Jamie Oliver to start up school

Jamie Oliver. Photo / Supplied

He has tackled school dinners and tried to change the diets of an entire town, but now Jamie Oliver is setting his sights on improving education.

UK celebrity TV chef Oliver, who was himself dyslexic and left with few qualifications, is setting up his own school to help teenagers who have struggled to thrive.

The project will take place during the summer and will be filmed for a forthcoming Channel 4 series.

Oliver's production team Fresh One Productions have placed ads online searching for people in London willing to take part in the show.

Programme-makers are seeking applicants who may have been dyslexic or have been subjected to bullying.

They are also looking for teenage mothers.

The production company said it will be a school "with a difference".

A source said the project would involve "people who have not got on well at school for various reasons being offered the opportunity of something that is a little more inspiring".

Oliver began to move away from simply cooking on-screen when he launched his 15 restaurant in London in 2002, staffed by underprivileged young people who were trained as chefs.

The process formed the basis of a Channel 4 series.

He later launched his campaign to bar junk food from school menus with his Jamie's School Dinners series.

- NZPA