PEOPLE in Worcestershire are being advised to prepare for a big chill at the end of this week.

After a mild week, temperatures are due to plummet on Friday and are expected to produce a frost on Friday night and into the early hours of Saturday.

But unlike Scotland and the North East of England, Worcester is not going to see any snow, according to Worcester News weather expert Paul Damari.

“The snow will fall in Scotland and the North East of England on Friday,” Mr Damari said.

“We will have a dry day with sunshine which will lead us into frost on Friday night.

“There will be quite strong winds gusting up to 40mph and it is enough to give a significant wind chill factor.

“I would ask people to keep an eye on their elderly neighbours.

“Because of the credit crunch, some people may be cutting back on their heating.”

He said he expects the cold weather to linger over the weekend but believes it will move away eastwards and allow for more milder air from the Atlantic to dominate.

“I think this will be the theme this winter – short cold spells and then a return to the Atlantic flow,” said Mr Damari.

Temperatures are expected to range from 10C to 13C (50F to 55F) for most of the week – the average for this time of the year is 9C (48F) – before dropping to 0C (32F) on Friday.