The UK has seen some exceptionally wet weather over the past week and there is more rain to come this week

Severe Weather Warnings are in place today for parts of the south of England, with up to 80 mm of rain possible in most severely affected areas

Outbreaks of rain are likely on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the heaviest showers expected in western parts. Further unsettled weather is expected to push in from the west on Thursday.

This follows a week which has seen some very high rainfall totals across parts of the country.

Throughout this period the Met Office has been working round-the-clock to keep the public, partner agencies and emergency responders up-to-date with our latest forecasts.

Rob Varley, Operations and Services Director at the Met Office, said: “Our forecasts and severe weather warnings have helped the emergency services deliver the fantastic response we have seen over the past few days.

The media have also done a great job in widely publicising the key messages from our forecasts to make sure the public had the latest advice.”

Simon Sheldon-Wilson, the Highways Agency’s Traffic Management Director, said: “Severe wet weather has affected road users in the south, the east and the north west, but timely forecasts from the Met Office have enabled us to minimise disruption.

“With more wet weather to come this week, our advice to drivers is that wet roads can reduce visibility and increase the time it takes to stop by up to ten times, so leave plenty of time and space between you and the vehicle in front. If your vehicle starts to lose its grip in wet conditions, slow down by taking your foot off the accelerator. Try to avoid sudden braking or steering because this could cause you to skid and lose control.”

Wales has seen some of the most disruptive weather, with persistent and heavy rain from Thursday through to Saturday causing flooding.

Our Severe Weather Warnings for the area forecast in excess of 80 mm of rain – close to the top totals seen, with Trawsgoed in Dyfed, Wales, seeing 102.0 mm from 10am on Thursday to 10am on Saturday. This is well over its usual entire monthly average for June of 78.5mm.

With more unsettled weather to come over the next week, the public are advised to stay up-to-date with the latest forecasts and warnings from the Met Office and flood warnings from the Environment Agency.