Nadiya Hussain has said she is "delighted" to be joining the new series of Junior Bake Off as a judge.

The Great British Bake Off 2015 champion will lend her knowledge to the CBBC programme alongside international chef and food writer Allegra McEvedy as they judge 40 young bakers on their quest to be the best.

The contestants, aged nine to 12, will each face two challenges over a series of 10 heats, concocting delights such as biscuits, cakes and pastries in their bid to succeed.

Like the original BBC series, the hopefuls will be tasked with the Technical Bake and the Showstopper challenges in the Bake Off tent, before they are whittled down from 40 to four for the grand final.

Hussain said: "I'm delighted to be joining Junior Bake Off as a judge. This time last year I was in the Bake Off tent and now I get to go back and help encourage the next generation to get their bake on.

"I am so excited to have this opportunity."

Susanne Rock, executive producer for Love Productions, the company behind the series, said: "As the winner of last year's Great British Bake Off, Nadiya proved herself to be one of the most talented, committed and hard-working bakers the tent has ever seen."

Rock added that Hussain "is an inspiration to many of the young bakers" taking part in the show.

Mother-of-three Hussain was crowned champion of the Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood-fronted baking programme last summer, and has since gone on to enjoy success as a baker in the media.

The 31-year-old released her first cook book, Nadiya's Kitchen, in June.

She also writes a column for The Times and made the Queen's 90th birthday cake.

Hussain will front her own TV show, entitled The Chronicles of Nadiya, which will see her trace her culinary roots in Bangladesh.