April heatwave: is warmer weather coming to the UK for Easter weekend 2022 - and the best places for sun

If there’s one thing to say about the British weather, it’s that it’s never predictable.

After the first few months of 2022 delivered a series of storms that brought widespread disruption to the country - not to mention bouts of Saharan dust - forecasters are expecting that April might bring us prolonged warmer weather.

But how will conditions look over the upcoming Easter weekend?

Here is everything you need to know.

What will the weather be like over Easter?

Easter weekend could bring the hottest temperatures of the year so far with highs of up to 22C in some parts of the UK, forecasters have said.

Warm weather is set to continue throughout the week, with dry conditions expected for most of the country ahead of the bank holiday.

Met Office meteorologist Annie said: “We’ll see temperatures generally come up through the week. Today (Monday 11 April) we’re seeing highs of 18, then from Thursday onwards temperatures could reach 20, 21, quite possibly 22.”

Where will the weather be best?

Shuttleworth said despite the heat, the North West will experience some lingering cloud, making eastern areas the best destination for sun-seekers over the weekend.

“If people are travelling for sunshine, then further eastern areas are more likely to see that brighter weather,” she said.

“I think in the main for the bank holiday weekend, we’ll see temperatures quite widely above average across the UK and hopefully they could be very warm in the South East in particular.”

Will it be the hottest weekend of the year?

The warmest temperature of the year so far has been 20.8C, meaning the highs predicted for the South East on the weekend would set a new record for 2022.

Will there be a heatwave?

While temperatures over the next few days are likely to be noticeably warmer than usual, it’s unlikely that conditions will be officially described as a “heatwave” by the Met Office.

Shuttleworth said that while temperatures over the Easter weekend will be “warmer than average certainly”, they will be “nowhere near heatwave criteria”.

Last month, the Met Office increased the heatwave temperature threshold across eight English counties before the summer as the climate continues to warm.

A heatwave is classed relative to the current climate, and average temperatures are creeping up due to global warming.

The three-day temperature threshold for a heatwave is jumping from 27C to 28C in six counties: Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire.

In Lincolnshire, temperatures will have to reach 27C instead of 26C for three days to be determined a heatwave, and in the East Riding of Yorkshire, there is now a 26C threshold - up from 25C.

As for the rest of the month, the Met Office’s long range forecast says “a northwest-southeast split is likely”, with the northwest remaining more changeable with strong winds and rain at times.

“The southeast is likely to be dry and generally more settled, though perhaps rather cloudy, with mist and fog likely in the mornings and lighter winds through to the end of this period.

“Temperatures are expected to be above average, and warm at times for the south.”

Towards the end of April high pressure is likely to become dominant, with longer spells of dry and settled weather possible, especially in the south.

Temperatures are anticipated to stay above average during this period, though overnight frosts are still possible.

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