Ten-year-old Martha Payne has made a name for herself by blogging her school dinners, standing up to how kids are fed and fundraising for better meals. Here, she talks about charity, chickens, and chefs.

When are you happiest? Sat around our kitchen table with my family and friends. It gets really loud as everyone talks and eats. Dad cooks in our house and my favourite he makes is haggis lasagne. I love sharing food from our smallholding with my friends.

Describe your typical day On a school day I have to be downstairs for breakfast by 8am. I make my own omelette some days and if there are no eggs I go feed the hens and see if they have laid. I put cheese in my breakfast omelette and I use two eggs. After school I do athletics, scouts and music. I like to write and often fall asleep with my book in my hand.

What can’t you live without? Food! That’s why I like helping Mary’s Meals as much as I can so that children around the world can get a great lunch at school. I think about food a lot because I enjoy it but a lot of children think about food a lot because they don’t have enough.

Who is your food hero? That’s hard to answer. I am a big fan of Jamie Oliver, Nick Nairn and Monica Galetti. They are all nicer in real life than on television. I think anyone that cooks for their family is a hero. I do it once a week and that’s hard enough!

What do you make of your fame as a result of your blog? My friends treat me the same and so do my family. I don’t think I am famous. I do like talking to lots of children from around the world about school dinners. We only grow once and I am glad my blog has got people thinking.

What’s your greatest achievement so far? Fund raising for Mary’s Meals. My JustGiving page is nearly at £130,000 and I hope my book has raised more to add to that.

Tell us your greatest challenge with NeverSeconds. Standing up to the bullies at school. When the council banned me it was difficult for a while. I wish all children had the right to photo their food because it’s hard to be the only one.

What would be your perfect school dinner? I’d like to eat off a plate and not a tray. Not to get moved from table to table so they can get cleaned. To sit the whole lunch with my friends and talk without rushing for the next year group to come in.

Do you think kids should be taught how to cook in school? Yes but not just cakes! There are meals we can learn at school which we can cook at home for our parents. The kitchen and dining hall are great classrooms.

Complete the sentence: “When I grow up…” I want to be a journalist because asking questions is easier than answering them.