This is how likely we will be to get a white Christmas this year, according to the Met Office

Despite the link, for most parts of the UK, Christmas is only at the beginning of the period when it’s likely to snow, meaning there is a bigger chance of snow between January and March rather than December.

According to the Met Office, snow or sleet falls on average for 3.9 days in December, compared to 5.3 in January, 5.6 in February and 4.2 days in March.

The last widespread white Christmas in the UK was back in 2010 – with Met Office forecasters claiming that it was “extremely unusual” as climate changes brings higher temperatures, reducing the chances of a white Christmas.

So, how likely is it we will get snow this Christmas?

The Met Office say that they cannot accurately forecast snow until at least five days before Christmas Day – meaning it will be Sunday, December 20 at the very earliest to see if there is a chance of snow.

The Met Office website reads: “Since 1960, around half of the years have seen at least five per cent of the network record snow falling on Christmas Day.

“This means we can probably expect more than half of all Christmas Days to be a 'white Christmas'.

"However, the Dickensian scene of widespread snow lying on the ground on Christmas Day is much rarer.

"There has only been a widespread covering of snow on the ground four times since 1960, in 1981, 1995, 2009 and 2010."

The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers and consequently the advertising that we receive. We are now more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news by buying a copy of our newspaper. If you can, please do pick up a copy when you are at the shops. Thank you for your support.