Snow: Why we hardly ever see any of the white stuff in Peterborough

It is a familiar story for Peterborough children today.

While many youngsters – especially in the north of the country – have been given a day off school because of heavy snow, here in Peterborough there is almost no evidence of wintry weather, other than the odd car roof with a sprinkling on them.

While cold weather has been forecast this week – with an amber alert for cold conditions issued – there is no sign of snow for the moment in Peterborough.

Emergency provisions to help keep rough sleepers safe in the cold weather have also been triggered by the city council.

A yellow weather warning for snow and ice has been issued by The Met Office for parts of north England, the Midlands and north Wales – and that warning reaches as far as Bourne and the edge of Stamford – but not Peterborough.

The Peterborough Telegraph has looked into the issue in the past, with ‘the Peterborough Triangle’ being blamed for our distinct lack of snow.

Trevor Pratt, from Peterborough Weather Watch, said he believed the reason for the lack of snow was the geography of the city.

He said: “Peterborough lies very low, only a few metres above the sea level, and I think that is the reason we don’t get too much snow here.

“I call it the Peterborough triangle. Whenever the national forecasts predict a number of inches of snow, I always know to reduce that, or that it will not settle.

“It is also the same with the amount of rain we get as well - we are much drier, even than places like Stamford and Grantham which are not that far away.

“Because we are just 10-15m above sea level, the freezing level for rain and snow is much higher. This means that when snow falls, it has more chance to melt before it hits the ground.

“Peterborough’s freezing level could be at 1,000 feet, while somewhere not too far away could only be at 200 feet, giving the snow much more chance to fall."

The Met Office has said that Peterborough and Cambridgeshire gets half the number of snow days than the UK average every year.

The current Met Office forecast for Peterborough this week has temperatures falling to below freezing overnight – with a ‘feels like’ temperature of -6C – but it is now set to stay dry until Saturday, when temperatures will increase.