Britain is likely to experience “several days of cold, potentially disruptive weather” next week, including possible rain, sleet and snow, the Met Office said.

Forecasters said it was too early to pinpoint exactly where the wintry weather could hit, as computer models show a range of different scenarios.

But there is confidence that much of Britain will get cold.

Tom Morgan, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said: ‘The really cold air is likely to arrive next week and some snow will fall in parts of Britain.

“There will be a messy mixture of rain, sleet and sleet.

“And also quite windy conditions, probably on Monday, in parts of Britain, but all areas are likely to turn cold with wintry showers by Wednesday.”

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Mr Morgan said it was “fairly unusual” that such wintry conditions were forecast in the south for the time of year, and attributed the “cold spell” next week to a change in the position of the jet stream.

“At the moment, everywhere in Britain is likely to see snow, ice and frost at night, especially from mid-week onwards,” he said.

Meanwhile, meteorologist Alex Deakin said “colder air would spread across Britain” next week.

“Just to the west of Britain, a weather system is developing that will bring in moisture,” he said, and it’s how that “interacts with the colder air that leaves us questioning how much snow we’ll see.”

“As we move into next week, these weather systems are more likely to reach parts of the south (of England), and colder air will spread across the UK.”

He added that there is some uncertainty about the details, but warned that “rainfall, sleet and some snow on the hills are possible”.

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In early November, a period of high pressure left much of the country in a cycle of fog, drizzle and low cloud.

A number of weather stations in England and East Wales have taken measurements no sunshine at all in the first eight days of this month.

Gloomy weather brought above-average temperatures in many parts, but since it has become cooler.