A LOCHGELLY woman braved the chop and said goodbye to her long locks to raise more than £400 for charity.

Lucy Kennedy, 23, wanted to do something after her mum suffered a stroke and decided on cutting 16 inches off her hair, asking people for donations for the Stroke Association.

"My mum had a stroke in October 2014 and I wanted to raise money to say thank you to everyone who supported her and helped her get better," said Lucy. "It was quite a fright, we didn't expect it to happen. She just thought she'd slept funny because she felt numb and couldn't grip things. The next day it was still like that and she ended up going to hospital. It was quite a scare, hearing the word 'stroke'.

"Now she's pretty much back to normal, we feel really lucky. Every now and again you think it could have been a lot worse, so I wanted to raise money for other people that go through it."

For Lucy, who's always had long hair ever since she was young, it was a nerve-wracking moment sitting in the hairdresser's chair but she's glad she went through with it.

"It was starting to annoy me," she said. "I was always lying on it or catching it on things, and there was hair all over the house. I always said the only way I'd ever get it cut would be for charity.

"I was so nervous for the whole day. I got to the hairdressers and I couldn't believe I was doing it. I started crying when she cut it but when it was done and I gathered myself I really liked it. It's a nice change and I'm glad I did it.

"I donated it to the Little Princess Trust, because I thought why not give it to someone who really wants or needs it? It was a nice extra thing to do.

"My mum said she was so proud of me. She's the best person in my life and I was thankful I could do something for her.

"So far I've raised more than £400, which is fantastic. I can't believe how kind everybody has been. I'm so thankful for everyone who donated and supported me – my whole family was there on the day."