The Duchess of Edinburgh rolled her sleeves up to get cooking and it turned into a moment described as ‘once in a lifetime’ by her fellow chefs.

Sophie was in Barleylands in Essex to focus on food but as she got busy in the kitchen, she made some dreams come true.

She was joined by local schoolchildren from St. Cedd’s in Chelmsford and Manor Primary School in Dagenham for a Kitchen Classroom at Barleylands, nestled in beautiful fields just outside Billericay.

They were all learning how food is grown and the journey it has to take to get from the field to someone’s plate. And as they tried their hands at making pizza and ice cream, Sophie gave them some tips and help.

Later, the school pupils described their royal cookery class as a ”once in a lifetime experience”.

The royal visit also marked a special time for Barleylands Farm and Village as it reaches forty years of educating children in Essex and east London.

Later, the Duchess of Edinburgh met some of the birds of prey looked after at Barleylands and had a go flying a barn owl.