Six pupils at the primary school have taken the initiative to create their own business called Sugar + Spice, which involves selling baked goods to raise money for their sports courts.
Pupils Jess Cleland, Daylee Byars, Bella Gardyne, Stevie Lamb, Georgia Bell and Emmie Paterson, all of whom are in year 7 or 8, comprise the group.
The group came up with the idea last term while playing games on the courts.
"Every time we had to set up four square for example we couldn’t see the lines on the courts so we would have to put cones out or something to mark out the games," Georgia said.
"With Mrs [Nicola] Millar we are always doing activities and playing games so when we would play we felt like the courts were a bit sad," Stevie said.
The group decided to do something about it.
The group had a couple of options to consider for the court upgrade and had not decided whether to get a turf mat to go over top of the courts or to re-paint the courts — both of which they identified as having pros and cons.
So far the group has raised about $300 and are hoping to raise more.
They have made crackle, lolly cake and bliss balls since beginning their business.
The group decided to work with Mrs Millar, the school’s principal, to brainstorm how to go about setting up their first bakes, which she sponsored.
The business is now self-sufficient and Mrs Millar just travels into Gore to buy ingredients with money from the group’s sales.
They sell chocolate crackle every Tuesday at school and they take orders from people in the community.
Other pupils are beginning to get involved and the group hoped they could keep it running even after some of them went to high school in future years.
Mrs Millar praised the group for their initiative and was supportive of their journey every step of the way.
"I’m so proud of their ability to unpack and delve into a problem like this and work towards making a solution," she said.
"Their business involves maths, communication, marketing and hygiene and it is amazing to see them work so hard for this."
The business also sells gluten-free options and considers dietary requirements for those who have them.
People can email the group at georgia.bell@waikaka.school.nz to place an order and for any inquiries about baking.
