THE boss of one of the country's biggest children's advertisement model agencies has revealed she was allowed to set up in business without any checks on her background.

Kathy Haslam, of reputable Manchester-based Kids, spoke out after an M.E.N investigation revealed that a complete lack of regulation means anyone can start any type of employment agency without being vetted.

Kids boss Kathy, 40, said when she and Wendy Crowther set up in 1999, they were amazed to be told there were no checks to be done.

She said: "We contacted the Department of Trade and Industry and we said we're here and we're a children's model agency you can check us out, run the police checks.

"We were appalled when they said `just carry on, there's no provision for licensing of you or accreditation' - especially because we are dealing with children black models."

Kids are the agents for two-month-old Holly Bowyer, of Little Hulton, Bolton, who plays Tracy Barlow's daughter in Coronation Street. They also provide Ben and Emma's baby in Hollyoaks.

The M.E.N revealed that rogue agencies trade on the hunger of vulnerable model wannabes. We exposed Nigel Read, boss of Perfect Image, a Manchester  commercial modeling agency which took money from an undercover reporter, leading her on for weeks with promises of work before finally "losing" all her details.

Source:http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/82/82671_child_models_checks_shock.html