HEAVY rain which prompted severe weather warnings for parts of southern England and Wales is moving north, bringing new flood risks, forecasters said.

The Met Office issued severe weather warnings for large parts of the country from south Wales to East Anglia.

Now forecasters say as much as 40mm of rain could fall in northern England and central and southern Scotland in the next 24 hours.

MeteoGroup forecaster Brendan Jones said: "It has been pretty wet across the UK but much of the heavy rain in the south is moving its way north.

"The focus of the heavy rain will be across northern England and central and southern Scotland, with another 20 to 40mm of rain expected to fall in those areas over the next 24 hours.

"Parts of the Midlands and Yorkshire may also see some lively thunderstorms."

Environment Agency flood manager Katharine Evans said: "Following an exceptionally wet April which led to some flooding last week, rivers are high and the ground is saturated, meaning that further rainfall brings with it an increased risk of flooding."