Motorists and commuters face more winter chaos across the country, snow causes road and school closures, with weather warnings spanning most of the UK until the weekend.

Parts of southwest England, including Devon and Cornwall, have been affected by up to 10 inches (25 cm) of snow, with reports as the roads are blocked by cars as the snow continues to fall.

Much of the region is under a yellow weather warning until 3 p.m. Thursday, while a separate warning ice has been issued for the southwest – as far as Bath and extending eastwards almost to Brighton – from 5pm Thursday to 10am Friday.

The cold snap caused more than 100 schools and nurseries in Scotland to close for consecutive days, while almost 200 schools were reported to have been closed in England and Wales on Thursday.

This happens as Storm Bert, the second named storm of the seasonis due to hit the UK this weekend amid a series of other weather warnings that last until the end of the week, bringing heavy rain and snow as well as strong winds to much of the country.

The whole of Scotland is covered by a series of warnings for frequent snow showers, possible hail and icy conditions. One, set up yesterday, was active until Thursday noon while another then lasts until 12 p.m. on Friday.

Large areas of England and Wales are also subject to a new warning for snow and ice, active from Thursday 12:00 p.m. to Friday 10:00 a.m., with the Met Office warning of difficult travel conditions. Meanwhile, most of Northern Ireland is under a warning which comes into force on Thursday at 3 p.m. and also lasts until 10 a.m. the following day.

Between 2cm and 5cm (up to 2 inches) of snow is widely expected and could reach 10cm in parts of the northwest of the continent, with higher ground reaching 15cm to 20cm (up to 7cm). 9 inches) or more, according to a previous update. from the Met Office.

The AA predicted “a significant increase in workload” due to sub-zero temperatures, snow and ice, and urged drivers to check the forecast before traveling and do so with “extreme caution » in the hardest hit areas.

New yellow and orange warnings for rain, snow, ice and strong winds from SATURDAY has Sunday morning have also been released across the UK as the country prepares for the arrival of Storm Bert.

The amber alert, for heavy snow and ice, will be in force on Saturday between 7am and 5pm in an area north of Scotland’s central belt, where there is likely to be 10-20cm of height on the ground above 200 meters and potentially up to 20 to 40 cm on hills. above 400 meters.

It covers parts of Angus, Perth and Kinross, Stirlingshire, Aberdeenshire and part of the Highlands and Argyll and Bute.

Forecasters say power outages and travel disruptions are likely and there is a good chance some rural communities will be isolated.

There was already a yellow warning for heavy snow on Saturday, followed by a ‘rapid thaw’ and rain on Saturday evening in the north east and north west of England, the West Midlands, Yorkshire and much of Scotland.

Met Office spokeswoman Andrea Bishop said: “A deep area of ​​low pressure is expected to bring a period of prolonged and, at times, heavy rain to much of the UK this weekend.

“Across south-west England, rain is expected to develop on Saturday morning, with heavier rain likely later today and overnight into Sunday morning.

“Fifty to 75mm of rain is expected to fall quite widely during this period with a chance that some places on Dartmoor could receive 100 to 125mm. Strong southerly winds will accompany the heavy rains and could locally exacerbate the impacts.

Winter weather has affected education with more than 114 schools closed in the Highland Council area on Thursday due to snow, including Inverness Royal Academy where pupils were told their preliminary exams scheduled for the day would be postponed .

Nearly 40 schools in Aberdeenshire are also closed while many others have had a delayed opening, and in Moray around 12 are closed and others have opened late.

It comes after the closure of more than 100 schools or nurseries in Scotland. Wednesday because of the weather.

South of the border, 89 schools are closed on Thursday in Devon, 18 in Dorset and 60 in Cornwall, while in Wales around 10 are closed in Conwy, 18 in Denbighshire and two in Wrexham.

RAC Breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson said: “The first taste of winter means drivers are suddenly faced with some of the worst road conditions we have seen all year. With freezing temperatures already causing disruption, we advise motorists to carefully plan for the formation of ice on untreated surfaces.

RAC said on Wednesday that a sharp increase in vehicle breakdowns had been reported due to drivers’ batteries failing.

Matthew Lehnert, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “A northerly airflow will continue to feed snow showers into Scotland over the coming days, reaching lower levels at times and bringing the risk of travel disruption .

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“Nighttime temperatures will drop quite significantly below freezing, which has resulted in ice warnings, and further warnings are likely throughout this week.

“Thursday will likely see a mix of snow, sleet and rain affecting the southwest, potentially causing some disruption. It is likely that the higher reaches of the region will experience snow, with… 2-5cm of snow possible in places on the lower levels, with around 10cm possible on the upper parts of Dartmoor.

Clare Nasir, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said there would be clearer skies outside the warning areas on Thursday morning and into the afternoon, but a “severe frost” was likely before warmer temperatures. “icy” Thursday evening.