A HEAT-HEALTH alert has been issued for Somerset as temperatures are set to hit highs of 27C early next week.

The Government health alert is in place from Monday, July 29 at 9am, until Wednesday, July 31 at 11pm.

Most of Somerset will see highs of 26C on Monday, in areas including Taunton, Wellington, Glastonbury, and Bridgwater, with hotter temperatures arriving late afternoon from 4pm as the cloud cover clears.

Across the region, Tuesday is set to bring clear skies all day, with Taunton forecast highs of 25C and lows of 15C, continuing into Wednesday. 

Meanwhile, Glastonbury will have to withstand three days of 26C heat, with forecasts predicting highs for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

Weston-super-Mare will also see three solid days of sun, with highs of 26C and moderate cloud on Monday and Wednesday, and 25C on Tuesday.

Frome is set to enjoy the sunniest weather with highs of 27C forecast for Tuesday, late afternoon. On Monday it will see highs of 26C and some cloud cover earlier in the early afternoon. Wednesday will bring a cloudier but hot day, with highs remaining at 26C.

In Minehead temperatures are not set to rise more than 24C during the three-day heat-health alert. Watchet will enjoy a 25C day on Monday.

Conditions are looking increasingly warm into Monday and early next week, with the Met Office confirming that some places may reach “heatwave criteria”.

Heatwave criteria is when a location records a period of at least three consecutive days with daily maximum temperatures meeting or exceeding the heatwave temperature threshold which varies by county.

Deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office David Hayter said: “As we go through the weekend, the jet stream will weaken to the west of the UK, generating an area of high pressure that will slowly move in across the UK.

“High pressure means the air is sinking from higher in the atmosphere and that brings drier, settled and sunnier weather.

“Temperatures will rise too, becoming widely above average. We could see maxima of 27C in the South and 25C in the North East by Sunday.

“There’s a bit more in the way of patchy cloud in Northern Ireland, south and west Scotland and the Northern Isles, so temperatures will be lower there.”

Earlier in the week, Met Office forecaster Greg Dewhurst warned that despite the warm weather, water temperatures could be much lower.

The heat-health alert warns of probable "minor impacts across the health and social care sector"

These include the increased use of healthcare services by the vulnerable population and an "increase in risk of mortality amongst vulnerable individuals and increased potential for indoor environments to become very warm."