WHEN 12-year-old Amelia Hambleton decided to lose her locks for charity she inspired a form tutor at her school to copy her.
Amelia’s 12 inch blonde plait will be used by The Little Princess Trust to make a wig for a child with cancer, and Year 8 form tutor Vicki Smithson, an English teacher at Haslingden High School, has now had her red hair cut into two 9 inch plaits and donated the hair to the same charity.
Mrs Smithson also used the haircut to support Macmillan Nurses and so far has raised £450.
She said: “My sister-in-law has been raising money in memory of her mother and I wanted to so something help.
“My mother-in-law was a Macmillan Nurse and after she retired last April she was diagnosed with stomach cancer and she had three weeks with her family before she died.
“It hit us all quite hard but without the Macmillan Nurses we would not have been able to have her with us. They were amazing and supported the whole family.
“My sister-in-law is running a marathon and is 40 per cent of the way towards her goal of £6,200 for Macmillan – £100 for every year of her mother’s life.
“I managed to raise £450 for Macmillan thanks to the support of staff, students and friends.
She said her new shorter haircut had received lots of compliments.
Last week around £80 of the money raised by Amelia, which had been held at the hair salon Ward and Co in Haslingden, was stolen in a burglary however, a kind pensioner called in and handed over a cheque for £50.
Amelia said: “I am very grateful to the man who donated the money. So far with all the donations I have now raised nearly £700 for the Little Princess Trust.”