Thatcham and Compton pupils help break world record for largest cooking lesson

West Berkshire schoolchildren have broken a world record.

Sixteen pupils at Francis Baily Primary School in Thatcham have helped make history breaking the world record for the largest cookery lesson, led by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver.

Pupils across Years 1 to 6 joined 10,515 cooks across the world, beating the previous record of 6,778 set in November 2015.

More than 600 schools and venues across the country joined the live lesson via Zoom.

READ MORE: Francis Baily pupils join Jamie Oliver’s cookery class to beat historic national record

They worked in small teams to make pasta from scratch, complete with a tasty tomato sauce.

School business partner Jackie Wood said she is “very happy” the school beat the record.

Also celebrating are pupils at The Downs School in Compton.

Reflecting on the challenge, head of design and technology Tania Edwards said: “The students absolutely loved it and really embraced the challenge.

“We might be biased, but we think we made the best dishes of the day.”

In a statement, Jamie Oliver said: “I’m absolutely delighted that we’ve broken the Guinness World Record title for the largest cookery lesson ever.

“It just goes to show what an impact we can have when we come together to celebrate the joy of learning how to cook.

“We couldn’t have done it without everyone who joined the class, so thank you each and every one of you, and cheers to us.”