Weather and Climate summaries

Overview of weather across the UK for previous months, seasons and years

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UK last month

February 2026

February saw a continuation of the wet conditions that dominated January, with unsettled weather, persistent rain and temperatures around average. In the first half of the month, a south-shifted and stronger than usual jet stream funnelled frontal systems towards the UK, and a block of cold air over Scandinavia prevented them from progressing eastwards. The blocking air shifted in the second half of the month, allowing a more typical westerly flow over the UK, but the weather remained unsettled. Not all areas saw extensive rainfall, however, with northwest Scotland particularly dry due to a pronounced rain-shadow effect. Temperatures were around average to slightly below average at times, but increased in the last week of the month, reaching 18.7°C in Kew Gardens (London) on the 25th. However, the wet conditions remained for the entirety of the month.

It was a wet month for many, with some counties including Angus, Dorset and Worcestershire seeing more than the full month’s average rainfall within the first 14 days of the month. By the end of the month, the UK had provisionally recorded 123% of the long-term average February rainfall and England had seen 170% of the average, although neither broke any records. There were strong regional variations, with Scotland and particularly western Scotland experiencing below average rainfall. Worcestershire provisionally saw its wettest February on record, and Leicestershire saw its second wettest. All counties in Northern Ireland recorded above average rainfall, with County Down provisionally seeing its seventh wettest February on record as well as a new February highest daily rainfall record for Northern Ireland on the 5th, with 140mm of rainfall recorded at Trassey Slievenaman. Temperatures were variable, with a few colder spells mid-month before a milder spell in the last few days of February. The UK’s mean temperature was provisionally 1.5°C above the long-term average, and England was even warmer: 2.1°C above the average. Scotland and Northern Ireland saw slightly cooler temperatures, with provisional anomalies of 0.6°C and 0.8°C respectively. Sunshine, unsurprisingly, was in short supply in February – the UK overall provisionally recorded just 41.6 hours of sunshine, 58% of the long-term average and the fourth dullest February on record. Wales provisionally recorded its dullest February with just 35.1 hours of sunshine.

The UK monthly extremes were as follows: A maximum temperature of 18.7°C was recorded at Kew Gardens (London) on the 25th. A minimum temperature of -10.0°C was recorded at Tomintoul (Banffshire) on the 18th. In the 24 hours ending at 0900 UTC on the 6th, 140.0mm of rain fell at Trassey (Down). A wind gust of 57 knots (66 mph) was recorded at Aberdaron (Gwynedd) on the 20th.

Regional values for February 2026