Dinner Lady Donates Long Hair to Charity

The new pixie crop is a total transformation for Sandra, but the real life change will occur for the recipients of her freshly cut hair. Rather than simply disposing of the hair, Sandra has arranged for her tresses to be sent to the Little Princess Trust where it will be turned into a wig for a child who suffered hair loss from cancer treatment.

Sandra also took the opportunity to raise £315 in sponsorship money that is to be donated to Macmillan Cancer Care.

And although the hair cut is dramatic, perhaps Sandra’s bravest decision was allowing her own sister Amanda complete the re-style.

Wigs for children

Little Princess Trust provides free, real hair wigs to children across the UK to help them regain their self-confidence after losing their own hair. The charity works with stylists and wig makers to create hairpieces that closely match the child’s own hair prior to loss.

Although the majority of the charity’s work is focused on helping children receiving cancer treatment, they also work with kids affected by other hair loss conditions, such as alopecia which often leads to patchy hair loss, and in some cases, complete baldness.

Just like cancer, Alopecia-related conditions are not age-related; in rare cases children have been born with a congenital form of the condition. Unlike adults however, the range of available treatments is limited, forcing young people to disguise hair loss, rather than being able to engage in a full programme designed to promote regrowth.

Totally reliant on donations

Real hair wigs are estimated to cost up to £2,000 each but, because of the support and hair donations they receive, Little Princess Trust is able to provide top-quality hairpieces to children who may otherwise be unable to afford them.

To help as many as children as possible, donations are accepted from anyone (male or female) so long as the donated hair is at least 7” (17cm) long. For more information about making a donation see the hair donation guidelines on the Little Princess Trust's website.

Donated hair is never sold on but goes directly into making wigs for children.

For Sandra Garner, the new hair style has helped to give her self-image a boost and helped a child somewhere receive a boost of self-confidence. “Everyone has said they like it, and some say it makes me look younger,” she concluded.

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