Pictures show crowds packing one of Kent’s most popular beaches as temperatures soar – with bosses at a famous ice cream shop declaring the official start of summer.

Viking Bay is today flooded as thousands of people take to the Broadstairs sands to soak up the heat and cool off among the waves.

Morelli's Gelato manager Richard Mann hailed the day the start of summer and said the atmosphere on the seafront was happy and fun.

“By the looks of things, it seems like summer is finally here,” said Mr Mann, 32.

“We saw floods of people coming down from the train station and now the beach is so packed, you can hardly get in edgewise.

“People are all down on the beach going crazy, having fun and enjoying themselves.”

Mr Mann added that he was expecting a spike in business today as Thanet residents and visitors look to his historic ice cream shop for refreshments on one of the hottest days of the year so far.

“Normally it starts getting really busy when people start coming off the beach – right now it’s the calm before the storm inside Morelli's.”

Many parts of the UK are set to experience a mini-heatwave today and tomorrow with the mercury expected to rises above 30 degrees.

Some places in the county such as Gravesend, Dover and Maidstone are forecast to be as hot as Ibiza and the Algarve.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the Met Office on Wednesday issued a 54-hour heat health warning for Kent.

The agencies say there are likely to be “minor impacts” across the health and care sector, including a higher risk of mortality amongst vulnerable people and the potential for indoor environments to become very warm.

Cooler conditions are expected to arrive on Sunday.

Speaking in the Met Office's 10-Day Trend video on YouTube, meteorologist Annie Shuttleworth said: “For the last few weeks, we've been on the northern side of the jet stream and over the next few days, its position will change.

“It becomes a more amplified pattern, diving down well to the south of the UK and taking low pressure systems up to the north and west of the UK.

“But, as we head towards the weekend, Sunday most likely, will see the return of the stronger jet core to affect the UK, meaning it is going to turn a bit more unsettled and certainly cooler again.”