Little Princess trust are delighted to be able to accept hair donations from anyone wishing their hair to be used to help children suffering hair loss due to cancer treatment and other causes.
If you have long hair and are thinking about getting it cut, then please read our frequently asked questions below then follow these steps;
- Ensure you have at least 10”-12” of clean, good condition hair.
- Hold the hair tightly whilst cutting it and securely tie the follicle end of the
hair ensuring all the hair is lying in the same direction.
- Package the hair in such away that it cannot become tangled.
- Send it to;
Little Princess Trust
Unit 6
Churchward Trading Estate
Barrs Court Road
Hereford
HR1 1EN
A Great big Thank you!
If you are sending your hair to The Little Princess Trust, Thank You!
Unfortunately we can no longer write to each donor indivudally to thank you due
to the amount we receive so please accept this as a Thank You from everyone at
the charity and please rest assured your hair will soon be in the hands of the
skilled wig makers who will be using it to make hair pieces for children who've
lost their hair due to either cancer treatment or allopecia.
Hair donation frequently asked questions
What is the minimum length of hair you accept?
10” (25cm)
Can you guarantee it will be used?
No, once the hair goes to China, the wig makers make the ultimate
decision on what hair to use for a particular piece. They offer no
guarntees on what they use other than to say that the hair we send will only be
used for our purposes.
Is hair donations useful?
Yes. The hair is used and the wig makers find it invaluable.
However as a charity, the price we pay for wigs is fixed, regardless of the hair
we send so fundraising is still very important so we encourage everyone donating
their hair to run a sponsored event. The sponsorship form is on the
fundraising
page.
I would like to do a sponsored hair cut as part of the hair donation, how can
you support me?
We are always delighted to receive hair donations and even more delighted
when people raise money for the charity too. Running a sponsored hair cut
is surprising easy and the money raised along with your hair really could make a
big difference to a child. Please visit our
fundraising
page for all our fundraising resources and further information, from here you can
enter details of your fundraising event to advertise it on our website.
I have very old hair, do you still accept it?
Hair doesnt age badly once cut, so please send hair less than 10 years
old. Please don't send hair greater than 10 years old.
My hair is grey, shall I send it?
The hair we receive is only used to make childrens wigs, so please only
send hair that is useful for this purpose. Blonde and brown are most
useful
What about layered hair?
Please ensure the shortest layers are at least 10". We will not be
able to use hair shorter than this.
Will I get a receipt when you receive my hair?
Unfortunately we can no longer write to all hair donors due to the
amount we receive, we will of course still write to thank financial donors and
if hair is sent along with a donation, you will receive a personal thank you.
Why did you stop sending thank you letters for hair donations?
We have always felt thanking our supporters is one of the most
important things we do and we continue to thank all our financial supports,
however we now receive more and more hair only donations and as a charity run by
volunteers its becoming increasingly difficult to find volunteers who are able
to give that much time to write to so many people each day. This was a
very difficult decision for the charity and it wasn't taken lightly but it's a
step we've needed to take. If in the future we get more volunteers on
board, we may be able to start it back up again.
If you're no longer sending thank you letters, how will I know if my hair
has been received?
We would ask people to send hair registerred post so you are able to
check with the post office although we will still be recording the names of all
the donors so are able to check if necessary
Can you accept shorter hair for boys wigs?
No, unfortunately all hair must be at least 10" in order for the wig makers
to be able to work with it. We will not be able to use hair shorter than this.
Do you accept hair from the USA / Other countries?
Yes, we accept hair from anyone although we can only help children in the
UK. Please just add UK to the end of the address.
Where are your wigs made?
Our wigs are custom made, mostly in China using the hair we supply.
Will my donated hair only be used for children?
Yes, all the hair we provide to the wig makers is allocated for our use
only.
Do you ever sell hair?
No. We never have and never will.
How much hair does it take to make a wig for a child?
Typically around 12oz of hair is required to make one wig. That’s about 10 average
sized pony tails.
Do you need specific colours and hair from specific ethinic minorites?
We need all hair from all ethnic groups and of all colours.
Do you accept coloured / bleached hair?
Yes. However, please could you include a note with it explaining exactly what treatments the hair has had.
Why do you accept bleached hair when others dont?
We don't know why others dont, our wig makers in China tell us that
bleached hair is still useful providing they know it's bleached.
My child is already receiving chemotherapy and I’m cutting their hair before it
falls out. Do you accept hair from children undergoing chemotherapy / radiotherapy.
Yes.
Will you be able to give me any details of the child who eventually benefits from
my hair?
Unfortunately we cannot give any details about ultimately who receives
donated hair.
Why can’t you tell who will receive my hair?
The hair is sent to factories all over the world, hair we send is marked for
our purposes only but there are no processes in place to inform us where the hair
came from that made the wigs we supply. It is likely that hair from a large number
of people will be used to make one wig.
Additionally, we are very sensitive about the children we help, we never give
out any of their details without express permission from them and their parents.
You didn’t used to accept hair, why not?
We have in the past received a lot of hair which at that time was more than
we needed, however as the charity is growing, we have greater demand for hair and
also, we have changed our procurement process
so that nearly all our wigs come from
the same source.
Who does the hair get sent to?
The hair gets sent to Caroline Mifflin who sorts and re-packages the hair which is then sent directly to the factory in China. We work with Trendco wigs for all aspects of hair donation.
If you require any further information regarding Hair donation,
please contact
Simon Tarplee
