Beauty salons in the UK are offering bikini waxes to girls as young as nine, according to an investigation by a charity.
Some salons even offer to reduce the price of the hair-removal treatment by as much as £30 for younger girls, because they are 'likely to be less developed than older people.'
Just one in 25 salons refused to carry out the intimate procedure on a child, according to Rani Bilkhu, founder of the charity Jeena International, who claimed it is a 'form of cultural-driven abuse.'
Rani told The Metro that she was driven to investigate after hearing the shrieks of a nine-year-old having a bikini wax at a salon near her home in Slough.
She called salons posing as a mother trying to book a full 'Hollywood' wax for her nine-year-old daughter.
Just four per cent of the salons she contacted said they would not wax any child, while another four per cent refused to treat a child under 12.
"This raises further questions of normalising girls to culturally harmful practices, objectifying them, and girls not being allowed to celebrate their bodies changing," said Rani.
But Deborah Morris, from beauty salon group BABTAC, said waxing might be of benefit for a child who had gone through puberty at an early age.
She added: "We advise our members to assess the client on the basis of need."
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