text: Britain is looking forward to another week of glorious weather as bookmakers revealed this spring is now odds-on to be the warmest on record. On what is expected to be another unseasonably warm week, forecasters say temperatures in the South could reach  23C (73F) by Wednesday. People have made the most of the sunny weather this weekend by heading to beaches and parks across the UK, with Brighton particularly busy. The best temperatures at 2pm today were 16.2C (61.2F) at Achnagart in the Scottish Highlands, followed by 14.5C (58.1F) in Plymouth, Devon. Scroll down for video . On the water: Friends Katherine Salsbury and Jess Girling  go paddle-boarding on the Solent off Hampshire in the warm sunshine today . Flower girl: Six-year-old Freya Burgess lies a field of cowslips today near Shepton Mallet in Somerset today . First steps: Lamborghini (left) walks at the Cattle Country Adventure Park in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, after receiving specialist care . But incoming high tides and strong winds have prompted five flood alerts to be in place today - for Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Bristol and Cumbria. Meanwhile Ladbrokes has cut its odds on this spring being the warmest on record to 4/6, while it is offering 2/1 on this summer being the hottest ever. Punters can also get 5/1 that the mercury will hit 100F (37.8C) in 2015, or 4/1 that the April record of 29.4C (84.9F) set in 1949 will be broken this year. Today will bring cloudy weather for central and eastern Britain with sunny spells and the chance of light showers, but it will be dry and bright elsewhere. And tonight will be fairly cloudy for the centre of the country with the possibility of showers, while most other areas of the UK will be dry with clear spells. Three-day forecast: Today will bring cloudy weather for central and eastern Britain with sunny spells and the chance of light showers . Absolutely soaking wet: Daniel Willcox cools down in a fountain at Southsea Splash Pool in Hampshire today . Jogging: A man and woman run through an avenue of cherry trees coming into blossom at Greenwich Park in south-east London today . Forecasters expect the South to reach 17C (63F) tomorrow, 21C (70F) on Tuesday, 23C (73F) on Wednesday and 20C (68F) on Thursday. Tomorrow will see mist and low cloud disperse from most parts of Britain in the morning to leave a bright day with sunny spells and patchy cloud. Met Office meteorologist Emma Sillitoe said yesterday: 'It is definitely very warm for this time of year as it should be around 12C (54F).' The South East and South West are already on course for their sixth hottest April since records began in 1910, according to Met Office figures. Surface chart: This Met Office graphic shows how high pressure is dominating this weekend in Britain with temperatures in the mid teens . Incoming high tides and strong winds: Five flood alerts are in place today - for Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Bristol and Cumbria . Some 93 hours of sunshine - up 20 hours on the average - have brightened the UK already this month, but the South West is on flood watch today. Very high tides lashed by strong winds may hit seaside towns and villages along the south Devon coast this weekend, the Environment Agency said. Yesterday’s top temperature in the UK was 17.6C (63.7F) - observed in Achnagart in the Highlands and Pembrey Sands in Carmarthenshire. But that was still some way off last Wednesday’s 2015 UK high of 25.1C (77.1F) in Kent, making it the warmest April day in the UK for four years. Parts of Britain could face a drought as the Met Office cut its rain forecast following last week's heatwave. The unseasonably high temperatures last week saw highs of more than 25C (77F) in the South East - nearly double the average for this time of year. And forecasters warned that initial figures suggest that so far this month Britain has only seen 35 per cent of the average rainfall for April. The dry spell follows months of below-average rainfall and conditions are not expected to bring significant showers before May's arrival. Met Office meteorologist Emma Sillitoe said: ‘We are over halfway through the month but we've had around a third of the rainfall we get on average. ‘Over the next week temperatures are going to stay above average for most parts of the country, with the high pressure lasting until the weekend.’ Weather data for the year so far shows national rain fall has been significantly lower than average nearly every month. The year got off to a soggy start, with January seeing 20 per cent more rain than average but then 13 per cent less than usual fell in February. Last month the figure was 5 per cent below average. The Environment Agency said: ‘River and groundwater levels across England are healthy.’
target: Ladbrokes offering 4/6 on spring 2015 being warmest on record and 2/1 on this summer being the hottest ever .
  Today will be cloudy in central and eastern UK with  chance of showers, but it will be dry and bright elsewhere .
  Forecasters say temperatures in the South could reach 17C tomorrow, 21C on Tuesday and 23C on Wednesday .
  But five Environment Agency flood alerts are in place for Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Bristol and Lancashire .