Office for National Statistics

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Climate Change
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Climate and weather

The UK’s warming has been broadly consistent with, though slightly higher than, the increases in global mean temperature. The decade from 2011 to 2020, was 1.1°C warmer on average than the 1961 to 1990 average.

Source: Met Office

The decade from 2011 to 2020 was on average 9% wetter than the period 1961 to 1990. Six of the UK’s ten wettest years in a series going back to 1862 have occurred since 1998: in order of wettest 2000, 2020, 2012, 1998, 2008 and 2014.

Source: Met Office

The UK’s warming climate has seen the average growing season length increase. The average growing season in the decade 2011 to 2020 was 29 days longer than the 1961 to 1990 average.

Source: Met Office

  1. The thermal growing season is based on temperature. It is the number of days between the first 6-day period of daily mean temperatures above 5 degrees C and the first 6-day period after 1 July where the daily mean temperature is below 5 degrees C.

The four nations of the UK follow a similar trend to the UK mean annual temperatures. With England having on average higher temperatures and Scotland the lowest.

Source: Met Office

For more extensive information on the UK’s climate and weather, please refer to the Met Office website