A BARRHEAD schoolgirl has had her long locks chopped and donated to charity so they can be made into wigs for children with cancer.

Seven-year-old Lilly Jamieson had 10 inches of hair snipped off just before she headed back to St Mark’s Primary for the new term, raising more than £1,100 for the Little Princess Trust (LPT) in the process.

The hair had to be plaited before it was cut and ready to be shared with LPT, while the money will go towards helping the charity continue to provide real-hair wigs free of charge to those who need them.

Lilly’s proud mum Hayley Caldwell told the Barrhead News: “She wasn’t even nervous, despite the amount of hair being taken off. In fact, she was really excited because of how hot she had been all summer as her hair was so long. 

“I’m so proud of her. She was buzzing to do it. It’s something we had been speaking about for a while. We set up a PayPal for anybody who wanted to donate, which I have closed now, and her dad Michael’s mum Rosie works in the Victoria Bar, in Rutherglen, and she was able to get a good amount of sponsorship from the regulars.

“We would have been happy enough to raise funds for one wig, which is £550, but now she is sitting at £1,100 and that’ll cover the cost of two whole wigs.

“She has done amazingly well.”

Lilly got the idea to donate her hair after seeing a programme about children with cancer earlier this year and wanting to do something to help.

She had planned to brave the shave at a salon in Barrhead but, unfortunately, the hairdresser was unwell on the day. 

Primary three pupil Lilly was, however, determined to see the haircut go ahead on time and Hayley put out a plea online to ask for help.

The pair were very grateful when Kimberly McIlreavy, who is from Barrhead and runs Bespoke Hair Lounge, in Clarkston, stepped in at the last minute to chop Lilly’s locks for free.

Kimberly said: “It was an absolute pleasure to do her haircut for such a great cause.

“What a lovely young girl Lilly is and she should be so proud of herself, as she will have made another little girl very happy.”

Wendy Tarplee-Morris, founder of the Little Princess Trust, added: “We are incredibly grateful to Lilly for thinking of us.

“This terrific help means we can continue to provide real-hair wigs to children and young people at a very difficult time in their lives.

“We know our wigs help to restore the confidence and identity of the young recipients but we can only provide this service thanks to the selfless acts from brilliant supporters like Lilly.”

To find out more about the charity, visit Little Princesses.