High Street fashion chain New Look has defended a range of padded bikinis for girls as young as 9, after being accused of sexualising children.
The bikini, part of New Look's 915 range designed for young girls aged nine to 15, features a padded top.
Mum Vicky Snowdon spotted the bikini sets and shared a photo on twitter, commenting: "It's hard enough shopping for my daughters in New Look with the insistence on all the tops being cropped but, PADDED BIKINI BRAS?!
"Padded bikinis for 9 year olds. Really?"
"I was so angry and just baffled at the same time.," added Vicky. "Just why? I complained about it to the girl on the till but she didn't get it and it's not her fault. I only shopped in New Look because I had a voucher. Just awful."
The tweet was shared by 'feminist campaign group' Object, who said: "Stop sexualizing children New Look. It's wrong and damaging.
"Take them away. We OBJECT."
Commenting on Object's tweet, Louise Hersee said: "Girls just don’t stand a chance of a childhood do they?"
A spokesperson for New Look told the Mirror: “The bikinis in the New Look 915 range are designed with shaped foam cups to offer structure to the garment and to provide modesty for the wearer.
"This type of swimwear is widely available from other brands on the high street. We always listen to our customers and comply with all the British Retail Consortium (BRC) Responsible Retailing guidelines to create products that are age appropriate and best suit their needs.”
However, number of high street retailers, including Primark, vowed to stop selling padded bikini tops to children in 2010, following a Mumsnet campaign called Let Girls Be Girls.
