Heat health alerts issued as temperatures set to reach 30C with drought declared
The UKHSA said the heat could have minor effects on health and social care services, with vulnerable people facing a higher risk of serious illness or death
Yellow heat health alerts have come into force across central and southern England, with temperatures forecast to reach 30C in some areas.
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The alerts, issued by the UK Health Security Agency, cover the East and West Midlands, eastern England, London, the South East and South West.
They are in place from 09:00 BST on Friday until 09:00 on Sunday.
The UKHSA said the heat could have minor effects on health and social care services, with vulnerable people facing a higher risk of serious illness or death.
Central, southern and eastern England are expected to see temperatures widely reach 25C to 28C on Friday, with a few places reaching 30C.
Parts of east Wales could also reach the high 20s, while temperatures in northern England and elsewhere in Wales are expected to sit between 20C and 25C.
Scotland and Northern Ireland are also expected to be warm, with highs of 19C to 23C.
Most areas will see sunshine, although north-west Scotland is expected to have thicker cloud and patchy rain later on Friday.
Temperatures are expected to fall gradually over the weekend as fresher north-westerly winds return.
By Sunday afternoon, highs are forecast to range from 16C in northern Scotland to 25C in south-east England.
The change is expected to end heatwave conditions which have lasted for 19 days in Usk, Monmouthshire, and Exeter, Devon.
The weekend is also expected to bring some rain, although forecasters say it will not be enough to make a major difference to drought-hit areas.
A drought was declared across large parts of north and mid-Wales on Thursday.
The rest of Wales, along with much of central, southern and eastern England, remains in the “prolonged dry weather” category - one level below drought.
Hosepipe bans are already in place for millions of customers.
Weather fronts are expected to bring some rain over the weekend, with up to 20mm possible over higher ground in north-west Scotland.
But rainfall is likely to be much more limited across southern and eastern parts of the UK, with many areas of England and Wales seeing only a few millimetres - if any at all.
Wisley in Surrey has now gone more than a month without rain, and may not see any significant wet weather this weekend.
Forecasters say any rain that does fall is unlikely to bring much relief to the dry ground or ease drought conditions across large parts of England and Wales.
Looking ahead, computer models suggest Scotland, Northern Ireland and north-west England could see their most significant rainfall for weeks next week.
But high pressure may rebuild in the south-east, allowing hot and dry weather to return across much of England and Wales.
Temperatures could climb back into the 30s, with heatwave conditions potentially returning.