A NEW spa and pamper party venue for girls aged four to 17 in Bingley is going from strength-to-strength and is also trying to spread the message of body confidence among young girls.

Delightful Divas, based in Main Street, Bingley is the brainchild of local businesswoman Janet Hunter and Rebecca Doyle.

It offers treatments and spa parties to girls, with treatments ranging from make-up tutorials, skin care treatments, and manicures and pedicures.

Mrs Doyle, who is married to former Bradford City goalkeeper Colin Doyle, said the business is also putting a big emphasis on tackling unrealistic body image expectations some girls have due to social media, and focuses on empowering girls to be body-confident and embrace their inner and outer beauty.

Mrs Doyle said: “I have three children, and the middle one is a daughter, and it became apparent there was not much for girls in her age group to do.

“She was always playing with my make up and I was working in a spa, and people would always ring up asking for children’s treatments.

“My business partner said she was doing a children’s spa day at home, and I thought it would good to have a venue for them to be pampered and feel like princesses.

“We started just to do parties, but we have noticed listening to what the girls speak about it’s quite alarming. They are watching YouTube and are on Instagram and Snapchat, and what they are seeing as the correct body image is not right.

“We started going to Brownies to do self-confidence workshops and promoting that it’s not just what is on the outside, it’s what’s on the inside. Being beautiful is not the stereotypical type, everyone is beautiful in their own way.

“We encourage girls to tell each other what is beautiful about them. They started saying hair or eyes, but we encouraged them to focus more on the inside, such as being funny or kind. Beauty is not just physical.”

The Delightful Divas duo have started going into schools to speak to girls to show them what they seen on social media is not all it seems, and to show them the damage posting hurtful or abusive comments can have on people.

“It’s not right to put nasty comments out there, because that comment is imprinted in someone’s mind forever then. We tell them what they should be saying instead.”

Another major issue the firm is now aiming to tackle is the issue of period poverty, where young girls’ families cannot afford sanitary products. Mrs Doyle said it all stemmed from a conversation with her own mother.

“I was speaking to her about period poverty, and she said she had seen an advert and I should contact them,” Mrs Doyle continued.

“I spoke to Always and Tampax and they said they would be interested in doing a campaign and sent over some packs to take into schools to show girls how then can get hold of products, and we are hoping more schools will bring us on board.”

With business booming – they are fully booked until Christmas – Mrs Doyle said the firm is looking to do even more work promoting self-confidence and self-esteem in children.

She said they are looking to work with Yeadon-based charity Mermaids, which supports transgender and gender-diverse children.

She said: “We would like to work with them to help children explore make up, and to help them be who they really are in the salon.

“The salon is not just for girls, we have a 12-year-old boy who works with us who is passionate about make up and cheerleading, we want it to be an inclusive safe space.”

On Friday, November 16, for Children in Need, the Delightful Divas team will be travelling round schools painting spots on children’s faces in aid of the charity appeal.