Shropshire weather goes from warming to warning
What a difference a year makes. It might seem that September marks the end of summer, but it isn't always that way.
This time last year we were basking in the glorious Shropshire sunshine, with temperatures in the mid 20s.
The Indian summer broke records in some parts of the country and was welcomed by outdoor attractions in the West Midlands for extending the summer season and bringing in much-needed extra revenue.
But, as this relatively unconvincing summer comes to an end, the same cannot be said for 2017.
Grey skies and impromptu showers grace the skies – with any hopes of topping up the tan looking bleak until next time around.
In September 2016, the region had 133 hours of sunshine throughout the month, much more than expected.
Water features in parks across the region, like Wolverhampton's Tettenhall Pool and Shrewsbury's Quarry, were alive to the sound of children.
Now those attractions are empty and unused – and are unlikely to be used in anger again until the weather perks up in the spring of 2018.
The forecast remains for it to be cool and changeable. That is bad news for outdoor events, like the weekend's Heritage Open Days in which people huddled for warmth at a Proms in the Park at Haden Hill House at the weekend.
At Weston Park, coping with the British weather is all part of the routine for staff.
Megan Haddaway, marketing and PR co-ordinator said: "With kids off school, we have found people consistently wanting to enjoy time outdoors despite the gloomy weather we’ve had near the end of this summer.
"Our highly popular Wonders of the Woodlands discovery workshops have been indoors so visitors haven’t been deterred.
"Now we turn into autumn, our opening times have changed slightly. The schools are back so people are looking to autumn anyway. We now find visitors are still enjoying coming out for walks with the family.
"We also have fairies now hiding in the woodland – another great reason for kids to wrap up warm and get outdoors.
"We hope that people with embrace the Great British weather and continue to visit us until we close for the season at the end of October."
The disappointing end to the summer has happened because the jet streams have slipped south. That means Atlantic weather fronts are being forced across the UK, bringing with them wet and windy weather.
This week is likely to continue in the same vein, with temperatures in the day likely to be languishing at around 14C (52F) by the end of the week.
With winter just around the corner, the West Midlands has seen some remarkably low temperatures recorded in the past.
Newport has the lowest ever recorded temperature in England with -26.1C on January 10, 1982.
