How revellers across the region enjoyed the hottest day of the year so far

Thousands of people flocked to beaches and enjoyed the sunny weather across the region as beach goers cooled down by eating ice cream or taking a dip in the sea.

People took the opportunity to sunbath in Wells, children jumped in the splash pool at Waterloo Park in Norwich and families jumped into the swimming pool at Beccles Lido on a sizzling Friday.

Beach goers sizzle in the high temperatures at Wells-Next-the-Sea. (Image: Archant 2022)

A forecaster at Weatherquest confirmed everywhere in Norfolk was "at least 30C" with Santon Downham named as the hottest place in the county at 31.7C.

He said: "Santon Downham was the hottest place to be but Tibbenham wasn't too far behind.

"The whole region was above 30C."

Children enjoying the splash pool at Waterloo Park in Norwich (Image: Archant)

In Wells, there were hundreds of people, either enjoying a base camp from a towel near the shade or soaking up the rays on a deck chair by the town's famous beach huts.

Nick Ayers, the RNLI’s regional water safety lead for the north and east, said Friday had been busy on north Norfolk's beaches.

Mr Ayers said: "The lifeguards have been seeing fairy normal numbers at the beach this year, but certainly today and over the next couple of days we will start to see a lot more people venture down.

Rowan Thornton, 18-months-old, keeps cool as temperatures soar at Wells-Next-the-Sea. (Image: Archant 2022)

"There has been a lot of people going down after work, at 5pm or 6pm, which is totally understandable, all we ask is that they look out for each other, especially children, and be mindful of offshore wind."

In Snettisham Park, hinds and their calves took to the pond in a bid to keep cool.

Red deer take to a pond to cool down at Snettisham, as temperatures soared to 30C in Norfolk (Image: Chris Bishop)

The farm's 50-strong herd of red deer, which are descended from Scottish stock, are strong swimmers, and young calves which are thought to be only a few weeks old took a dip with their mums.

However, Norfolk is set to be in for a cooler weekend following the hottest day of the year on Friday.

Families enjoying the heatwave at Beccle Lido. (Image: Archant)

According to Weatherquest, Saturday's weather is expected to be "largely cloudy and humid".

Nationally, the Met Office confirmed the mercury reached 32.4C at Heathrow just after midday on Friday, while also predicting there could be "the hottest Royal Ascot on record" in Berkshire.

The temperature record for the year has been broken for the third consecutive day, with the previous high of 29.5C recorded at Northolt in west London on Thursday, which surpassed the high of 28.2C recorded at Kew Gardens on Wednesday.