Leeds weather: Met Office forecast for December and Christmas day - will it be a white Christmas?

Whether you’re planning your Christmas day festivities, or you’re wondering what the weather might be like for a Boxing Day stroll around Roundhay Park, the Met Office has released its long range forecast for the Christmas period. However, those who are desperate to see a white Christmas may have to wait another year as the temperatures still look to be remaining fairly mild as we go into December.

The Met Office has released the first glimpse of a Christmas Day forecast, although it says that “confidence remains low for this period” as we are still almost a month away from the big day so it could still change. The Met Office predicts that going into December the weather will remain settled with a chance of showers.

During the lead up to Christmas Day, the Met Office predicts that the weather will be settled with possible colder temperatures expected.

Met Office weather forecast for Leeds in December

Friday, December 2 - Sunday, December 11

The Met Office predicts that Friday morning is set to begin with some early morning mist or fog, although this will quickly clear with many areas remaining cloudy. It is thought that the settled weather will continue but with a chance of showers and possibly some more persistent rain to the west.

Temperatures are expected to trend a little below average through the start of December with easterly winds which could make it feel somewhat cooler.

Monday, December 12 - Monday, December 26

Confidence remains low for this period but conditions are expected to be more settled, with the potential for high pressure. However the Met Office predicts that we may see a return to frontal systems moving in from the west, with drier interludes between.

Whilst temperatures may average out close to normal overall, colder conditions are possible at times, with a risk of overnight frost and fog higher than normal.

Will it be a white Christmas?

The Met Office website says that although Christmas is associated with snowy wintery scenes and snowball fights in the street, Christmas is only at the beginning of the period when it’s likely to snow. Experts say that we are in fact more likely to see snow between January and March than in December, with snow or sleet falling an average 3.9 days in December, compared to 5.3 days in January, 5.6 days in February and 4.2 days in March.

What is a white Christmas?

The definition that the Met Office uses to define a white Christmas is for one snowflake to be observed falling in the 24 hours of December 25 somewhere in the UK. Traditionally the Met Office used a single location in the country to define a white Christmas, which was the Met Office building in London.

However, with the increase in betting on where will see a white Christmas, the number of locations have increased and can now include sites such as Buckingham Palace, Belfast (Aldergrove Airport), Aberdeen (Pittodrie Stadium, Aberdeen FC), Edinburgh (Castle), Coronation Street in Manchester and the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.