Snow fell overnight across northern France, from the Belgian border to Brittany, via the greater Paris Île-de-France region, which saw between 1cm and 4cm of snow.

Authorities in the départements of Yvelines, Essonne and Val d'Oise suspended all classes and moved to distance learning, although schools will provide a minimum service for pupils who cannot stay home.

School transport has been suspended in the greater Paris départements of Yvelines, Essonne, Val d'Oise and Seine-et-Marne.

In Paris, police advised people to avoid taking the roads as much as possible and the N118 is closed to all traffic, while vehicles heavier than 7.5t are banned from major routes across the Île-de-France region.

Bus and train transport in the region is disrupted, but Metro and tram services were reported as running normally.

Roads are also closed in Brittany, which has seen falls of 10cm in some areas.

Around 200 lorries are blocked on the N12 between Brest and Rennes. Another 50 lorries are blocked on the N164 near Carhaix and drivers are advised to travel only if their journey is vital.

In total 36 départements are on orange alert for snow, ice and very cold temperatures, they are; Finistère, Morbihan, Côtes-d'Armor, Ille-et-Vilaine, Mayenne, Sarthe, Loir-et-Cher, Loiret, Yonne, Côte-d'Or, Doubs, Territoire de Belfort, Haut-Rhin, Bas-Rhin, Vosges, Haute-Soâne, Aube, Seine-et-Marne, Orne, Calvados, Manche, Essonne, Yvelines, Paris, Val-d'Oise, Eure, Haut-Marne, Ain, Seine-Saint-Denis, Val-de-Marne, Hauts-de-Seine, Somme, Pas-de-Calais, Nord and Aisne. The alert is in place until 6am on Thursday.

Temperatures are forecast to remain very cold across northern France until the weekend.