The Met Office is searching for storm names for the 2021/22 season and the British public are being called in to help by nominating a name.

A statement on the Met Office website reads: "Does your Uncle James move like a whirlwind? Does your best friend cause an impact wherever they go? Now you can give them the recognition they deserve, by naming a storm after them."

The Met Office is in partnership with Met Éireann in Ireland and KNMI in the Netherlands.

The groups have been working together to name storms in recent years in order to help the media and public communicate more effectively.

Head of Civil Contingencies at the Met Office Will Lang said: “It’s great to go out to the UK public to get some suggestions of names. It’s incredibly important that everyone understands the potential impacts of severe weather and if having the public submit names for our next round of storms helps them engage in the subject then it’s a great way of raising awareness. 

“When storms come, we are obviously at the forefront of assessing its impacts on the people of the UK, and communicating that information succinctly is incredibly important during those times. That’s why storms need names, so people, the media and our meteorologists can better speak about potential impacts when a storm is in the forecast.  

“Name our storms is also a great example of international collaboration and we look forward to working further with Met Éireann and KNMI during the next storm season to help keep the public safe.” 

What is the criteria for picking a storm name?

As part of the naming process, each of the three meteorological organisations get to name selected letters in the alphabet, reflecting the diversity of the three countries naming the storms.

Names are selected for each letter of the alphabet, except for Q, U, X, Y and Z, in keeping with storm naming conventions.  

How to nominate a storm name?

To nominate a storm name all you need to do is head to the Met Office call for names page. 

People can submit as many suggestions as they choose and also have the option of adding a reason for their suggestion to help it in consideration. 

The Met Office will then choose from some of the most popular names suggested.  

When the criteria for naming a storm are met, either the Met Office, Met Éireann or KNMI can name a storm, providing it hasn’t already been named by another European meteorological group.

When will you know if your name has been chosen?

Entries will close on June, 28 2021.

Once the storm names are all submitted, the Met Office will work with Met Éireann and KNMI to determine the definitive list of storm names for the 2021/22 storm season, which will begin at the start of September 2021.