'It's a record-breaker!' We explain why this spring has been one to remember in the West Midlands
The West Midlands has experienced its sunniest spring on record, with four days of the season still to go.
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Some 630 hours of sunshine were clocked up across the country, including our region, between March 1 and May 27, according to provisional figures from the Met Office.
This beats the previous record of 626 hours set in 2020.
It means seven of the top 10 sunniest springs have all occurred since the year 2000.
Met Office data for sunshine began in 1910.
Last year the UK saw only 377 hours of sunshine across March, April and May, making it one of the dullest springs on record.
Met Office scientist Emily Carlisle said: “We all remember the exceptionally sunny spring of 2020, but that title has now been surpassed by the spring of 2025.
“It has indeed been an extremely sunny and dry spring for the majority, but with a few days left of the season and more unsettled weather this week, it’s too early to say what will happen with other records.”
Figures for rainfall are due to be published by the Met Office later this week.
They are likely to show the UK has experienced one of its driest ever springs, despite heavy downpours in some areas in recent days.
Earlier this month, the Environment Agency said North West and North East England had both seen their driest start to a calendar year since 1929, while England as a whole, including the West Midlands, had endured its driest February to April period since 1956.
This was before the recent rainfall, however.
England’s overall reservoir storage stood at 84 per cent at the end of April, lower than at this time of year in the drought summer of 2022.
Storage levels at reservoirs serving the West Midlands in Severn Trent Water's region were at 79.1 per cent of capacity on Monday . The figure is the lowest of the year so far and since November 18 last year when overall capacity stood at 78.7 per cent. Severn Trent said its maximum reservoir capacity is 247,708 ML (million litres). However, the current water level in its reservoirs stands at 196,022 ML.
The Environment Agency has warned of a “medium” risk of drought in England this summer without sustained rainfall.
The regulator has said there are currently no hosepipe bans planned, but it warned water companies might have to implement measures including restrictions in the months ahead.
