Weather - live: Snow and ice warnings extended as Shetlanders face days without power

Dr Agostinho Sousa, Consultant in Public Health Medicine at UKHSA, said: “Cold weather can have serious consequences for health, and older people and those with heart or lung conditions can be particularly at risk.

“If you have a pre-existing medical condition, you should heat your home to a temperature that is comfortable for you. In rooms you mostly use such as the living room or bedroom, try to heat them to at least 18°C if you can. Keep your bedroom windows closed at night. Wearing several layers of clothing will keep you warmer than one thicker layer.”

The Met Office has forecasted further wintry showers affecting Northern Ireland, northern Scotland, and coastal eastern England for Wednesday evening.

Elsewhere, clear spells with isolated freezing fog patches developing are expected, a widespread frost, severe over snow cover.

The Met Office has shared its predictions for whether the UK will see a white Christmas this year.

The forecaster said it’s colder than usual for this time of year but said the freezing conditions were not likely to last.

A spokesperson told The Independent that snow at Christmas may happen, but it’s most likely to be in the north of the country and up high on hills.

Lucy Skoulding has the full story:

Children must get their “full time in education” the boss of the schools watchdog has said, as she referred to the US practice of adding on an extra day of lessons if there are weather closures.

Ofsted chief inspector Amanda Spielman said it would be a “decision for ministers” whether or not the same thing should happen in England’s schools.Ms Spielman was speaking on Tuesday as a number of schools across the country have been forced to close for a second day due to the freezing weather.

She told Times Radio: “We know from the pandemic experience that remote learning isn’t terribly effective, that most children learn a lot less than they would in school and some children learn nothing at all.

“So for me, really, a school needs to be open or closed. In America, they add a day on later on in the school year, if they close for a snow day when transport isn’t possible. It really is important that the default is keeping schools open. Obviously, there are circumstances in which that isn’t possible.”

Asked if she thinks all schools should do that, she replied: “Well, that would be a decision for ministers. But children have lost a lot of education. For me, it’s really important making sure that children get their full time in education so they can get the benefit of it.”

Snow and ice have been causing chaos across the UK, with commuters facing delays and road closures.

Some schools have shut their doors as parents and staff struggled to make the journey in the treacherous conditions or heating systems stopped working. Others have started later in the day to allow a safety assessment in the morning.

The disruption looks set to continue on Wednesday, with schools across the country saying they plan to close as the cold snap continues.

Here is how to keep on top of school closures in your local area in the frosty conditions:

Met office issues advice for driving safely in snow asking public to be extra cautious at road junctions and to maintain 10 times the usual gap between vehicles, as the cold spell continues.

Today is expected to remain mostly dry across the UK with some wintry showers across northern Scotland that will continue overnight, according to the Met Office's latest forecast.

Most parts of the UK will see a dry evening with clear spells and cloud that will slowly clear southwards from southern counties in England. Some patches of mist and fog will form by dawn.

Tomorrow most places will be very cold but fine as they will be dry with lots of winter sunshine, although there will be areas of cloud across northern Scotland which will linger during the day and some patches of mist and fog will be very slow to clear.

Road temperatures in some areas are now below freezing point as the cold spell continues to grip the UK.

According to North East Live Traffic, the surface temperature dropped to -1°C across Tyne & Wear as the public is urged is to drive carefully due to ice on the surfaces.

Scores of schools across the UK were forced to close for a second day yesterday due to the cold weather.

Councils from Aberdeenshire to Cambridgeshire reported school closures, for reasons including heating failure, burst pipes and snow and ice.

In Sheffield, engineers said they had just over 100 households left to reconnect to gas as of last evening after nearly 2,000 homes in the city lost supplies 11 days earlier when a burst water main filled the local gas network with more than a million litres of water

Met Office spokesperson Becky White said that areas covered by the latest weather warnings could see up to 10cm of fresh snow on higher ground.

"We could see a good few new centimetres of snow accumulation," she said.

"We could see around 1-4cms at lower levels and 5-10cm on higher ground across the Highlands."

Snow and ice warnings are also in place in the South West until 10am today.

"There will be a risk of ice across the country over the next few days, but particularly tonight," she said.

"There is a band of rain moving in from the South West, but it may turn into snow as it reaches land."

She added that the South West could see 1-2cm of snow at lower levels, and 1-10cms of snow at higher ground such as Dartmoor and Exmoor.

An ice warning is in place in eastern England until noon today.

The national forecaster has also added a yellow ice warning in northern parts of Northern Ireland, including Belfast, from noon yesterday until noon today.