The Met Office has issued an urgent snow warning for parts of England and Scotland this morning.

The series of yellow weather warnings for snow and ice will last 42 hours and cover a period of three days. The first comes into force on Sunday at 4pm and covers the far north of Scotland.

However, further warnings for Monday and Tuesday cover large parts of northern England and southern Scotland. The warnings warn that ice and some snow could lead to slippery surfaces and difficult travel conditions.

Sunday’s warning in Scotland runs until 11am on Monday morning. It comes back into force at 4pm and will remain in force until 10am on Tuesday.

A separate alert, covering parts of northern England and southern Scotland, will come into effect at 10am on Monday morning and will remain in force for 24 hours, until 10am on Tuesday morning.

The Met Office said: “There are periods of rain, sleet and snow likely throughout Monday and overnight into Tuesday morning. The most likely scenario is that most of the snow will fall on high ground, with 5 to 10cm possible above 300 meters and perhaps as much as 15 to 20 cm above 400 meters.

“There is a small chance of snow falling at lower levels, where 5 to 10cm would cause much more disruption, but this is very uncertain. As rain, sleet and snow clears out on Tuesday morning, ice may form on untreated surfaces.”

The yellow alerts warn that there is “a remote chance” that power outages will occur and that other services, such as mobile phone coverage, may be affected. The Met Office says there is also a “remote chance” of pavements and cycle paths being left untreated impassable”.

The national weather forecaster also says there is a “remote chance” some rural communities could be cut off by snow and ice. It also warns that injuries from slips and falls on icy surfaces are possible, as well as delays on the road and rail network.

Yesterday a Met Office spokesperson said: “There has been a major change in the weather since this weekend as an early winter cold snap arrives bringing the potential for disruption for some next week.

“A band of rain will move south across most parts on Saturday, while conditions will turn colder in the north, with the possibility of some snow on the hills. Low pressure will move in on Sunday and we will see the start of some unsettled and much colder weather. weather. .”

The Met Office’s deputy chief meteorologist described the cold snap as “remarkable”. Rebekah Hicks said the whole of Britain is “likely to experience a period of several days of cold, potentially disruptive weather” next week.