A pupil at the Kings of Wessex Community School has been diagnosed with swine flu.

Headteacher Chris Richardson revealed on the school's website that one of his pupils has contracted the virus.

In a letter to the parents and carers of pupils published on www.kowessex.co.uk, Mr Richardson said: "I am writing to inform you that there has been a confirmed case of one student at the Kings of Wessex School contracting the swine flu virus.

"The advice that we have received from Somerset County Council and Taunton and Somerset Health Protection Agency is that the school should remain open and that students should attend school as normal."

He added students and staff have been informed and have been told about what steps they can take to reduce the risk of catching or spreading flu.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified swine flu as a Phase 6 - the highest level of warning, deeming it a continually spread virus among people globally and officially a pandemic.

There are now 7,500 cases of swine flu in the UK

Health secretary Andy Burnham said that cases are doubling every week and if it continues at this rate there could be over 100,000 cases per day by the end of August.