14 Feb Young Chef 2026 Area Heat
In November and December, organised by High Wycombe Rotary Club, the prospective young chefs from six schools in the High Wycombe area took part in the first round of the Rotary 2026 Young Chef competition followed by the December ‘cook off’ to select three young chefs to go forward to the Rotary Area 1090 competition for a place of thee at the regional final.
Below is the report and the results of the a,rea heats.
The District 1090 heat of the annual Rotary Young Chef competition was held at Newbury College on Saturday, 7th February 2026 (with kind permission of the Principal & Chief Executive, Mr Lee Probert.)
The Rotary Young Chef competition is a national competition for young people between 12 and 17 with the challenge of producing a healthy two-course meal (main and dessert) for two persons with ingredients costing less than £18. The competition is arranged in tiers, with local Rotary Clubs organising their own competitions with local schools and nominating their winners to progress to the District final. Winners from District finals then proceed to a Regional final and then to the National final.
The five competitors, nominated by their local Rotary Clubs, were:
Cymbeline ATTWATER (16), from Downe House School, Thatcham
Francesca DANCE (15), from St Gabriel’s School, Newbury
Pavitar DHAMI (15), From John Hampden Grammar School, High Wycombe
Maisie MADELIN (14), from Princes Risborough School, Princes Risborough
Jacob McMAHON (12), John Hampden School, High Wycombe.
At the end of the two-hour cooking period, the candidates presented their efforts to the judges for tasting and marking.
Cymbeline presented ravioli with prawns with a parsley and garlic dressing followed by a matcha vanilla choux bun with mango puree.
Francesca presented a chicken-stuffed pasta with creamy mushroom sauce followed by lemon meringue pie.
Pavitar presented a shrimp bisque ravioli followed by Tiramisu.
Maisie presented Goan prawn curry with Pilau rice and Naan bread followed by fruit tart with crème patisserie
Jacob McMAHON presented Chicken Katsu Donburi with rice and soya sauce followed by dark orange and rum-flavoured chocolate pot
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The event was judged by Anthony MILLON, Catering Lecturer/Chef at Newbury College and Ian ALEXANDER, Chef & local businessman
The judges commented upon the high standards achieved and admired the calmness and focus of the candidates during the cooking. They noted the difficult task of identifying a winner with only one point separating the first two places. Each candidate received encouraging individual feedback from the judges.
The presentations of the prizes and certificates was undertaken by District Treasurer Mike Cole who is also President of Thatcham Rotary Club.
The winner of the event was judged to be Cymbeline ATTWATER, of Downe House School who received a certificate and £45 book token.
The Runner Up was judged to be Maisie MADELIN of Princes Risborough School who received a certificate and a £25 book token.
Both the Winner and Runner Up will progress to the Regional final of the competition which will be held at Harlow College on Saturday, 14th March.
Thatcham Rotary Club, who organised the event on behalf of District 1090, are extremely grateful to Newbury College for the use of its catering facilities. The event was generously sponsored by Newbury Racecourse and Levy UK & Ireland.
The valuable contributions of the judges was appreciated and the support of the participating schools and staff was gratefully acknowledged.
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