A young Hitchin girl is preparing for a brave and heartfelt fundraising challenge this weekend, after deciding to cut off her long hair to raise money for cancer research following her father's recent diagnosis.

Thea will take part in her "big chop" on Sunday (8th), cutting off her hair to raise funds for Cancer Research UK, while also donating her hair to The Little Princess Trust, which creates real-hair wigs for children who have lost their hair due to cancer treatment and other conditions.

Explaining her decision on her fundraising page, Thea said: "As some of you may know, my Daddy has recently been diagnosed with cancer so I wanted to do something to raise money to help him and others. So, I'm going to get my hair (I have a lot) chopped off and I'm going to donate it to The Princess Trust to make a wig for a little girl who has lost her hair because of cancer. I hope you can help me raise some money for cancer research and support me as I have the big chop!"

The challenge comes after a difficult time for the family following dad Pete's diagnosis, but Thea's response has moved friends, family and supporters across the community.

Her mum said: "Telling the kids about Pete's cancer diagnosis was very hard, but we've been touched by Thea's response, which was to try and help Daddy and others. She's very brave and has such a kind heart. We could not be prouder of her. We're also blown away by the amount of money she has raised and are grateful to all who have donated."

The fundraiser has already attracted strong support, with donations continuing to come in ahead of Sunday's haircut.

Residents wishing to support Thea's efforts and help fund life-saving research can donate via her Cancer Research UK fundraising page.

With her big chop just days away, Hitchin will be cheering on one very brave young fundraiser determined to help her dad — and many others — facing cancer.

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