It's not allowed to charge public (7)
I believe the answer is:
outward
'public' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'it's not allowed to charge' is the wordplay.
'it's not allowed' becomes 'out' (I've seen this before).
'to charge' becomes 'ward' (both can mean a child in one's care).
'out'+'ward'='OUTWARD'
(Other definitions for outward that I've seen before include "Away from centre" , "Draw out (anag.)" , "Young person thus bound" , "Externally facing" , "Towards the exterior" .)