A forecast of another unpredictable summer ahead follows six months which have all been colder than recent averages.

Amateur weatherman Geoff Witts has been monitoring conditions in Wiltshire from his home in Steeple Ashton for more than 60 years.

He said: “Since the 1980s it has been consistently getting warmer but over the last 12 months things have actually been getting colder.

“Every month this year has been cold, which is quite unusual. Usually you might get a couple of cold months, then it warms up again, but it’s rare to have such a sustained period.

“2012 was very wet, but so far this year has actually been about average. We had a very wet January and February, but it was relatively dry after that.

“It has not been particularly cold, just damp and horrible.”