Blizzard conditions look to set to avoid Scotland until early next week while England and Wales are on alert for heavy snow this weekend, according to forecasters.
Friday is expected to be cold, windy and bright across Scotland with flurries of snow predicted over Dumfries and Galloway, Aberdeenshire and Angus, leaving a couple of centimetres of snow, but forecasters warn worse is yet to come.
From Friday night and through to the weekend there will be more widespread snowfall which will cover most of the country.
Paul Mott, a meteorologist for MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said: "Through the day Scotland will miss the worst of the snow on Friday, most of that will be moving northwards over England and Wales. For Scotland it will be cold, windy and bright. Overnight into Saturday snow showers will probably become more widespread. There will be a covering for most areas but probably only between 3 to 5cms for most areas. There's likely to be more over the hills of Dumfries and Galloway, Aberdeenshire and Angus where there could be 5 to 8cms of snow."
Monday and Tuesday of next week present the potential of heavy snow for the country with the east predicted to face the worst of it.
Mr Mott said: "Temperatures are expected to remain low and there is a risk we could see some heavy snow in eastern areas on Monday and Tuesday."
With the mercury is predicted to stay below zero throughout the weekend dipping as low as 8 degrees Celsius difficult driving conditions are expected, especially in the north-east which has been worst hit by the snow so far.
The train operator East Coast has made provisions for the bad weather urging passengers to check forecasts as well as their website (www.eastcoast.co.uk) or Twitter (@eastcoastuk) before they travel. East Coast is also encouraging customers to travel before 6pm when heavier snowfall is expected across the UK.
Advice has also been issued for home and property owners to take precautions to avoid damage. Peter Farrer, Scottish Water's Customer Service Delivery Director, said: "Customers who take action to heat, insulate and protect their properties can avoid considerable headache and heartache.
"Unfortunately, many customers found out in the winter of 2010-11 that the real problems start when temperatures begin to rise again after such a cold snap. This can lead to pipes expanding and bursting. Very often people think it won't happen to them, but there are few things more upsetting than coming home or into work to find everything ankle deep in freezing water and your carpets, furniture and equipment all ruined because of a burst pipe."
