BUSINESSES in Oxford hope to reap the benefits of an Indian summer over the next few days after a dreary couple of months.

Sun worshippers in the city were warned to get their ice cream and sun hats at the ready with temperatures set to sizzle.

Today and tomorrow the mercury may rise to 25°C.

And by the weekend it could be as high as a 27°C, about 10 degrees more than the average temperature for the county at this time of year.

Met Office forecaster Helen Chivers said: “From today through until the weekend, you will probably not see a cloud in the sky.

“It looks like unbroken sunshine for three or four days.”

It is good news for tourism businesses after a wet and miserable few weeks.

Sally Tee, manager of George and Delila ice cream parlour in Cowley Road, Oxford, said: “It’s a bit unexpected because we had a bit of a poor summer.

“Businesses like ours are extremely weather dependent, and sales fluctuate according to different kinds of weather.”

Heather Armitage, from Visit Oxford, urged people to take advantage of the sunshine to explore the city and county.

She said: “Beautiful weather means beautiful weather to enjoy Oxford and Oxfordshire.

“The buildings look stunning, the gardens are lovely as the leaves are turning.

“It’s wonderful news and a lovely break because we haven’t had a very good summer.”

The unseasonably warm weather is down to an area of high pressure coming in from Europe.

But it’s not all good news.

Water levels in the River Cherwell in Oxford are low, and algae is forming, although not yet to dangerous levels, according to the Environment Agency.

Spokesman Joe Giacomelli said: “August was wetter than average, but signs of the dry spring and previous dry winter are still evident in some river flows and groundwater levels across Oxfordshire.

“Rainfall over the past three months has prevented the impacts of drought, but winter rainfall is needed for groundwater-fed rivers to fully recover.”

He said plans were in place to cope with dry spells and warned low river flows could harm wildlife.

He said: “We have stepped up our monitoring to be able to respond quickly to these risks.

“We are working with farmers and others to balance the water needs of people, businesses and the environment.

“It’s important that we all use precious water wisely at all times of the year, especially during dry periods.”

Salters Steamers, which is based in Oxford’s Folly Bridge and runs boats and punts along the waterways, was predicting a boost despite low water levels.

Manager Paul Salter said: “Our main season is over but we are hoping the nice weather predicted will make us a bit busier.”