John Richard

In the week that the Met Office revised its prediction of a "barbecue summer", find out how July 2009 compares with summers past.

There's no doubt July has been a washout, made more miserable by memories of last month's heatwave - if you live anywhere but the far north, that is.

The regional breakdown of July's weather (above) shows England, the South West and south Wales suffered the most, with above-average rainfall and below-average sunshine.

The only area to show (very slight) above-average sunshine was northern Scotland.

That's because the depression that caused the unsettled weather missed those in the Shetlands and Orkneys, who must be wondering what all the fuss is about.

The UK as a whole experienced a damp July.

The month's average rainfall was 121.3mm (until 27 July) - far above the average of 69.6mm.

Still, it's not the wettest July in the UK.

That record belongs to the year 1988, when 145.3mm of rain fell. And remember the floods of 2007 Two years ago, England and Wales suffered their wettest July on record with a rainfall of 136mm.

While rain has been coming down by the bucket-load, sunshine has been hard to come by.

The average amount of monthly sunshine for July is 174.3 hours and this year to date (27 July) we've had 149.5 hours. The sunniest July was back in 1955 with 256 hours.

While rain has been plentiful and sunshine scarce this month, the Met Office says temperatures up until 29 July have been slightly above average, with the far north doing better than other areas.

Only Wales had a slightly below-average maximum temperature - 18.3C compared with the average 19.1C.

Scotland show the best warmer-than-average maximum of 17.7C compared with its July average maximum of 16.9C.

And the outlook for August The Met Office predicts an "unsettled" start of the month and "near normal" temperatures, but is cautiously optimistic about a sunnier, drier late August.

Mean maximum July temperatures, 2001-2008

A toddler who sued one of the country's top family hotels for £4,000 has won a payout in an out-of-court settlement.

Sheonaidh Nisbet's parents took legal action against the owners of Crieff Hydro after she was left scarred during a break at the Perthshire hotel.

The three-year-old fell and cut open her chin while walking with her family in the grounds of the four-star hotel.

The girl's father, William Nisbet, said the settlement would be placed in trust for his daughter.

The family's legal claim stated that the hotel - which advertises itself as Scotland's most child-friendly - failed in its duty of care to residents.

According to court papers filed at Perth Sheriff Court, the Nisbets were walking with their children past seating outside the Brasserie Restaurant when Sheonaidh fell in May last year.

The court writ stated: "As Sheonaidh was walking she tripped, lost her footing and fell onto a protruding metal water service cover located on the grass. There was nothing to warn persons it was protruding from the grass.

"As a result of falling, Sheonaidh suffered loss, injury and damage."

Striking red hair

As a result of the fall, the three-year-old, who was described as "distressed, crying and in pain" and "bleeding profusely", was taken to casualty at Crieff Hospital.

There her wound was cleaned and paper stitches were applied.

Medical evidence submitted to the court said the child would be left scarred as a result of her accident, and that scarring would take longer to fade because of her striking red hair.

Mr Nisbet, from Kennoway in Fife, said: "We did what we felt was right and fair for our daughter. We have spent many happy times at Crieff Hydro and were saddened by their lack of concern following her injury.

"They never once enquired as to her well being. Our child is precious to us and should not be subjected to pain and injury from organisational neglect.

"Sheonaidh may opt to have cosmetic surgery in adulthood and this will be her choice. Her settlement in respect of her injury is safely placed in a trust for her until then."

The payout is believed to be in the region of about £2,500.