Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) moved to Weather Warning status in central southern England on 30 December 2024, ahead of high winds forecast to cross the region on New Year's Day. The distribution network operator said the change reflected an increased level of preparedness and its latest assessment of the weather's potential impact over a 24-hour period1.
SSEN said winds arriving from the south west would move across the region from early morning on Wednesday 1 January, with gusts increasing into the afternoon. It gave forecast speeds of over 50mph inland and up to 70mph in coastal areas, and said these brought the potential for damage to the electricity network and power cuts1. The Met Office has issued its own Yellow Weather Warnings for wind over the coming days, SSEN added1.
"We're moving to Weather Warning status in central southern England as high winds are forecast to move across the region on New Year's Day."
The operator said it was activating contingency plans and bringing in additional teams to deal with any damage to the network and subsequent faults that could interrupt supplies. It said it would keep monitoring forecasts and issue further updates depending on them1.
SSEN directed customers to its Power Track map for details of power cuts and restoration times, and to the 105 number for reporting loss of supply or damage to its equipment. It asked anyone who sees damage to stay back and not touch it1. Households can check which network covers their address using our guide to finding your gas and electricity network by postcode, and our page on who fixes a power cut and the 105 number explains how faults are handled.
SSEN also set out who is eligible for its Priority Services Register, which it said is free to all users. The categories it listed are:
| Eligible for SSEN's Priority Services Register1 |
|---|
| Deaf or hard of hearing |
| Have a disability |
| Live with children under five |
| Blind or partially sighted |
| Have a chronic illness |
| Use medical equipment or aids reliant on electricity |
| Over 60 |
Registration is by phone on 0800 294 3259 or through SSEN's website1. Our guide to network operator support schemes during power cuts covers how these registers work across the operators, and SSEN: networks, storms and priority services sets out the company's role in the wider national supply picture.
Why it matters for households
A status change of this kind is a signal about the network rather than about any individual property. Overhead lines in central southern England are exposed to wind, and gusts at the speeds SSEN forecasts can bring down conductors or bring trees and debris into contact with them, which is what produces localised outages. For a household, the practical effect is that supply may be interrupted without warning on 1 January, and that restoration in the worst affected areas can take longer than a routine fault because engineers may be dealing with multiple incidents at once.
The Priority Services Register matters most where a loss of supply carries a health or safety dimension, such as reliance on mains-powered medical equipment. SSEN has not said how many customers are registered, and it has not reported any expected number of properties affected by the forecast winds. It has also not published any estimate of restoration times, since no faults had occurred at the time of its announcement.
For homes that already have backup power, the relevant question in a wind event is usually how long a battery or generator can carry the loads that matter, and how that compares with the duration of a typical storm-related outage. Our comparison of backup power costs sets out the options and their running characteristics.
What happens next
SSEN said it would continue to monitor the weather forecast closely and issue further updates depending on it1. The high winds are forecast to move across central southern England from early morning on Wednesday 1 January, with gusts increasing into the afternoon1. The Met Office has issued Yellow Weather Warnings for wind over the coming days1.