A junior school pupil is the fourth to contract meningitis after sixth-form student Lewis Waters, from The Henley College in Oxfordshire, died last week and two others fell ill10:37, 19 May 2026Updated 11:00, 19 May 2026A fourth case of meningitis has been confirmed in a junior school pupil amid an outbreak in Reading that saw one child die.‌The pupil is among a group of students who contracted Meningitis B (MenB), including Lewis Waters, from The Henley College in Oxfordshire, who died last week.‌Two further patients being treated for the infection are pupils at separate schools in the area - Reading Blue Coat School and Highdown Secondary School and Sixth Form Centre.‌Dr Rachel Mearkle, consultant in health protection at the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said: "A fourth case of meningococcal disease has been confirmed in Reading."This fourth case has links with the same wider social network as the other cases, where measures, including antibiotic prophylaxis, have already been implemented."‌The individual, whose age has not been revealed, is a pupil at Westwood Farm Junior School and is recovering well, Dr Mearkle added."The risk to the wider public remains low and this case is not linked to the incidents in Kent or Dorset," she said.Sixth form pupil Lewis Waters "fought hard" after catching meningitis but developed sepsis and tragically died last week "within a few hours of feeling a bit ill," his father Sean said.‌In a social media post on Sean Waters paid tribute to his son and wrote: "Words simply can't describe the heartbreak and upset we're going through." He added: "[Sean] fought hard and was really taken care of by the ICU [Intensive Care Unit] team, but they just couldn't save him."He said his son was "funny, sociable and kind-hearted", and "loved his sisters, friends and family dearly", adding: "Life won't be the same for many of us now that he's gone."The latest cases of meningitis in Reading follow a major outbreak in Kent that killed two people and left more than a dozen others needing hospital treatment in March.‌18-year-old student Juliette Kenny tragically died on March 14 following the outbreak in Kent - just a day after she first started showing symptoms of meningitis.Juliette was a year 13 student at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School in Faversham, and was described by her father Michael Kenny as “fit, healthy and strong” before her death.‌An unnamed 21-year-old University of Kent student also died in the outbreak in March.Meningitis can affect anyone but babies, young children, teenagers and university students are considered among the groups most at risk due to close contact in schools, nurseries and shared accommodation.Symptoms can appear suddenly and in any order, according to the NHS, but some symptoms may not appear at all.Article continues belowThey include a high temperature, severe headache, vomiting, confusion, drowsiness, a stiff neck, sensitivity to light, cold hands and feet, severe muscle pain and a rash that does not fade under pressure.