Met Office Verdict On September Heatwave After Last Year’s Scorching Month

Brits in the North and Scotland face 26C heat this weekend but the verdict for a September heatwave to match that of 2023 is less clear, the Met Office says

The Met Office has given its verdict on a balmy September heatwave this month (Image: Getty Images)

If you’re looking for any chance of heatwave this September then head north, the Met Office says.

Chances of a last blast of summer before seeing out the season bring “divided fortunes” based on different pressure between the North and South. It comes after September last year went down as one of the warmest on UK record as 33C heat brought an ultra-rare three tropical nights.

But anyone hoping for a repeat of last year may be disappointed, with no indication of heat quite as high this time around. Met Office spokesperson Oli Claydon told The Mirror that the best chance of a heatwave would be in Scotland and the North towards the end of this week.

“The forecast is a divide in fortunes between the North and South,” he said. “The South and Wales are to see an unsettled period with spells of heavy rain at times. We’ve issued a severe weather warning for Wednesday and Thursday that continues into the weekend as well.”

“By the time we get to Friday we can see temperatures of 26C for parts of the North and Scotland. The heatwave threshold in the North is slightly less, so we might too far off nudging towards heatwave territory in parts. It’s pretty borderline.” Northern Ireland will see slightly more settled weather, but not as warm as Scotland, Oli added.

With regards to heat meeting the 30C+ mark later in the month however, Oli said there was “no indication” of a repeat of last September’s balmy heat. “It was a notable heat spell last year, which led to three tropical nights on the bounce. I believe it was the hottest September on record.

“The long range at the moment suggests the middle of the month is looking like much fresher conditions. There’s nothing to suggest any heatwave at the moment.”

Brits were hit with a record-breaking end-of-summer heatwave last year, making it the hottest September on record ( Image:

PA) It comes after the service revealed this summer to have been the chilliest in almost a decade. Met Office statistics showed mean temperatures for July and August being just 14.37C – 0.22C below the long-term meteorological average – making it the coolest since 2015.

With Storm Lilian bringing torrential downpours – being already the 12th named storm this year – summer 2024 has been somewhat of a let down. Experts said on Monday that, while rainfall levels were at average for the nation, Scotland and Northern Ireland saw a particular dampener with some Scots seeing double their average summer rainfall in August.

Met Office Scientist Emily Carlisle explained: “I don’t think it will surprise anyone that this summer has been cooler than average for the UK. Mean temperatures in both June and July were below average, with temperatures in August only slightly above.

“This was largely due to northerly winds bringing cold Arctic air to the UK in June and July, while August saw an increase in westerly winds bringing slightly warmer Atlantic air. Although we had some heatwaves and bursts of hot weather, these were fairly short-lived and conditions across the whole three months were pretty unsettled.

“August was the wettest month of the summer, with some places in Scotland experiencing double their average summer rainfall during the month and Storm Lilian bringing strong winds and heavy rain at the end.”