Woman's Hour - 01/10/2009

With Jenni Murray. A new breed of residential care homes for children is being introduced in the UK, which, it is claimed, will improve the chances of young people taken into care. They are based on a system used successfully on the continent, where 60 per cent of care leavers go on to higher education, compared to 6 per cent here. In the light of a series of shocking cases of abuse, including Baby P and the Doncaster brothers who have been found guilty of torturing two young boys, Woman's Hour asks if this model of care is the answer to breaking the cycle of abuse and neglect. Jenni Murray talks to the chief executive of Barnardos, who recently said that more babies should be taken away from bad parents, and hears from a new residential care home that has just opened in the north west of England. Have you got a 'cheeky little monkey' or a 'daddy's little princess'? Does your three-year-old have a top that says, 'Boys are better than girls'? Pre-school children's clothing has become an area where marketing, fairytale dreams and notions about girls and boys have combined to create a world of slogans, pink and blue, knights, dinosaurs, princesses and fairies. Are we defining children by their gender far too early, or should we just relax and let them enjoy the dressing up? To discus the issues, Jenni is joined by the journalist Viv Groskop and the parenting expert Sarah Ebner. To be recognised in the street and have her own makeup range was not what Lauren Luke expected when she set up a business selling cosmetics in her bedroom. It was her brainwave to post practical videos on YouTube, and it led to worldwide success. Her demonstration of Leona Lewis's 'Bleeding Love look' has attracted three million views to date. Not bad for a single mother who left school at 15. Lauren joins Jenni to talk about her phenomenal rise to success, and to give some makeup tips.