Snow has started to cover parts of the UK with up to 25cm forecast to fall over Thursday.
Dozens of schools have shut as a result in northern England and North Wales, while disruption should be expected on roads and railways.
An amber weather warning is in place across the Pennines, with yellow warnings for much of northern England, large parts of Scotland up to Pitlochry and all of Northern Ireland.
UK weather latest as county closes all schools
Snow has settled particularly quickly in Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Wrexham, while Met Office spokesman Oli Claydon said earlier the worst of the weather is still to come.
“Through this morning and this afternoon, you’re more likely to see accumulations,” he added. “The snow risk tomorrow is moving much further north, and it will be a bit of a drier day.”
Sky News’ north of England correspondent Shingi Mararike, who is currently in Harden, West Yorkshire, said the snow was coming “thick and fast”.
“The scenes are postcard-like and picturesque but that does come with its dangers,” he said.
Get the weather forecast where you are
Elsewhere, Sky News national correspondent Tom Parmenter, who is in Buxton, Derbyshire, said while it is “not a great surprise to see snow in Buxton” it “has caused disruption”.
He said: “We’ve seen a lot of schools close, we’ve seen roads close and there have been quite a few nasty accidents out on the roads.”
Warnings in place
The amber warning for snow across the Peak District and South Pennines lasts until 6pm on Thursday, with up to 25cm forecast across high ground and 15cm expected “quite widely”.
A separate amber warning for snow and ice lasted until 3pm on Thursday across North Wales and northwest Shropshire, where 20-25cm of snow was forecast in areas above 200m.
A yellow rain warning covering much of southern England and southeast Wales – including London and Cardiff – will run until 6am on Friday, with 15-25mm likely and up to 45mm on higher routes.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has activated a cold health alert for the Midlands and north of England, warning of risks to infrastructure and vulnerable groups until 8pm on Thursday.
School closures have also been reported in Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cumbria.
How is Friday looking?
Snowfall is expected to ease up on Friday, but warnings are still in place.
Five yellow weather warnings for snow and ice will be in force, with two of them covering Scotland and another covering northern England and the Midlands.
Read more:
Full list of areas in the UK where it’s forecast to snow this week
Category 6 hurricane proposed amid ‘more intense’ weather
Be the first to get Breaking News
Install the Sky News app for free
Northern Ireland will also be under a yellow weather warning for snow and ice.
Meanwhile, in southern England and a section of Wales the yellow weather warning for rain lasts until 6am.
