An 11-year-old boy raised more than £400 for charity while he was preparing to have his hair cut for the first time in two years.
Jake Smith, from Crickhowell, grew his hair for almost two years before having the chop so he could donate his locks to The Little Princess Trust.
Proud mum Jessica Smith said: “His hair was about 12 and a half inches when it was in a plait before he had it cut.
“This was all his idea. He’d seen one of the girls at school do it, and he came downstairs one day and he told me he was growing it for the Princess Trust which was in November 2017.
“He said ‘I can grow my hair, but those kids can’t’. For a nine-year-old, that was really pretty awesome.”
Jake has now had a tidy trim ready for when he starts high school this week.
While Jake received some criticism from other people who told him he “looks like a girl” prior to the cut, but Jessica said that he didn’t let it stop him.
She said: “He just told them that he was growing it for charity.”
The 11-year-old, who originally set out to raise £100 for St Michael’s Hospice in Hereford, has raised £412 at the time of writing – £493.75 including Gift Aid.
Jessica said: “He’s absolutely been overwhelmed by the support. Every time he gets a new donation, he’s so happy with it – especially considering the original target was only £100.
“He wanted to raise money for St Michael’s Hospice because they helped to look after his nana when she was poorly.
“I work for a care agency and we raise money for them as well, we’ve done a lot of charity for them.”
The Little Princess Trust is a charity which uses hair donations to create wigs for ill children who have lost their hair. St Michael’s Hospice provides a range or services to people with terminal illnesses.
Jessica said: “I think he’s now been growing it for so long, he was excited and he had been looking forward to it being easier to manage.”
You can still donate to Jake by visiting his Just Giving page here.