A COMPUTER whizkid is set to represent Britain at the final of an international programming competition.

Forest School pupil Diggory Blake, will travel to Canada this summer to take part in the International Olympiad of Informatics in Canada - after winning a place on the UK team.

The sixthformer will be one of four talented young techies to represent this country at the event after tasting success at the British Informatics Olympiad (BIO) - an annual computer programming competition for secondary schools and sixth form colleges.

George Paynter, a spokesman for the school in College Place, Snaresbrook, said: "After the elimination, round the top 15 competitors in the country were invited to the final.

"Diggory Blake was one of the top 15 and took part in the three-day final at Trinity College, Cambridge, during the Easter break.

"The first stage of the BIO was a three-hour exam, taken at school, in which students wrote algorithms and programs to solve problems. Based on the results of this exam, the top 15 competitors were invited to the BIO final.

"Diggory performed tremendously well in the final. He is now one of only four from the UK who will travel to Canada in the summer to take part in the International Olympiad of Informatics.

"Eighty countries will be represented in Canada, but it will not be all work - Niagara Falls is just one the the venues for rest and recreation."