Dr Mark McCarthy added: “The warm year is in line with the genuine impacts we expect as a result of human-induced climate change.
“Although it doesn’t mean every year will be the warmest on record, climate change continues to increase the chances of increasingly warm years over the coming decades.”
A sequence of heatwaves starting in June led to the UK experiencing its fourth warmest summer on record, while temperatures broke the 40C mark for the first time, hitting a new record of 40.3C at Coningsby, Lincolnshire, on July 19.
The hot spell in July saw the Met Office issue its first ever red warning for extreme heat.
Wales also recorded a new daily maximum temperature record of 37.1C, while Scotland saw a new record of 34.8C.