AN amber alert warning of cold weather in Dorset over the next few days has been triggered by the Met Office.

The Met Office says there is a 90 per cent probability of severe cold weather in the whole of the south west until 9pm on Wednesday, February 10.

A Met Office spokesperson said: “Very cold temperatures will spread to all parts of the country by the end of Sunday and into Monday morning - the coldest period of the winter so far.

"Indications are that all parts of England are going into a notable cold spell of weather as we head into the coming week with sharp overnight frosts, and temperatures near freezing by day, together with cold winds.”

The amber ‘Level 3’ alert is one of four the Met Office uses to warn of cold conditions.

It is the second highest alert that can be issued with a red ‘national emergency’ alert the most serious.

A red alert warns the impact of cold weather could affect anyone and not just those in high-risk groups.

Temperatures are set to remain around 0C over the next few days, however, the added wind chill will make it feel much colder.

According to the Met Office website, during the day on Monday the ‘feels like’ temperature will be -6C. And overnight on Tuesday, it will feel like -8C.

A three-day snow and ice warning has been issued for the whole of Dorset 12am on Monday and midday on Wednesday.

The Met Office said: “Snow showers will feed off the North Sea into many northern and eastern areas of the UK. Whilst some areas in the warning area will remain largely dry, some persistent bands of showers are likely to develop in places.

“Widespread daily accumulations of 2-5 cm are probable, with 10-15 cm plausible in areas where showers merge into more organised and prolonged spells of snow. Icy stretches will likely form widely overnight, especially in areas where there has been a partial melt of lying snow during the daytime.”