters

The AA says it is receiving three times as many calls for breakdowns, as roads across the UK remain treacherous for drivers.

The breakdown company says the worst affected areas are in Kent, East Anglia and the north-east of England.

President Edmund King has advised drivers to stick to major routes.

He added: “The last thing drivers want is to be involved in an accident, so those heading out on the road need to slow down and drive to the conditions.”

More than 430 schools across the county of Essex have closed as a result of Wednesday's adverse weather conditions.

A list of schools closed that are run by Essex County Council is available on their website, external.

Southend, external and Thurrock, which are unitary authorities, also have schools closed.

Further north, more than 400 schools in Teesside, County Durham and parts of North Yorkshire have been forced to shut.

StreetLink said it received more than 3,600 alerts between Monday and Tuesday, the most it's ever received in 24 hours.

The homeless charity urges members of the public to report the location of homeless people. It then tells outreach teams who can find them and offer shelter.

According to the Press Association, StreetLink director said: "This record number of referrals is inspiring to see, and is the first step people can take to ensure individuals sleeping rough receive the support they need to get into the warm and move away from homelessness for good."

To contact StreetLink and report a rough sleeper click here., external

A woman in the north east of England was rescued by crews of firefighters last night, after her car collided with a tree.

County Durham and Darlington fire service, which sent crews to rescue her, said she was a "very lucky lady" as the crash happened near to a steep cliff and the accident could have been much worse.

BBC News Scotland

More than 400 schools are closed across Scotland and key roads have been disrupted as a result of this week's weather.

Follow live updates on the disruption in Scotland here.