A BRAVE ‘Rapunzel’ sacrificed her locks with her first ever haircut yesterday, which is destined to raise thousands of pounds for charity.

Barnard Castle Preparatory School pupil Mila Johnson stood before more than 200 classmates and staff while she had almost 2ft of ponytail cut off to help children who have lost their hair.

The six-year-old schoolgirl hopes to raise £10,500 with the sponsored haircut, performed for free by Shine salon owner Wilson Derbyshire.

Mila, who is half Russian and known as Rapunzel to her many friends, smiled bravely as 56cm of her 84cm long hair was cut off and re-styled.

“It feels really light without it,” said Mila, who decided to stage the charity event after reading about the plight of children who lose their hair through illness.

“It will be much better to brush and wash and play ball games.”

Her mother Oxana was on hand to support her and finally get the lock of hair needed for her box of keepsakes.

She said: “My heart was racing and I was ready to jump in and hug her if she needed me. But in the end she was absolutely fine. She has been so mature helping to organise the event and, I think, so brave having it done.”

Mila’s ponytail and sponsorship money will be donated to the Little Princess Trust, which pays for real hair wigs for young people who suffer hair loss as a result of conditions such as cancer and alopecia.

Anyone still wanting to sponsor Mila can visit justgiving.com/Milascharityhaircut/ or drop into the school office to complete a sponsor form.