No significant rain forecast for at least a week as UK heatwave continues

Image source, BBC Weather Watchers / Yen Milne By Ben Rich Lead Weather Presenter Published 2 minutes ago Heatwave conditions are set continue in many areas of the UK over the next few days - with some parts on course to have gone almost a month without any measurable wet weather. Large swathes of England have so far recorded 0% of the rainfall they would normally expect in July, with Wisley in Surrey having gone 26 consecutive days without any. Rainfall in Wales and Northern Ireland is also far below average. More than eight million households in England are now living under hosepipe bans while the ongoing dry weather means a continued risk of wildfires, with blazes already in areas including Greater Manchester and Conwy. High pressure will dominate the UK forecast for at least the next week, with highs of up to 33C possible in southern England, meaning rain will be in very short supply. A hot, dry summer so far High temperatures have been hitting the headlines so far this summer, setting numerous records: New UK June temperature record: 37.7C at Lingwood, Norfolk, surpassing the previous record of 35.6C from 1976 New record for number of days reaching 35C or above: six days this summer so far, surpassing the previous record of five days set in 1976 New record for number of days reaching 34C or above: nine days this summer so far, surpassing the previous record of eight days set in 1976 It is also the first year on record when 35C or above has been reached in three different calendar months - May, June and July. Has the British summer changed beyond recognition? Published 24 August 2025 But rainfall - or the lack of it - is also a big story of the summer. A number of places have had no measurable wet weather for around three weeks or longer. No rain for 26 days: Wisley (Surrey) No rain for 24 days: Herstmonceux (East Sussex) No rain for 20 days: Cardington (Bedfordshire), Wittering (Cambridgeshire), Odiham (Hampshire), Heathrow (London) For context, Wisley would expect to record 49.3mm (1.94in) of rain in a typical July, with Odiham seeing a monthly average of 50.8mm. Image source, BBC Weather Watchers / Bailey / Met Office Image caption, Provisional Met Office data shows that first 11 days of July brought most places less than 20% of their usual monthly rainfall. Some have seen none at all. Most areas of Wales have seen less than 10% of the usual July average, and in Northern Ireland the figure varies from 1% to 20%. The one major exception is north-west Scotland where most areas have seen 40% or more of their normal monthly rainfall. Aultbea (Highland) has already had 95% of its typical rain for July, with over half of the month remaining. At this point in the month sites would have expected to have received 35% of the months total rain. What is the forecast? High pressure will remain close to the UK for the rest of this week. This will keep widespread rainfall at bay meaning most areas remain largely, or completely, dry. A few showers and thu