'It's not always the 2.4 family'

Shelina Permalloo talks solo parenting and introducing diversity into kids' diets

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TV chef Shelina Permalloo has "started to feel more confident" in her identity as a single mum, saying she "recognised it resonates" with a lot of people.

The 43-year-old was the first woman of colour to win the coveted BBC One MasterChef title in 2012, by showcasing the food of her Mauritian heritage.

Mum to eight-year-old daughter Niyyah, Permalloo says being a solo parent can feel "relentless and exhausting".

"I don't want to have to cook a meal, then think about all the washing up, because the minute I put her to bed and the house goes quiet, I still have work to do [so] I don't want to be in the kitchen."

Although very proud to be a single mother, the chef says: "I actually only became confident saying it out loud when I realised what the problem was.

"When you're in a 2.4 family, you assume someone's going to take the bins out whilst you're cooking dinner, hopefully someone's bathing your child when you're cleaning up in the kitchen.