More persisent snow was also seen in Brockenhurst, where Wilverley Inclosure was covered in snow around 3.30pm. Scattered flakes also hit roads in Hedge End. In Southampton city centre, ...

Snow was also seen in Brockenhurst, Hordle and Hedge End, but only in showers mixed with rain. Horses and ponies were covered in snow - see more photos in the gallery at the top of the article.

ACTION is being taken to combat the problems being caused by hordes of people converging on a New Forest beauty spot in hot weather.

The roads coped well with the snow storm, although over in the New Forest a car skidded across Burley Road near Brockenhurst and flipped over onto a verge. Police confirmed no-one was injured.

Heavy downpours left roads in Brockenhurst in the New Forest impassable and hit train services. South West Trains said the line between Bournemouth and Brockenhurst had been shut because of flooding.

Traces of human presence in Brockenhurst stretch back to the Bronze Age, around 4,000 years ago. Burial mounds, or tumuli, scattered across the landscape bear silent witness to these early residents.