Nadiya Hussain steps down from role at primary school

The Great British Bake Off winner, who claimed the crown in 2015, revealed in a candid Instagram video that she left the role after just three months due to health concerns.

Nadiya, 41, has released several cookbooks since her win on The Great British Bake Off and has presented numerous TV shows.

This includes Nadiya Bakes, Nadiya’s Fast Flavours and Nadiya’s Simple Spices.

However, in June 2025, the celebrity chef told fans that the BBC had “decided they didn’t want to commission the show anymore”.

While broadcasters like ITV and Channel 4 had been in contact about a new series, Nadiya shared that it was “not something” she wanted to do at the time.

Instead, she changed career paths to work as a teaching assistant at a primary school, with the view to becoming a teacher in the future.

Nadiya Hussain steps down from primary school role

After a few months of working as a teaching assistant, Nadiya shared she had to step away due to health concerns.

In a post on Instagram, Nadiya said: “Hi guys, giving you a life update that you didn’t ask for but you are going to get anyway.

“So, as you guys know when the BBC cancelled my show, I was kind of at a crossroads, I wasn’t sure where I was going, what I wanted to do.

“I had loads of options, I toyed with lots of options, open a business, I could do a pop-up restaurant or kitchen, none of which appealed to me at the time.

“I’m still obviously publishing books, cookbooks, which I will always love but I kind of reluctantly, you know I was scared, really scared to apply for jobs.”

The experience led her to consider a long-held interest in working with children.

“I’ve always wanted to work with children in younger years as a teaching assistant and I applied for a few jobs, which in itself was difficult for lots of reasons,” she explained.

Nadiya was offered and accepted a role in a primary school.

She said: “I applied and got a job as a TA [teaching assistant] at a primary school and I’ve got to say, apart from raising my own children, it was one of the best jobs I’ve ever done.

“I loved every second of waking up in the morning with a spring in my step for these beautiful children.”

However, being in a school environment caused some issues for her health.

Nadiya suffers from fibromyalgia, a condition that causes widespread pain throughout the body.

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She said: “But unfortunately, doing a job like that as somebody with a weakened immune system, it just played havoc with my health.

“As you know, anyone who works in a school setting, there are lots of coughs and colds, bugs, and I just couldn’t get better.

“So, I was sick all the time and it got to the point where it was affecting my mental health and I just wasn’t performing, giving my best because I was always sick.”