A student at Henley College has died and two other young people are being treated following an outbreak of meningitis in Reading.

One of the cases has been confirmed as meningitis B (MenB), which was the same strain behind a cluster of fatal cases in Kent earlier this year.

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Close contacts of the cases are being offered antibiotics as a precaution, the the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said, as it reassured that the risk to the public currently remains low.

The student who died went to Henley College in Oxfordshire (Alamy/PA)

In a statement issued on Thursday, the UKHSA said that its specialists were “working with local authority and NHS partners following three cases of meningococcal infection (meningitis) in young people in Reading”.

The student who died in the latest outbreak in Reading attended Henley College in Oxfordshire, the Hart Surgery in Henley-on-Thames said.

“Dear patients. We have been in contact with the UK Health Security Agency this morning (14th May) regarding the very sad news that a student at Henley College has died with suspected meningococcal disease,” the GP surgery said in a statement.

“They have confirmed that they are actively contacting those who may be at risk due to a close association with the student involved.

“If you have not been contacted by the UK Health Security Agency, then currently you do not require any treatment. Staff and students have been advised they can attend the college as usual.

“The number of confirmed cases is very low so there are currently no plans for a local emergency meningitis vaccination programme.”

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Two students died in a meningitis outbreak in the Kent area in March – 18-year-old Juliette Kenny, who was described by her family as “fit, healthy and strong” before her death, and a University of Kent student.

File photo of a nurse during a disease outbreak (PA) (Image: PA)

Dr Rachel Mearkle, consultant in health protection, said: “We understand that many people will be affected by this sad news and would like to offer our condolences to the friends and family of this student.

“Students and staff will naturally be feeling worried about the likelihood of further cases, however meningococcal meningitis requires very close contact to spread and large outbreaks as we saw in Kent recently are thankfully rare.

“We are working closely with partners and have provided public health advice and precautionary antibiotic treatment to close contacts of the cases.

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“Meningococcal disease does not spread easily and the risk to the wider public remains low.”

Meningitis Now’s chief executive Dr Tom Nutt said: “Everyone at Meningitis Now is deeply saddened and concerned to hear reports of a suspected outbreak of meningitis affecting young people in Reading and the surrounding area, including the tragic death of a young person.

“We would urge people to remain vigilant and aware of the signs and symptoms of the disease. Meningitis can become life-threatening very quickly and early diagnosis and treatment are absolutely vital.”

Thames Valley Police said the banner hanging at the front of the Army Cadet Hall in Friday Street, Henley, was cut down by unknown offenders before being placed by the front door of the hall.

The incident occurred between Wednesday, May 6 and Saturday, May 9 last week.

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Police, file photo (Image: Police)

The police community support officer for South and Vale issued an appeal to locals who may have seen or captured footage of the incident.

A spokesperson for the force said: “If you have ring doorbell or dashcam, could you check to see if it covers the hall and kindly check any footage.”

The community support officers said they will be in the area next week and will knock on the doors of neighbouring properties to see if anyone saw what happened.

In the morning, there was more than four miles of almost standstill traffic northbound at the Milton Interchange near Didcot.

A van had crashed into the back of an black MG family car and when police shut the outside lane, motorists were backed up all the way to East Ilsley.

National Highways’ spokesman said delays lasted more than 75 minutes for motorists stuck in the worst of it.

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The crash also caused huge traffic for drivers approaching the interchange from Milton, Didcot and Steventon.

In the early afternoon, drivers were left frustrated with delays of up to an hour southbound between the Peartree and Botley interchanges.

A lorry had shed its load which resulted in a “very large” amount of rocks and gravel to be covered across lane one, National Highways said.

The clean up was completed some two hours later.