Three English Counties Record Wettest Winter Ever as Storms Batter UK
Provisional figures released by the Met Office have confirmed that the winter of 2025/26 was the wettest on record for three English counties. Cornwall, Leicestershire and the West Midlands all experienced unprecedented rainfall totals, breaking historical records for the season.
Record-Breaking Rainfall Across Multiple Regions
While those three counties saw their wettest winter since comparable records began in 1836, other areas came close to matching this dubious achievement. Dorset and Warwickshire recorded their second wettest winter in nearly two centuries of data collection. Meanwhile, southern England as a whole experienced its fourth wettest winter season, with rainfall totals significantly above long-term averages.
Atlantic Weather Systems Bring Persistent Downpours
The past three months saw a relentless procession of low-pressure weather systems moving across the UK from the Atlantic Ocean. These systems brought repeated outbreaks of wet and windy conditions that persisted for much of the season. January proved particularly severe, with three named storms – Goretti, Ingrid and Chandra – all delivering heavy downpours to numerous areas.
The impact of these storms was substantial, leading to widespread flooding and significant travel disruption across affected regions. Although drier and sunnier conditions finally arrived towards the end of February, the damage had already been done to seasonal rainfall totals.
National and Regional Variations in Rainfall
At a national level, no records were broken for the United Kingdom as a whole. The country accumulated 390.1mm of rain during winter 2025/26, which represents 13% above the long-term seasonal average. However, this total remains well below the all-time high of 539.9mm set during the exceptionally wet winter of 2014.
There were significant regional disparities in rainfall patterns across the UK. England received 42% more rain than usual over the past three months, while Scotland finished the winter season 14% below its seasonal average. Within England itself, a clear geographical divide emerged, with northern regions experiencing 17% above average rainfall compared to a substantial 58% above average in southern areas.
"The wet conditions were particularly pronounced across southern and central England," explained the Met Office in their analysis. "Saturated ground from early season rainfall left these areas more sensitive to impacts from further wet weather."
Wider UK Rainfall Patterns
The wet weather extended beyond England's borders, though with varying intensity. Northern Ireland received 27% more rain than its long-term average for the winter season, while Wales experienced rainfall totals 20% above normal levels. These figures highlight how Atlantic weather systems affected different parts of the British Isles to varying degrees.
The combination of record-breaking rainfall in specific counties, near-record totals in others, and significantly above-average precipitation across much of England has made this winter one of the wettest in recent memory for many communities. The data underscores the variable nature of British weather patterns and the increasing frequency of extreme weather events affecting different regions.
