Arctic winds send a shudder down the the spine of Britain

Getty

Travel chaos is on the way and the army is on standby - because Britain is set for a freezing February.

Air from Eastern Europe could bring temperatures down to -10C over the next few days, making this week the coldest so far this winter.

The Met Office has upgraded its severe weather warning to level three, stating that there is "100 per cent probability" of severe conditions across most of England.

In parts of the Midlands and West of England, snow has already arrived, with people in Northumberland, Yorkshire, Co Durham and Derbyshire waking up to a mini winter wonderland.

Teesdale/PA

But Dan Williams, spokesman from the Met Office, told Aol Travel that the situation is nothing like the chaos caused by bad weather in 2010. "In the current five-day forecast we're not looking at anything like December 2010 when there was widespread snow and the temperatures are nowhere near as low (they were getting down to -25C back then)."

The Met Office has issued an amber warning of snow for parts of Wales, which could get as much as 10cm of snow. South-west England will also be hit with snow and slush, and in central England temperatures will be as low as -10C at night.

Dan added the cold temperatures will bite, saying: "We're not expecting an Arctic storm - in fact during the week the weather will be relatively settled, with most places seeing calm conditions and some brighter spells - albeit cold.

Lone walker in the Penines/PA

"The reason for this is that we're seeing a high pressure sitting over the continent (Scandinavia to be precise) and that is pushing air from eastern Europe over the UK - bringing cold temperatures.

"We're expecting a cold week, with temperatures around -5C in some places, perhaps as low as -10C in isolated locations. Hard frosts will be widespread."

London might miss out on the snow, but won't be lucky enough to miss the chilly temperatures, with a low of -5C predicted.

Dan added: "It's the longest prolonged spell of colder weather we've seen this winter."

%VIRTUAL-Gallery-130118%

Sign up to our weekly newsletterFollow us on TwitterBecome a fan on Facebook