Next is selling plus-size clothing for children as young as THREE years old
HEALTH campaigners have slammed the move, calling it a sign UK childhood obesity is at 'crisis point'
NEXT is selling plus-sized clothing for children as young as three, in a move that health campaigners have slammed as a sign that the UK's "epidemic of childhood obesity" is at "crisis point".
The range of “plus fit” children’s clothes at Next are for girls and boys between the ages of three and 16.
Jeans, tracksuit bottoms and school uniforms are available in the range which Next describes as styles that are “more generous through the waist and hips for a comfortable fit."
The waistband on the plus fit trousers for three-year-olds are 5cm larger than the standard 53cm on “age 3” trousers.
"Age 10 plus fit" trousers have a waistband of 69cm in size, compared to a 64cm measure on standard "age 10" trousers.
Childhood obesity is an pressing problem in the UK, with around a third of children leaving primary school overweight.
Tam Fry, chief exec of the National Obesity Forum, said: "Next isn’t setting a new trend, they are catering for the market.
“Mothers wanting to clothe their fat children just can’t find the clothes for them.
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"They are responding to the current state of affairs. It has been in a bad state for a long time but this just shows it has now gone beyond the point of a crisis.
“The UK is sitting on a time bomb of childhood obesity, children are several times fatter than they were in 2002."
Catering for fat children isn’t a new idea for the fashion industry, with online stores such as Sturdy Kids and More For Kids already supplying kids clothes in bigger sizes.
Next's clothing range is not new. The high street chain has stocked the Plus Fit "casual wear" range since 2007, and it is believed to be the only mainstream retailer to do so.
But other shops have been selling bigger school uniforms for some time now.
Marks & Spencer also have a "Plus" school uniform line aimed at children as young as their age “2-3” size.
In their plus size 2-3 year-old range, the waist is 22.5-23cm big compared to the regular size which is 20-20.5cm.
A Next spokesman told: "Our different ‘fits’ cater for children with different size waist and hips, taking into account that children come in all different shapes and sizes."
Meanwhile, John Lewis is trying to change the way we shop by offering customers the chance to stay the night in a mega-posh apartment in the store.
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