RESIDENTS in South Lakeland, North Lancashire and North Yorkshire are on alert in case of flooding with heavy rain predicted over the next 24 hours.

The Met Office has issued an amber alert for North West England and several other parts of the country.

The Environment Agency has issued one flood alert for the region at the Lower River Lune Conder.

This warns of flood risks along the River Lune, Conder and Keer and other watercourses from Kirkby Lonsdale to Galgate including Gressingham, Carnforth, Hornby, Wray, Bentham and Lancaster.

Tony Waters, deputy chief forecaster at the Met Office, said: "We are expecting spells of very heavy and thundery rain across a wide area of the UK in the next few days, with worst affected spots likely to be in central and northern parts of the country.

"Rainfall totals could be 20-40 mm widely across warning areas, but some places could see around 100 mm of rain through Friday and into Saturday. Given the saturated ground from the record rainfall in June, this could cause significant disruption - including difficult driving conditions and flooding in some areas."

The Met Office also warned that the public should be prepared for the possibility of surface water flooding, with an increasing likelihood of river flooding, disruption to travel and outdoor activities.