East Anglia Climate
City Coverage: Norwich, Cambridge, Ipswich, Peterborough, Colchester, and Chelmsford
This month in numbers
East Anglia experienced its 5th warmest April on record, with a mean temperature of 10.6°C, a significant 2.8°C above the 1961–1990 baseline. The region also saw its 3rd sunniest April on record, basking in 249 hours of sunshine, which is 105 hours more than average. In stark contrast, April was exceptionally dry, ranking as the 126th driest out of 127 years on record with only 4 mm of rainfall, a deficit of 41.6 mm compared to the average. This made it the third driest April on record for East Anglia in a series dating back to 1836.
What changed
The period from February to April 2026 was the 2nd warmest on record for East Anglia, with a mean temperature of 8.6°C, a substantial 3°C above the baseline. This period also saw the 5th fewest frost days on record, with only 7 days of frost, 17 fewer than a typical winter. East Anglia's April rainfall of 4mm was just 10% of its average, making it particularly dry compared to the national picture, where England as a whole received 38% of its average April rainfall. This regional dryness was a notable contrast to parts of north-west Scotland, which experienced above-average rainfall during the first half of April. East Anglia currently sits 71st of 234 regions globally for its 1-month temperature anomaly and 40th for its 3-month anomaly.
What’s driving change?
The significantly warmer and drier conditions in East Anglia this spring are influenced by several factors. A persistent high-pressure system frequently kept rain-bearing systems away from southern and eastern England, leading to the notably low rainfall totals. The current ENSO state is Neutral, with an anomaly of +0.11°C for February-April 2026, meaning its influence on regional weather patterns is currently muted. However, the NOAA CPC forecast indicates a 61% chance of El Niño developing by May-July 2026, increasing to 87% by July-September 2026. ENSO tracker
Looking ahead
The evolving El Niño phase in the coming months suggests a potential for cooler late winters in northern Europe, though very strong El Niños have historically led to warmer winters.
Generated by Gemini from climate data and web sources
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Data Sources
Data Sources for East Anglia
Every figure on this page is sourced from official, openly published climate datasets. Anomalies are calculated against the 1961–1990 baseline (temperature) and 1991–2020 (rainfall, sunshine, frost) — see the Methodology & Sources page for the complete dataset list and update calendar.
FAQs
FAQs
How is the climate in East Anglia changing?
East Anglia is warming in line with the rest of the world. The page above shows the latest monthly temperature anomaly versus the 1961-1990 baseline, the long-term annual trend, and the region's rank in the historical record. The trend rate is shown as °C per decade in the headline panel; you can also see the warmest and coolest years on file.
Where does the climate data for East Anglia come from?
Climate data for East Anglia comes from the UK Met Office HadUK-Grid (temperature, rainfall, sunshine, air frost), refreshed every month, when the upstream temperature and rainfall data are refreshed.
What is the climate baseline used on this page?
Anomalies on this page are calculated against the 1961-1990 climatological baseline, which is the standard reference period used by the Met Office, NOAA, IPCC and most national climate services. Some panels also show the source-native 1901-2000 (NOAA) or 1991-2020 (WMO) baselines for verification. See Methodology & Sources for the full reference.
Which areas does the East Anglia climate data cover?
The East Anglia climate profile covers Norwich, Cambridge, Ipswich, Peterborough and surrounding areas. East Anglia climate data across East Anglia and nearby eastern cities
How often is the East Anglia climate update refreshed?
The East Anglia climate update is refreshed monthly, typically a few days after the previous month closes and the upstream provider (Met Office HadUK-Grid, NOAA Climate at a Glance, Copernicus ERA5 or the Global Carbon Project) publishes its update. See the Climate Rankings for cross-region comparisons.