Fareham teen 'amazed' after raising more than £1,000 for charity with head shave

Havant and South Downs College student Holly Mault has been left ‘amazed’ by people’s generosity, with £1,004 raised for The Children’s Society.

As part of the head shave, which took place on January 29, Holly asked more than 100 students from her weekend Rugby Tots classes to also help choose a new colour for her new cropped look.

They wrote down their favourite things as inspiration and entered them into a raffle.

Holly, 19, said: ‘There were some very interesting entries, such as “washing machine” and “my little brother,” but ultimately the winner was “rowing.”

‘So inspired by rowing my hair was dyed a vivid blue. After picking the colour we moved right on to shaving my head, thankfully, I had my amazing friend Sebrina there with me to do the honours.

‘It was also lovely to be joined by Ian, a local volunteer for the charity, who at the end of the event gifted me with a surprise certificate.

‘It was awesome to have my students and donators supporting me during the event; there were some priceless reactions from some of the kids. It was a beautiful reminder of what a difference this money could make to the children and young adults that are helped by The Children’s Society.’

Holly chose to fundraise for The Children’s Society as a cause that is close to her heart.

‘The Children's Society supports young people facing abuse, exploitation and neglect,’ she said.

SEE ALSO: Portsmouth family to host fundraiser in memory of stillborn Arthur

‘Through specialist support they aim to create environments that enable young people to thrive, whether that's helping to put food on the table, providing professional mental-health support or campaigning to change laws to improve the lives young people, such as the recent school uniform bill.

‘Having personally lived through unconventional circumstances as a child, I want to do what I can to help The Children’s Society achieve its goals and spread awareness of how dreadfully common young people living through difficult circumstances can be.’

Holly’s friends and family have been ‘surprised’ by how much they like her new ‘do.

She added: ‘They’ve all been saying how it suits me much more than they thought it would.’

To donate to Holly’s head shave visit justgiving.com/fundraising/Holly-Mault.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

Subscribe here for unlimited access to all our coverage, including Pompey, for just 26p a day.