The 18 finalists in the first Big School Bake Off competition supported by Stork in partnership with LACA have been announced.
With representatives from Unilever Food Solutions and LACA making up the judging panel, the judges were impressed with the skill and creativity demonstrated by school cooks and caterers in their favourite sweet bakes. All entries were judged anonymously and marked on strict criteria to get the final 18 who will take part in three semi-final heats at the LACA conference on Thursday 10 July. They are:
Heat one – 9.15am – 10.45am
Helen Mastin, The Deepings School, Peterborough
Lisa Marsh, Glenfall Community Primary School, Cheltenham
Sarah Butler, Charterhouse School, Godalming
Bryony Stearn, Chandlers Field Primary, West Molesey
Jacquelene Carrington, The American School in England, Thorpe, Surrey
Sharon Taylor, St Giles School, Croydon
Heat two – 12.00pm – 1.30pm
Amanda Barrett, Bodmin College
Beverley Paterson, Chirnside Primary School, Berwickshire
Natasha Wilkes, Victoria Road Primary School, Plymouth
Sharon Cundell, St Edward’s C of E Primary School, Plymouth
Angela Goodwin , The Berwickshire High School, Berwickshire
Sarah Medicott, Torbay School, Paignton
Heat three – 2.45pm – 4.15pm
Anita Henderson, Laurence Jackson School, Guisborough
Kelly Mileham, Cumnor House School, Haywards Heath
Heather Evans, Stocksbridge High School, Sheffield
Joanne Simpson, Yorkshire Primary Schools
Hazel Forrester, Godington Primary School, Ashford, Kent
Mary Clinton, Glenmoor and Winton Schools, Bournemouth
During the semi-final bake off, the contestants will have one and a half hours to bake their original recipe. They will be judged by a team of judges including TV Bake Off Winner, Jo Wheatley. Delegates at the LACA conference are invited to come along to the Pavilion Suite and watch the bake off sessions for themselves.
The eight highest scoring semi-finalists will then be invited to take part in the grand final at the Unilever Food Solutions’ Kitchen in Leatherhead in October.
Recognising talent and passion in school kitchens
James Allred, Channel Marketing Manager, Unilever Food Solutions comments: “We were delighted with the response to our first Big School Bake Off supported by Stork in partnership with LACA. We launched the competition as part of our own School Food Programme to recognise the great talent and passion we know there is in school kitchens. It seems the competition has really caught the imagination of school cooks and caterers. Not only did we have masses of entries, the standard was really high with some very creative use of ingredients. Baking is a great way to get the whole school involved in cooking. Not only does it gets the school cooks and catering teams using their key skills, it also encourages children to take greater interest in cooking and the food they eat.
“We’re really excited about the semi-finals when we will be able to see the school cooks really putting their skills to the test.”