Girl group Little Mix have come under fire for their provocative outfits and more mature presentation with this new 'Glory Days' album era, but they have been praised as role models by the Huffington Post this week. 

In a new article for the online news platform, writer Kate Beavis explains that their boldness, ambition and passion makes them perfect examples of people her own daughter should be looking up to. 

Addressing the recent backlash after Little Mix wore leotards on The X Factor, she writes: "It really is time to stop telling women what they can and cannot wear and slut shaming them for bearing flesh. The outfits were pretty similar to what girls wear for gymnastics and were costumes for a huge performance."

Beavis adds that there's nothing more inspiring than women following their dreams and she hopes this level of dedication and drive will influence young women everywhere: 

"To me they are four strong, confident women with flawless vocals, who won a national competition, watched and judged by millions. They are following their dream, and are now one of the biggest bands in the world. To me this is a great role model - achieving, using their talent, following their passion, with tonnes of strength and doing all that with their mates; if my daughter manages just some of this when she is older then I will be a happy mum."

"My daughter has many role models that she looks up to. She admires her teacher, strong fictional characters in books, her mum, her grandma, sportswomen - and it is our job as a parent to ensure that they are open to all positive influencers around them. In life, she will see far worse than four girls in pants strutting their stuff, believe me."

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Watch the girls performing live here: