Eight-year-old's charity cake stall shut down over permit rules
An eight-year-old's cake stall fundraiser was shut down for lacking a permit, despite having the site owner's permission.
Mischa set up her chocolate crackle shop at Hyde Park one morning. Mischa sold $1 treats and 50-cent cordial to raise money for homeless people.
Mischa had learned about profit and loss, bought a card reader, and opened a bank account. Mischa watched her confidence grow as customers queued.
An official from a stage show at the park demanded a permit and shut her down. He warned the breach risked cancelling the whole event.
While visitors and customers supported her with eye rolls, the moment stung. Her story is not unique.
Councils across Australia have closed similar small-scale charity stalls and children's ventures. The rules around temporary food stalls are unclear and ad hoc.
Yet the Australian Curriculum lists initiative, problem-solving and commercial awareness as skills young people need to develop.
- Eight years old
- Mischa's age
- $1
- Crackle price
- 50 cents
- Cordial price
- Hyde Park
- Location
Why it mattersYoung people learn real money and business skills from selling at a stall. Red tape shuts down these ventures and teaches the next generation not to bother. Yet Australia needs more entrepreneurial thinking.
AustraliaRegulatory uncertainty around temporary stalls discourages Australian children and youth from learning to run small businesses, at odds with the skills the education system says it wants them to build.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
