A Brentwood salon is under fire for offering spray tanning treatments, hair cuts and nail polishes to children and babies.

The new Trendy Monkeys salon, whose launch concept is to serve the under 13s market, has received criticsim from various sections of society who argue it fuels the growing sexualisation of children. It provides special packages for those 'under 6' which includes a hair service and makeup application.

The news comes in the wake of a new government backed report which aims to protect children from raunchy music videos and inappropriate clothing.

The salon, which is featured in the hugely popular programme The Only Way Is Essex, is run by Michelle Devine who told the Daily Mail that, thanks to Trendy Monkeys, kids can "exude confidence, glamour and the desire to look her best at all times, regardless of age".

Some of her customers agree. Maxine Chinowaith, 11, a pupil at St Helen's Primary School in Brentwood told the Brentwood Gazette: "My dad came home from the gym and brought me home a leaflet, and that's how I heard about it. I like a lot of pink, and I will definitely come here again. I think I will try the make-up next time."

To please their younger crowd, Trendy Monkeys' hair stations come equipped with plasma TVs while the reception also functions as a 'play area'.

Disney have been doing this for years in their Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique which mostly seems to involve pulling hair back, putting some ribbons and stuff in it and covering them with glitter spray.

Really can't see the point myself.

Is it just a bit of fun or is it sending the wrong message? I think it's going to depend on the parent and the child. If the parent puts too much emphasis on looks-ism, then this could be a really bad thing. But if the parent treats this as just a princess-for-a-day type of thing, then it's really not a big deal.

Is your daughter a DIVA? Or is she just a normal little girl? Is she a Toddler In A Tiara? Or a tomboy? Are you a mom with stars in her eyes? Or a mom who thinks this would be a cute little day adventure? ........................

An article in my local paper told of the 'upset' caused to a woman who runs a pole dancing class for children, she bemoaned the fact that she had received a lot of hate mail after the story broke in a Sunday national newspaper.
She thinks it's just a fitness class and can't understand why people think pole dancing is linked to the sex industry
What I can't understand is why the parents of these young (under 10 year old girls) are not under investigation?
Make up for young girls should be a part of mummy daughter time, not something that 'gives them confidence' and pole dancing should stay in the sex clubs, I don't want talk to a 7 year old about pole dancing
Why oh why do some parents want to encourage their children to grow up so quickly. Isn't our would harsh enough?
What's wrong with little girls believing that the tooth fairy is real? Or dreaming about when they are grown up? Dreaming of the future is healthy, becoming an adult while still at junior school? So what's left for them to discover? What dreams will they have left if they do it all before they leave school?

I totally agree with you. I blame the mums personally. We all know kids today want it all and want it now but showing some restraint and having boundaries does not mean you love your kids any less than the mum who gives in and takes their daughter to a beauty salon, in fact quite the opposite I'd say. Everything nowadays seems to be centred on looks and image, what happened to aspiring to be a doctor/nurse/teacher and using your brain? nowadays alot of little girls idolise people like Jordan and TOWIE girls, who are only famous on the back of their looks. It is so so sad and the mums buy into the whole "image is everything" and create demand for kiddie beauty salons. So, you can't really blame the business woman for taking advantage of the situation, it' s the parents who create the demand.

With that in mind, quite a few in our industry are making money offering childrens' pamper parties doing makeup, hair and nails. Are we being hypocrits?

When I was little, we played with makeup. By played, I mean "smeared it all over our faces". Nowadays children are just as handy with a lipgloss as an adult woman. By all means, let kids play with makeup; just make sure they're not taking it so seriously. Beauty (especially in children) comes from within.

Children learn by copying/mimicking their parents so I can see why a little girl would find this fun. My daughter who is 4 loves to have her hair cut when I get mine done & I'm not ashamed to say my son who is 2 likes to grab a nail file while I'm doing my nails and attempts to file his nails, the problem comes when the fun is taken out of it & dressing up becomes a serious way of life. A bit of blue eyeshadow, pink nails, glitter spray & bows in hair is fun BUT fake tan & having make-up done like an adult would as far as I'm concerned is wrong and is sexualisation of young children, only further fuelling the sick minds that are out there ready & waiting to prey on our precious children

If it's done in a fun way as a 'princess for a day' treat and not a regular thing like adults then I see no problem, it is our responsibility as the parents to make sure it becomes nothing more

I agree. If done like that 'toddlers and tiaras' programme where the little girls wear full makeup and are spray tanned it looks, quite frankly, weird. Almost like the mums are trying to make their little girl attractive to the opposite sex which is quite disturbing. When you think about it when we put on full makeup, mascara, eyeshadow, smoky eyes etc, we are trying to look sexy and appealing so is that what they want from their kids? For their kids to look sexy and appealing? Super creepy. So no I don't have a problem with kids having a bit of glitter applied, lipgloss and glitter tattoos but full makeup and fake tan? Wrong under the age of 12. Although I don't think it's so bad on teenagers as through your teenage years you are trying to catch up on the latest trends anyway. I certainly was! But primary school kids should just stick to playing with their Polly Pockets and Barbies!

I also have a 4 year old daughter and there would be NO WAY on this earth i would be taking her to a salon like that! Please please let little girls be little girls..i mean spray tanning :/ its just damn ridiculous..my little girl would sooner go strawberry picking than play with make-up xx

That's a bit of a narrow minded comment. Have you actually been to a pole dancing class?
The ones ones run just for fitness are purely that.
Nothing sexual involved in any way.


Back to the thread, I just don't see how the hell this could work from a business point of view. Unless it's aimed at celebs or other parents with more money than sense.

Plus it must be a bit chaotic when the place is full of kids?!

I find this a really interesting thread to read. I do offer children's pamper parties but dependent on the age depends on the services I offer and I always discuss fully with the parent first, it's always subtle and tasteful and nothing like the adult make overs I do. I don't offer spray tans to under 16s unless it is specially requested I have a parent present the youngest I have tanned was 14 and that was for a dancing competition. Look forward to reading more

I was going to say there are a lot of area's where tanning, hair and make up are heavily used, a lot of them being the kind of things little girls do

Ice Skating, Gymnastics, Irish Dancing, Ballroom Dancing etc