Cake sheds are making bakers £1,000 a week - but the dream might be over

You may have noticed one pop up near you. These small, cupboard-like "sheds" are usually jam-packed with home-baked goods that you help yourself to, and for which you are trusted to pay through an honesty box system.

Packed with cookies, brownies, old-school sprinkle cakes or lemon drizzle, they are usually found in front gardens, on driveways or by the roadside.

For some, the sheds are a side-hustle, while for others they're a booming business opportunity. But as the movement grows the sheds are coming under increasing scrutiny from some council officials.

"They are definitely becoming a feature in our landscape and are spreading from the countryside to the urban environment," says Bronya Seifert of Daisy Cake Company. "It's wonderful."

But the sweet trend could be under threat in some parts of the country, as some councils are considering enforcing tighter licensing rules.

Some dedicated cake shedders say if this happens they could be forced to close down.

One cake shed community online said it was getting up to 400 new members on Facebook a week.

"Over the past few months the group has grown exponentially," says Susanne Niess, of That's Cake by Susanne.

Danielle Edgington set up her cake shed in Kings Heath, Birmingham, eight months ago and it's proved so popular she has quit her job as a catering manager to work on it full time.

Before that she'd been selling her baked goods at markets, having launched a business during the Covid pandemic delivering afternoon teas and birthday cakes. She set up the shed to sell any spares.

"It's taken over my life," said the 41-year-old, who has been a chef for 20 years.

"I'd get up, I'd go to work in the morning and then I'd come home. I'd be baking all evening. So it just became too much.