Rural communities could be cut off and schools forced to close, with up to 20cm of snow forecast in places, the Met Office says.
Three days of heavy snow forecast across UK
BBCMuch of the UK could be set for three days of snow as temperatures plunge across the country.
A Met Office yellow warning for snow has been issued for all of England and Wales and parts of Scotland this weekend, with icy conditions forecast to continue into Monday.
It means there is a risk of rural communities being cut off, schools being closed and power cuts, as well as widespread travel disruption.
The wintry conditions will hit days after much of the UK was lashed by strong winds and heavy rain, which led to widespread flooding across the north-west of England.
The snow warning starts at noon on Saturday until 09:00 GMT on Monday and covers all regions of England apart from the South West, the majority of Wales and parts of southern Scotland.
About 5cm of snow is expected across the Midlands, Wales and northern England over the weekend, with as much as 20-30cm over high ground in Wales and the Pennines. With strong winds, some drifting may also be possible.
Parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland may also see some disruptive snow. In southern England any snow is likely to turn back to rain as milder air temporarily arrives.
Temperatures will begin to fall overnight on Wednesday, with parts of the country warned to expect icy conditions on Thursday morning and some snow expected in Scotland.
It will feel increasingly bitter as the Arctic air reaches all areas of the UK by Thursday, with a mix of sunny spells and wintry showers, paving the way for widespread snowfall across the weekend.
BBC Weather lead presenter Ben Rich warned that snow is notoriously hard to forecast, and the warning will likely be modified closer to the time as confidence in in the data behind it grows.
“With just a small change in temperature or the track of the low pressure can mean an area gets rain or sleet instead of snow,” he said.
The warnings come after many Britons saw their New Year’s celebrations accompanied by heavy rain and extensive flooding, including in Greater Manchester where a major incident was declared on New Year’s Day.
Places affected include Bolton, Didsbury, South Manchester, Harpurhey, north Manchester, Stalybridge, Stockport and Wigan.
In Cheshire, the banks of the Bridgewater Canal collapsed with water pouring into surrounding fields at Little Bollington, prompting road closures and property evacuations.
Around 90mm of rain has fallen widely across north west England over the last 24 hours with over 100mm recorded on some hills in north Wales and Cumbria.
And in London, the New Year’s Day parade suffered a short delay due to the high winds and a brief squall of torrential rain in the capital.
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