What a difference a year makes – from sunshine to snowflakes

Just a year ago Derby was basking in the hottest temperatures the city had enjoyed in March for half a century.

Back then, temperatures hit 22C. Now, the mercury has sunk to below freezing, allowing sunglasses and flip-flops to continue their already prolonged hibernation.

Today, Derbyshire is expected to be buried in 5-15cm of snow.

But a year ago, during the same March week, daffodils were photographed with blue skies and grass. Now, the yellow flowers are drowning in white.

Snowballs are being thrown in place of Frisbees and ice-cream sales have melted away compared to last year's figures.

In the fields, lambs sought shelter and passers-by had snowmen to look at instead.

Many children were pleased to see more snow as it meant an extended weekend. But their parents' desire for sun may now be at its greatest.

But there is hope.

In the same way huge contrasts can be seen in the weather from one week to the same period the following year, Spring 2012 proved the skies can also change drastically within a few days.

Records show only one week separated the hot weather at the end of March last year and the 20cm of snow that fell in Derbyshire in early April.

This time last year, Calke Abbey was heaving with families out enjoying the sun.

Yesterday, bosses at the attraction were forced to cancel a kite-flying day due to the snow. The Met Office said Derbyshire will wake up to 5-15cm of snow this morning – and that the good news was not much more would fall over the weekend.

"There is potential for slight snow flurries to fall during Saturday but these will die off in the evening.

"The only snow we're expecting on Sunday is in the south-west of the country, although temperatures in Derbyshire will struggle to get much above freezing throughout the weekend."

Yesterday, people woke to snow that had fallen overnight.

By about 10am, 128 schools in Derby, Derbyshire and East Staffordshire had announced their closure because of the weather

There were also numerous disruptions on the roads throughout the morning.

The A53 Leek road was closed in both directions because of snow, along with the A54 Cat and Fiddle road between Bosley Crossroads in Bosley and Buxton.

The A515 in Great Cubley, near to the Derby Lane junction, was also snow-bound, making the going treacherous, as was the A57 Snake Pass between Royal Oak Inn, Glossop, and Ladybower Reservoir in Bamford.

There were also problems with the conditions on the A517 in Ashbourne near to the A515 junction and on the A628 Woodhead Pass.

Accidents affected roads near New Mills and Horsley Woodhouse, although police said they had not had any serious collisions reported to them.

In East Staffordshire, gritting teams were out on the roads through yesterday and into today to keep routes clear.

Mike Maryon, Staffordshire County Council's highways and transport leader, said: "Our gritting teams have been working around the clock and will continue throughout today and into the weekend.

"People should drive with extreme caution if they really need to travel as drifting is causing particular problems.

"While the snow has not been as heavy as predicted, we are expecting more later throughout the night into Saturday.

"We would advise against travelling unless absolutely necessary but, if you do need to travel, make sure you are properly prepared for the journey.

"Check the weather forecast and listen to local radio for updates."

Derbyshire County Council said it was gritting roads throughout the day, with rounds last night starting at 4pm, 7.30pm and midnight.

A spokeswoman said most roads were "passable with care".

However, not everyone made it into work.

Rob Bradford, from Kilburn, tweeted: "No gritting here, decided to work from home."

Derbyshire County Councillor John Harrison said he had been due in London but decided not to travel in light of the bad weather.