England and Wales had their warmest spring since records began, a feat partly attributed to the “exceptionally early” heatwave that swept across the UK in late May.
Provisional figures from the Met Office indicate that the mean average temperature in England throughout March, April and May reached 10.41C, surpassing a previous record of 10.23C.
This marks the third consecutive year that England has registered a new warmest spring.
A meeting of the National Drought Group will be held in the next few weeks to assess the impact of the recent hot spell.
Wales saw a mean temperature of 9.73C, pushing 2025 (9.69C) into second place, with 1893 third (9.66C) and 2024 fourth (9.44C).
Scotland experienced its eighth warmest spring and Northern Ireland its joint sixth warmest, while the UK as a whole saw its third warmest.
The “exceptionally early and record-breaking spell of heat at the end of May” helped to push the seasonal mean temperature in England and Wales to its highest level since comparable data began in 1884, the Met Office said.
A high of 35.1C was provisionally measured at Kew Gardens in London on May 26, a new record for the month of May, while temperatures topped 30C six days in a row in some areas.
Amber heat-health alerts were issued for several regions of England, meaning conditions were a risk to vulnerable people and likely to put pressure on health services.
Met Office scientist Dr Emily Carlisle said: “This spring highlights both the natural variability of the UK’s weather and the longer-term warming we are observing.
“While conditions varied through the season, all three months of meteorological spring recorded mean temperatures within the UK’s top 10 warmest on record.
“While we expect fluctuations from year to year, this spring shows some of the changes we’re seeing in our weather patterns, with more extreme conditions becoming more frequent.
“The fact that nine of the 10 warmest springs in England have occurred since 2007 illustrates this ongoing shift in the UK’s climate.”
A meeting of the National Drought Group will be held in the next few weeks to assess the impact of the heatwave, the Environment Agency said.
Several counties in the south and east of England received only around a third of their average rainfall this spring, Met Office figures show.
Cambridgeshire had 35 per cent of its long-term average for the season, Essex had 34 per cent while Kent and Suffolk both had 33 per cent.
There was a clear north-south split in England, with the north receiving 90 per cent of average seasonal rainfall compared with just 50 per cent across the south.
Helen Wakeham, Environment Agency director of water and chairwoman of the National Drought Group, said: “No parts of England are currently in drought, but the risk increases the longer it remains hot and dry.
“The recent heatwave has seen significant peaks in demand for water while river flows have fallen due to the very dry spring, and reservoir levels are reducing.
“We continue to closely track the situation and have convened a National Drought Group meeting in the coming weeks, so we are prepared if the dry conditions remain.”
The group includes representatives of the Met Office, the Government, regulators, water companies, the National Farmers’ Union and the Canal & River Trust, along with anglers and conservation experts.
