Among these teams are first time entrants Richmond upon Thames, Northampton, Leicester, Doncaster and Londonderry. Joining them are the competition’s veterans University College Birmingham, winners in 2011, and Westminster Kingsway College, which took the top spot in 2012, as well as many others.

Commenting on their chances at this year’s competition, Mark Rooksby, tutor for the Leicester College team, said: “We are delighted to have made it through to the heats of such a prestigious competition and are especially excited to be the first team from our college to have done so; quite a few first-time teams have won so we are feeling lucky this year.”

Neil Stephens, managing director of Nestlé Professional UK&I, added: “The level of knowledge, skill and passion from the teams entering Toque d'Or never fails to impress. As we now move in to the hotly contested heats stage, I would like to wish every competing team the very best of luck.”

The 30 teams now go on to compete in Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Bristol or London, with just six teams going through to the finals that take place from March 6-9.

The teams for the heats are as follows:
Ayshire College, Ayr Campus
Ayrshire College, Kilmarnock Campus
Basingstoke College of Technology
Bradford College
City College Norwich
City of Glasgow
Coleg Llandrillo
Doncaster College
Gloucester College
2 Teams from Hartlepool College of Further Education
Hull College
Kendal College
Leicester College
Liverpool Community College
North West Regional College (Londonderry)
Northampton College
Richmond upon Thames College
Salford City College
South Downs College
South Regional College (County Armagh)
2 Teams from South Thames College
University College Birmingham
2 Teams from University of Buxton, Birmingham
Walsall College
Westminster Kingsway College
2 Teams from York College of Further & Higher Education