A fresh wave of storms are set to drench the south of the country throughout the day as commuters are warned of potential disruption.

Up to 40mm of rain could fall in large swathes of the country stretching from Cornwall to East Anglia as a weather front sweeps across from the continent, bringing gusts of up to 45 miles per hour to batter parts of the coast.

The Met Office has issued yellow warnings for the South West, South East and east of England and warned drivers of pools of water forming on the roads as a result of the downpours.

Laura Caldwell, a forecaster for MeteoGroup, said: "Heavy showers or rain and thundery downpours may occur across Kent and East Anglia. The rain is slow-moving and heavy in places and some areas could see some disruption.

"Most of the rain should be anywhere from Wales to Yorkshire and near that point to the rain should be patchier and nothing exciting."

A forecast on the Met Office's website said: "An area of low pressure moving north from France will bring a combination of rather persistent and sometimes heavy rainfall, as well as strong winds blowing from the North East, with gusts in excess of 40 mph in places for a time.

"The main rain area will clear from the south-east corner of England by the morning, but further heavy, slow-moving and potentially thundery showers are likely to occur. The combination of rain and wind is likely to lead to unpleasant conditions on the roads with spray and surface water, the latter perhaps exacerbated by leaves blocking drains.

"Fifteen to 25mm of rain will fall in many parts of the warning area, with a few places likely to catch in excess of 40mm, most likely over parts of south-west England and the West Country and also where showers line up into bands across east and south-east England."