A NATIONAL sales manager at a Steeton company is having her head shaved to raise money for charity.

Caren Larkman-Ayre will lose her shoulder-length auburn hair next month, in support of Marie Curie.

The 38-year-old, who works for Acorn Stairlifts, aims to coin-in £7,500 for the cause – and has already raised more than £4,700 through her online Just Giving page, at justgiving.com/fundraising/caren-larkman-ayre.

Caren said: “After what’s been a rubbish year for everyone I decided I wanted to do something special – something selfless, something drastic and something to benefit others.

“So I decided I would shave my head to raise as much money as I possibly can.”

Choosing a charity to benefit was easy.

Acorn has a long-standing national charity partnership with Marie Curie, donating up to 60 free stairlifts a year so patients can be cared for in their own homes.

Caren added: “Having seen first-hand the work that Marie Curie nurses and staff do to care not only for the patients but their families too, I couldn’t think of a charity I’d like to support more.”

Like many charities, Marie Curie has been hit hard financially by the impact of the pandemic, with its shops closed and large-scale fundraisers and public collections cancelled. March is usually the charity’s busiest month, when it stages its annual Great Daffodil Appeal. For more about Marie Curie, visit mariecurie.org.uk.

Caren – who will undergo her headshave at the Acorn Stairlifts head office on April 23 – is also donating her hair to the Little Princess Trust, which provides free real-hair wigs to children and young people who have lost their own hair through cancer treatment.